BECOMING BY MICHELLE OBAMA
We have gathered all the fantastic reviews our Book Club Members have sent us this month.
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REVIEWS
Carol Fieldhouse
I was absolutely delighted to receive this book for review and have raced through it, so well does Michelle Obama tell the story of her family, her upbringing, education - and eventually her marriage to Barack Obama and their life together on their way to the White House. Her family story is deeply moving and inspiring, certainly for me the emotional heart of the book, as she clearly outlines how much her success was due to the wonderful support and determination of her parents, particularly her mother. Her time in the White House is described in a more distant style, maybe because she is quite rightly determined, as she always has been, to protect her girls who never asked for this life. However, it is still fascinating! I also loved her portrayal of her husband - a great deal of humour goes in to describing her life with this man, who like most husbands, has his little ways, as well as the great strengths she admires and loves him for. This is a well-deserved bestseller and one of the best books of its kind I have ever read!
Michael Olin
Michelle Obama says that Barack always promised her “an interesting journey”. Arguably, though, the journey would only ever be as interesting as she chose to make it. This book indicates she ensured that she participated fully, and her journey was indeed interesting.
The book works on two levels. First, as an account of Michelle’s life – a life that became fascinating once her husband was elected president. Up until that point it’s an admirable account of willpower and courage. So far, so straightforward. What differentiates it is that we get to see the presidency through a wife’s eyes. There are plenty of intriguing – but discreet – anecdotes. For instance, the Queen reminded Barack Obama of his grandmother! And perhaps when they called on Nelson Mandela, he wasn’t really aware of who they were.
It’s on the second level that “Becoming” acquires its universal importance. The message here is that with determination and focus, anyone can succeed. Obviously a modicum of luck helps, as does a dose of reality when goal-setting. Achievement comes in many different forms. And a relatively modest achievement is still an achievement.
John Tudor
Reviewing the book "Becoming Michelle Obama" is a little difficult for me, firstly, I am a slow reader so I have only got half way through, secondly, I am from the UK and so a lot of the social and political background of the book is something I don't really understand and finally, I am not and have never been a driven person and so some of the situations Michelle found herself in were a little difficult to empathize with.
Having said all that it is a well written book with a lot of insight into her life and how a dramatically a life can change when marriage is thrown into the equation, especially marriage to someone who is very different to you.
I would highly recommend the book to anyone, especially to someone from the US, where I guess some of the themes of the book would make a lot more sense.
Elizbaeth Netherwood
This was a fascinating book. A book about love and hope and caring for each other.
Michelle Obama engages the reader on her journey from living in a predominantly black suburb of Chicago to the top address in the United States.
She writes with an easy style that is very readable and she draws the reader into her close and loving family. She starts out as a determined bright girl and develops into a determined, articulate and caring woman. Her love for Barak, her girls and her family spills out from the pages. She has to juggle the roles of mother and working mum when supporting Barak in his earlier political career. She then forges out a role for herself alongside her charismatic husband. Michelle's description of the abuse she had to take during the presidential campaign was quite shocking. The book showed there is always hope while people care for each other. It was a book that showed small things can make a difference.