This is so much more than a memoir. It is also a sermon of sorts--but the good kind of preaching that doesn't shout, scold and threaten, but rather the kind that warmly draws you in and offers extraordinary hope, real optimism and awestruck inspiration.

Written with candor and compassion by Michelle Obama, "Becoming" is not only her biographical story, but also a guidebook for life. By turns charming, heartbreaking and hilarious, this is one of those rare nonfiction books that will grab you and not let go.

The former first lady is many things, and one of them is a gifted storyteller. Her candid tales of growing up on Chicago's South Side, her experiences at Princeton as a black woman, the challenges and joys of her various jobs, meeting and falling in love with Barack Obama, becoming a mother and eventually living in the White House are so colorful and compelling that they could compete with any novel for their ability to captivate readers.

Bonus: The story of how Barack proposed to Michelle is alone worth the price of the book. And hint to men everywhere: Don't do what he did! It will likely backfire. Actually, it's kind of crazy that it worked for him. And aren't we all glad it did!

By the time my name came up to get this from the library, I was more than a little burned out on political autobiographies, so started this half-heartedly. Boy was I wrong. This really is a page turner. I expected Obama to write well (yes, I know she had a ghost writer to help her) and she does. Her voice is so good that I had the feeling she was talking directly to me. I nearly cried with her at the tragedies of friends' deaths, her father's death, the Newtown shooting, and even the 2016 election results.

I was very pleased with this book. I felt that Michelle (who made you feel like you were her friend) did a wonderful job of telling her truth. She told of her aspirations, along with her fears. She did not hesitate to spell out her doubts and concerns. By the end of the book you had the feeling of the dynamics of both her marriage and her family life, along with her childhood, education and employment past. Reading this book only furthered my admiration for Michelle.

One of the places that she mentioned in her book I have frequented. She said that she and the girls would sneak away while at Camp David and go to Liberty Mountain to ski. My daughter had a lake house directly across from Liberty Mountain and their ski slopes. Besides being at the resort, my daughter had a glass walled room that looked out over the lake and ski slopes. It was fun to sit there with a cup of coffee or drink in front of the fire and watch people come down the slopes - both day and night, since they lighted the ski slopes. Obviously, you could not distinguish one skiing person from another, and the Obama's were never at the resort when I was, but it gave me that little extra connection while reading the book.

I think the sentence that most vividly stood out to me in the whole books was in the Epilogue. The very last paragraph started with ~

"I'm an ordinary person who found herself on an extraordinary journey."

What a beautiful way to sum up her memoir.

Very inspiring!

She is candid and talks about her struggles to protect her girls from papparazi, and surprisingly, to buffer them from the intrusive Secret Service. I'd never considered how it would feel to have SS men shadowing me everywhere--she was inventive and designed a few 'work-arounds'.

She manages to get them out of their black suits, shoes and ties to change into shorts, tees and tennies, and to swap out their black earpieces for white headsets, so the girls and their friends would feel more comfortable. I deeply admire her healthy agenda for children and believe that she's had a tremendous impact on our culture and awareness. I only wish that she liked politics more--perhaps she can use her significant influence in other constructive ways.

Having been there myself, I recommend this marvelous book to any spouse of a political or government worker, and to anyone who wants to know what it’s like. The wind blows coldest at the top of the mountain, and Mrs. Obama tells it like it is. I enjoyed her honesty, wit, family love, intelligence, and observations. I am giving this book to all 5 of my granddaughters.