Becoming by Michelle Obama

Becoming by Michelle Obama lifted my spirits and touched my heart. Obama writes in a way that makes the reader feel like a new friendship is being forged. She writes her story without apologizing for who she is from childhood forward. She shares her insecurities, which somehow only make her seem stronger. She shares her journey from childhood through her time as First Lady of the United States. She talks about her missteps and her accomplishments with the same honesty. She shares her resistance to politics and living in the spotlight with unexpected openness. Becoming truly embraces the ongoing journey through life to becoming one's best self and embracing that self in any given moment. She shares stories that resonated with me and had me nodding along and other stories that my life experience doesn't give me context for. I felt like I understood life in general a little better from reading Becoming. I loved Becoming so much that I often snapped photos on my phone of passages that particularly spoke to me and that I wanted to be able to easily access later. I gifted Becoming to a good friend when I was only about halfway finished reading it. And... when I was finished, I looked up contact for Mrs. Obama and sent her a short note about the impact the book had on me. Obama's honesty and insight inspired and encouraged me to continue using my own words to try to make a difference in the world. Becoming gently empowers the reader to embrace their own journey to becoming more of themselves as Obama demonstrates how we all converge and diverge on our life journeys.

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