Becoming

I'll be upfront in my review here: I am not a democrat. I was not old enough to vote in the first election that Obama won, and for his second one, I did not vote for him. That being said, I have always found it insanely important to read books for both sides of the aisle, if only to humanize the people that we see in the media every single day. It's so easy to forget that the people in our White House, and leading our nation, are just regular human beings.

I really loved this book and Michelle has lived a full life filled with amazing people and community around her. She speaks often on how we are all very much the same. We have the same homes, hopes for our kids, dreams for our careers. The main reason I can't give this 5 stars is because of her divisive language, mostly at the end of the book, that paints republicans as the bad guys.

I understand that a lot of the stress about her children, safety, hatred pointed towards her family, and specifically her husband, came from the Republican side of the aisle. I commend her on the grace that she maintains throughout the book when talking about these issues. But it is harmful to see her point Republicans at the whole, rather than a few people who are responsible for those actions.

As a conservative, I rarely agreed with the politics of Obamas, but I deeply respect their love for people and their decisions made as parents to protect their girls. I am not a fan of trump at all, but I think most politicians, like most people, are just trying to help people in the way they think will yield the best results - how we get there is the main divide.

I wish this book had ended with the same grace and love as the first 90% but it just felt too politically charged toward one party rather than the few bullies with the loudest voices.