Score: 5/5 Bookmarks

I listened to the audio book of Michelle Obama reading Becoming and it was SO good y'all. At the beginning, while she's talking about her childhood, I was so enthralled that I didn't want her to move on to anything else, but each section was more interesting that the last.

And possibly it's just the genius of Michelle, but I found myself thinking (often) that we had so many similarities in our upbringing, our values, and way of thinking. Of course I could never compare myself to her or the things she has achieved, but she has a way of making you recognize yourself in her I think.

Plus her wonderful writing and audio performance certainly didn't hurt. Definitely worth a read if you haven't already!

Synopsis

In a life filled with meaning and accomplishment, Michelle Obama has emerged as one of the most iconic and compelling women of our era. As First Lady of the United States of America—the first African-American to serve in that role—she helped create the most welcoming and inclusive White House in history, while also establishing herself as a powerful advocate for women and girls in the U.S. and around the world, dramatically changing the ways that families pursue healthier and more active lives, and standing with her husband as he led America through some of its most harrowing moments. 

Along the way, she showed us a few dance moves, crushed Carpool Karaoke, and raised two down-to-earth daughters under an unforgiving media glare. In her memoir, a work of deep reflection and mesmerizing storytelling, Michelle Obama invites readers into her world, chronicling the experiences that have shaped her—from her childhood on the South Side of Chicago to her years as an executive balancing the demands of motherhood and work, to her time spent at the world’s most famous address. With unerring honesty and lively wit, she describes her triumphs and her disappointments, both public and private, telling her full story as she has lived it—in her own words and on her own terms. Warm, wise, and revelatory, Becoming is the deeply personal reckoning of a woman of soul and substance who has steadily defied expectations—and whose story inspires us to do the same.