Book Review- Becoming by Michelle Obama

A 448-page memoir published on November 13, 2018, is the saga of how culture shapes life. The book is written by Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama, the first African-American woman who served as the first lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017. And this is her story of zeal, emotions, and family love.

Mrs. Obama's candour dissipates a work of deep reflection and mesmerizing storytelling. The book is divided into three sections: Becoming Me (my favourite), Becoming Us, and Becoming More.

She invites readers into her world, chronicling her childhood hardships, her efforts during school and college, the hardship of being a professional, and then her public life. There is one baseline of the book (i.e. beside her own life) which is the persistent conversation about her family, her husband, and her journey of motherhood.

What I loved about her writing is that she kept it real. The fear, triumphs, anxiety, hopes, disappointments, etc… She tells her full story as she has lived it.

The book is a definite read for all and especially for those who seek to learn from the real-life issues of others.

Quotes from the book whose interpretation somehow resonates with my thinking patterns-

“Now I think it’s one of the most useless questions an adult can ask a child—What do you want to be when you grow up? As if growing up is finite. As if at some point you become something and that’s the end.”

“If you don’t get out there and define yourself, you’ll be quickly and inaccurately defined by others.”

“Your story is what you have, what you will always have. It is something to own.”

“At fifty-four, I am still in progress, and I hope that I always will be.”

“Bullies were scared people hiding inside scary people.”