Troutbirder II

Troutbirder II
Click on Mark Twain to jump to Troutbirders book review blog

Friday, March 29, 2019

Becoming




So this morning I just finished Becoming by Michelle Obama. This much discussed book is likely or has already been identified as the most read or listened to autobiography/memoir of all time. Some of my former students, of this long retired history teacher would no doubt find it hard to believe, when I say, for this review I’m at a loss for words. What is there to say that won’t sound like a bunch of hackneyed clichés or overdrawn superlatives?' I'll try to choose my words carefully and with restraint.

Becoming is a book exactly about that. How a child and then a young girl grew up first in a racially diverse mostly blue-collar working-class neighborhood on the south side Chicago. Her rock-solid family was anchored by  a father who despite serious physical handicaps worked a full-time job for the city, never complained and brought laughter and fun to all those around him. Then there was her mother, who fostered in her children that with no excuses they should always strive to be the best that they could be. Incidentally, this should always include using proper grammar  Finally, there was an older brother who steadfastly protected his little sister and often paved the way for her on their mutual road to success. As we know, it is often the case that our early childhood sets the template for who we become.

Each following candid chapter reveals more and more of the becoming theme. Michelle’s high school years were marked by the effects of the white migration to the new suburbs. The south side of Chicago began to suffer the effects and trauma of poverty, crime and drugs. The self-actualization of the word "ghetto" only worsened the problems. In the mostly black high school, which Michelle attended, she was asked  "why are you so white?  Grammatically correct English was no doubt a factor there.
 In succeeding chapters we meet a striving young woman who regularly asked herself she was “good enough?” Needless to say she was both while attending an elite Ivy League university and beginning work at a Chicago law firm where she  hoped someday to become “a partner.” Obviously both of these institutions were largely white and mostly male-dominated.

 The next chapters becoming for Michelle involves an unlikely romance and marriage involving two people so different in their upbringing and lifestyle one can hardly imagine  how in the end it all works so well. Of course, the last becoming involves politics and the White House. Here the details are rich and compelling and  include an evolving marriage and raising two girls as normally as possible in the White House. There is some  disdain for politics  at the beginning of the stages but overall  little rancor,  Michelle’s tagline "when they go low, we go high” pretty well sums it all up what is left out in these final chapters. We saw all the lows on national television. The highs in those White House years when a special woman and her family did us all proud.
So now as I promised, without all the superlatives and clichés I could think of, I will  simply say this is the best autobiography/memoir I have ever read. And to those who for whatever reason have yet to read it I believe anyone who approaches this story with an open mind and a little empathy will find it touches the heart.

Click icon for more
book review blogs
@Barrie Summy

17 comments:

  1. I can't. I just can't. I live in Chicago...been through too much with these two and their cronies.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Will put it on my reading list. I am trying to finish Ron Chernow's "Grant" which is very good but over 900 pages.

    ReplyDelete
  3. "Becoming" is the most compelling book I ever read. My only mistake was starting it one afternoon. If you have not read this book already, I recommend beginning at breakfast, or sooner. The prose is compelling, unrelentingly involving the reader in the journey of the narrative. Ray says it touches the heart, in order to avoid superlatives. I think it touches the core of the reader as it displays the humanity of a person who moved from the back overtakes all of us.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Damn proof reading!
      ...person who moved from the back and overtook all of us.

      Delete
  4. Coming from a very respectable old history teacher, I can accept your opinion on this story.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Excellent Ray - I'm looking forward to reading it ... I gave my brother a copy - and a friend has said she'll lend me hers ... it will be a book I pick up and finish reading. Thanks so much for this post and review - cheers Hilary

    ReplyDelete
  6. I always trust your judgement where books are concerned. I will add this to my 'must read' list.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Sue is listening to the book now.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I enjoyed it very much. I bought the book and it's now making its way through several of my friends. I am a fan of memoirs anyway, and this one made me laugh and cry as I lived through those days too. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  9. SOLD!!! I checked my library and they don't have it yet but I put it on my wish list. Sounds wonderful.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I was never impressed with her...and I am not from Chicago...but I suppose none of that was mentioned in the book :(

    ReplyDelete
  11. Interesting to read your comments. I got the book as a gift from my Valentine but i still have a couple other books in the stack to read first. Looking forward to it though.

    ReplyDelete
  12. I also thought it was a fascinating book. Definitely a "must read" for most.

    ReplyDelete
  13. That sounds interesting. I feel torn between admiration for the Obamas and distaste for so many policies that were a straight line from the Bush years. Though nothing like the disaster we have now.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Yes indeed. Though often is better than the unattainable perfect...:)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Also read her book and couldn't put it down. She truly is a role model for all young girls and especially those of color. We are/were so blessed to have that family in the White House!

    ReplyDelete