Summary: Former First Lady Michelle Obama chronicles her upbringing on the south side of Chicago before receiving an impressive education and eventually making a career as a lawyer and social activist. Eventually meeting and marrying the man who would later become the First African-American President of the USA, she reflects on the rewards and sacrifices inherent to First Family life in the White House.
Rating & Recommendation: 5/5, recommend for history buffs and fans of the underdog
Review: This is a satisfying and well-written read about a woman who stands accomplished in her own right, as a mother, a wife, a daughter, a sister, a friend, a lawyer, an activist, and as a First Lady... but who is really a part of black history and American history that is worth a second look, especially given with how far we’ve fallen.
Obama doesn't spend much of her energy reflecting on the current administration, which is a blessing, because the book is so uplifting otherwise, and she's so much more than the wife of a President. When I finished reading, I thought to myself she might actually just be a really good person, a good partner, a good mother. I secretly kept waiting to find some glaring fault with her, but it never happened. She's brilliant, loyal, and fair. She has flaws like everyone else, and she struggles through a lot. She's aware of blessings and humbled by her privilege, but it never takes away from her very long journey to the top. It’s refreshing to see politics from this perspective - from the overworked mother, from the First Lady, from the lawyer and the activist. There are other memoirs from First Ladies, but this will always be the first one by a black woman from the south side of Chicago.
There's a noticeable disappointment reflected in the final pages, but she appears to be undaunted by the changing of tides and as confident as ever that Americans can have a bright future. That sort of hopefulness is almost hard to read, because it seems so unlikely at this point. But it doesn't come off disingenuous or contrived - I truly believe that she believes, which is comforting and lends some credibility to her entire story, to her growth.
I was shocked at how eager I was to finish a story where I already knew the ending. As a true lover of politics, I was excited to rehash one of the most thrilling political times of my life: I had just started college when Barack Obama was elected, and I hadn't yet started studying politics. I didn't understand the wave our country was caught in, and I didn't really feel the change in real time. As a supporter of the underdog, I was excited to read about the unlikely ascent of one of the most impressive women to step foot in the White House. But mostly, as someone who is not really a romantic in any way, I was so surprised how much of this book was about love, how love begets sacrifice and pain and resilience and triumph and all sorts of emotions, and how a love story can force you to swerve onto a path that you didn’t even know was available to you. It reminds me of my parents, who are happily married and almost nauseatingly in love and how maybe I’ve underestimated that love and a solid foundation can create power. It’s almost like the Obamas and the Robinsons were able to manifest their will through love, and I should have known that that was possible, because I’ve seen it in my own house.
I generally don’t like memoirs. I spent a lot of time before reading this thinking over the idea of self-indulgent literature. Are memoirs by definition self-indulgent? How interesting does your life have to be to warrant writing an entire book about it? Is it self-indulgent if there's a moral or a lesson you're trying to teach?
I realize now why memoirs are important: there’s value in telling your own story - to make space for someone with a similar story to move up in your wake. Reading this solidified to me the value of representation and "being seen." I so wish I had this sort of fairy tale to reference when I was younger, but I’m grateful, in any case, that girls have it now.
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