Michelle Obama's Becoming - Book Post #2

Michelle Obama’s Becoming was one of the best books I have read in a while. As mentioned in my previous blog post, I have always admired the Obamas, especially Michelle, so I greatly appreciated such a personal account of her life experiences. Overall, the book chronicles most of Michelle Obama’s life moments that have molded her into the woman that she is today. Her autobiography starts with her childhood where she lived on the South-Side of Chicago, then it moves onto her college application process and time at her alma mater, Princeton University. Next, it details her journey of becoming a lawyer, starting at the esteemed Harvard Law School and later moving to the prestigious downtown Chicago law firm, Sidley (where she also met her husband Barack Obama). This is where the autobiography slightly shifts since it really describes the romance between the two, from their first dates to their marriage. In some areas, the autobiography could be referred to as the “Obama’s story” as the last portion of the book details experiences that involve her entire immediate family like her two daughters’ childhoods, Barack’s presidential campaign and presidency, Michelle Obama’s national public health campaigns, and the family’s life since leaving the White House.

There are a variety of things from Becoming that resonated with me. Primarily, it was Michelle Obama’s storytelling. She described her experiences so personally and intimately that it allowed her audience to experience her emotions, thought-process, and get to know her character and personality a bit more. For example, in Becoming she discusses how she is a far-sighted planner and needs organization in order to operate in life. Essentially, she very much so could be considered “Type A”. Her readers really got to see this in the midst of her anecdotes like for example, during her time the White House, she made all of her clothing choices a month in advance (this also could be due to the public’s scrutiny of her fashion choices). The autobiography also was also extremely relatable which added to my experience reading the book. Obama really delves into her experiences as a person of color (POC) pursuing a career in law and politics. For example, while discussing her time at Princeton, she describes how she felt like a misfit among the student body at the university and how she sometimes struggled for to make her voice be heard during this time and her time as a lawyer. She also even had doubts of her husband winning the presidency since he was a “black man in America after all.” This stuck out to me because I completely understand how she felt and feels. I personally have felt out of box sometimes here at USC and in the country due to my racial and socioeconomic background. These moments were big deals for me because I was unaware of how much we have in common when it comes to our interests, feelings, and even our thought-processing. Lastly, reading her account of her life events left a lasting impression on me. I decided to choose this book because Michelle Obama has done exactly what I strive to eventually do: become a lawyer and make an impact both locally and nationally through social and political change. Becoming describes Michelle’s exact path towards this and everything along the way, her triumphs and her failures. In a way, I kind of used her autobiography as an “instructions manual” for how I myself can reach and fulfill my life goals. Additionally, the book further reinforced to me that the road to reaching my goals and my career path is not an easy one nor will it be flawless, no matter the individual is.

Ultimately, reading her autobiography was an enjoyable experience (if you couldn’t tell by now) for several different reasons. Her book was well-written, funny, and emotional (especially when she discussed her miscarriage and father’s passing from multiple sclerosis) and it was a delight to read so much about someone I hold in such high regards. The book was a “page turner” and it was not only an easy ready but an incredible one as well. I learned a lot more about Michelle, her husband, and her children. For example, I didn’t know that her and husband went through couple’s counseling or that the Sandy Hook shooting was one of the most difficult things President Obama has ever experienced. Learning all this information was fascinating because again I absolutely LOVE the Obamas. Finally, I can’t stress enough how the autobiography’s intimacy didn’t just add to experience but made it. Seriously, I felt like I was hearing in-person Michelle Obama describe these experiences as I read Becoming and I was sincerely sad when I reached the end of it.