Becoming By Michelle Obama Review

I never looked into the life of the previous First Lady. When Barack Obama was elected President of the United States, I was 13. I remember the excitement of the students, our 1st African American president. It brought us hope that may be one day we Asian Americans can be president. I decided to read this book to learn more about Michelle Obama and what it takes to be the partner of an ambitious introvert, Barack Obama.

Michelle Obama tells us a detailed story of her life. Born in the suburbs of Chicago to the White House. Obama came from a small family of four, her father who worked for the city and had scoliosis, her mother who stayed at home but later got a job as an assistant and her brother, basketball pro and mentor. Her family taught her the importance of education to build a better and safe life. She talks about her resilience and becoming with education. Her brother and her both worked hard traveling on to different buses to get to school. When her school counselor told her she would not get into Princeton, she worked harder than ever and made it to Princeton. At Princeton, she grew her connections and built relations with a diverse group of minorities. She gained independent female mentors who were ambitious, courageous and minorities breaking boundaries. She continued her education at Harvard Law School for her Masters. After Harvard, she moved back home with her parents, bought a car and worked as a corporate lawyer Sidley and Austin, a law firm in Chicago.

For over a year, Michelle worked only on her job and networking, to her it was fulfilling. Until 1 summer when a new prodigy intern joined the team, Barack Obama. Since Michelle was Barack Obama’s Advisor at the law firm they often talked and spent time networking. Barack Obama finally asked Michelle Obama on a date that eventually led to a 2 year long distance relationships, overcoming Michelle’s father’s death and finding meaning. Michelle Obama began to struggle finding meaning in her corporate job. She started meeting more with her connections to find new opportunities for a corporate lawyer. She knew she had to take a payout so she put her financials in order and continued her job at Sidley and Austin till she found her first project working as an assistant at the Mayor’s office in Chicago.

Michelle and Barack Obama had a big wedding in Chicago. For the first few years, they dealt with a new book release separating them for a time, a miscarriage and pregnancy struggles. One day, Barack Obama decided to ask Michelle Obama whether he should run for Senate. Michelle contemplated on losing time with her husband and family time but decided with a yes so he could pursue his dreams. Michelle continued to take on new job opportunities developing a non-profit program to place students in the local government for part time internships and helping connecting with health care and the South Side community.

When Barack Obama decided to run for President, she knew it would be difficult for her to manage her job, kids and the campaign. She campaigned for 3 days a week as her mother assisted with taking care of her kids and working part time. She wasn’t a big fan of public speaking and she did not feel as if she would be able to make a huge impact in the community to vote. However, she found ways to connect with Iowa and other voters. Until she ran into a problem all her speeches sounded the same. She meet with campaign advisors to advice Michelle on how to be a better public speaker. As she practiced, she grew more confident and so did voters. When Barack Obama was elected, she learned that she would have to give up her career for the informal position of the First Lady.

The First Lady position was never defined. Michelle Obama shares her perks and pet peeves of living and working in the White House and losing your privacy with the Secret Service and media. She learned that people were talking more about her outfits than her words. So she tried to develop initiatives that were unique like healthy living, women empowerment and aiding military families. She worked with Jill Biden to fundraise and bring awareness to military families. Michelle Obama wanted a simple quiet life while Barack Obama wanted to find meaning in everything he did. They helped each other grow and become better and stronger.

I would give this book a 5 out of 5. Michelle Obama shares her raw emotions, thoughts on changes and adapting to change. She shares with us the power of education and resilience.

“Becoming requires equal parts patience and rigor.” -Obama