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4.26 AVERAGE
4.26 AVERAGE
The topic was not what I thought it would be.
I first picked this up because Melinda Gates is also a member of Kappa Alpha Theta, whose tagline is Leading Women, and this book seemed to align with that perfectly.
I really enjoyed reading the stories she shared about the women she's met through the work that the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation does, particularly around the issues of family planning and fighting for girls education and against child marriage. The other chapters were interesting too, particularly the one about creating true partnerships in marriage, but the childhood marriage chapter and family planning chapter really stood out to me.
I really enjoyed seeing the world through Melinda's eyes and learning about the areas she sees as where we can create the most "lift" for women around the world.
I really enjoyed reading the stories she shared about the women she's met through the work that the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation does, particularly around the issues of family planning and fighting for girls education and against child marriage. The other chapters were interesting too, particularly the one about creating true partnerships in marriage, but the childhood marriage chapter and family planning chapter really stood out to me.
I really enjoyed seeing the world through Melinda's eyes and learning about the areas she sees as where we can create the most "lift" for women around the world.
When the women were able to time and space their pregnancies they were more likely to advance their education, earn an income, raise healthy children, and have the time and money to give each child the food, care and education needed to thrive.
When children reach their potential, they don’t end up poor, this is how families and countries get out of poverty. ...
If you search for poverty, you will find women who don’t have power. If you explore prosperity you will find women who do have power and use it.
This book was an eye opener.
We all know that family planning and women's rights are important, but as embarrassing as it is for me to say, I never saw the correlation between these issues and societies economic success.
I say it's embarrassing because when you see it written out in black and white, it makes so much sense, it's hard to comprehend how you did not make the connection earlier.
Melinda Gates lives a blessed life, and its no secret.
We know and she knows it. She doesn't (nor should she ) apologize for being successful and wealthy, yet some people have taken this aspect of her life and used it as a reason as to why she should not speak of problems that effect women who live in poverty.
But the point it she is not simply pointing it out to us, or offering an opinion. She is more often than not, offering solutions. She is showing us the changes that can, and have been made.
It would be so easy for someone in her position to sit by and simply throw money at a charity and pat herself on her back, but that's not enough for her.
Shes in African villages, sleeping in goat sheds, speaking to women and girls, and hugging them and making them feel special.
This book makes me want to do more, and makes me grateful that people in a better position than I to make positive changes in the world, are doing it.
I think Melinda Gates is an incredible human being.
When children reach their potential, they don’t end up poor, this is how families and countries get out of poverty. ...
If you search for poverty, you will find women who don’t have power. If you explore prosperity you will find women who do have power and use it.
This book was an eye opener.
We all know that family planning and women's rights are important, but as embarrassing as it is for me to say, I never saw the correlation between these issues and societies economic success.
I say it's embarrassing because when you see it written out in black and white, it makes so much sense, it's hard to comprehend how you did not make the connection earlier.
Melinda Gates lives a blessed life, and its no secret.
We know and she knows it. She doesn't (nor should she ) apologize for being successful and wealthy, yet some people have taken this aspect of her life and used it as a reason as to why she should not speak of problems that effect women who live in poverty.
But the point it she is not simply pointing it out to us, or offering an opinion. She is more often than not, offering solutions. She is showing us the changes that can, and have been made.
It would be so easy for someone in her position to sit by and simply throw money at a charity and pat herself on her back, but that's not enough for her.
Shes in African villages, sleeping in goat sheds, speaking to women and girls, and hugging them and making them feel special.
This book makes me want to do more, and makes me grateful that people in a better position than I to make positive changes in the world, are doing it.
I think Melinda Gates is an incredible human being.
One of the best books I have ever read. Excellent!!!! This should be required reading in high school! ❤️
Book club pick for September, enjoyed the policy side of things and especially the interconnection between access to birth control / family planning interventions and the ability for women to thrive in all areas of their life. Melinda Gates has the money In the work she allows to happen with that money is meaningful but I don’t think she’s the best one to tell these stories.I think one of our highly qualified staff members could’ve talked better about the policies and implementations better than she did and the woman who story she shared could’ve told them better than she did.
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Great book! I listened to the audiobook which made it extra awesome. She writes very well, and I was intrigued to learn how much gender ties in to all the other problems we often think of - treat the cause not the symptom!
It was a well laid out book and especially sobering near the end talking about tech and the pushback that is needed. Aspect ventures and others trying to balance the equation. We can all do our part to make thing more equal
After [b:Option B: Facing Adversity, Building Resilience, and Finding Joy|32938155|Option B Facing Adversity, Building Resilience, and Finding Joy|Sheryl Sandberg|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1493998427l/32938155._SY75_.jpg|51953783] left me twitching, I wasn't sure I wanted to read this book. I'm also a little nervous about billionaires and their charity. I think philanthropy/donation is great, but if the impoverished have to rely on private rich citizens to provide for them (and not a world organization/government/independent agency) that puts the poor at the mercy of the rich which makes it their world not ours but I've digressed....
When my husband said this book encouraged him to do more domestic work in the house, I was sold ;)
I have great respect for Melinda Gates--someone I didn't really know anything about before this memoir. If Michelle Obama hadn't released a memoir this year, this might have been my memoir of the year.
There are so many wonderful little pearls of wisdom and insight for working women/women in marriages AS WELL AS a honest look at the state of affairs around the world. Melinda also takes about my very nervousness with billionaires and their charities (and soothed my nerves, at least with her foundation--she respects it should be up to the people they serve -- that give your money but ask those you're helping "how can we help" let them direct and speak rather than try to "westernize" or make everyone be "american").
I also found it intriguing that her and Bill both tend to follow Jante's law (popular in Scandinavian workplaces)--they may not be aware of it, but much of their beliefs and how they operate is one of the 10 rules.
Final comment: birth control benefits everyone. EVERYONE.
When my husband said this book encouraged him to do more domestic work in the house, I was sold ;)
I have great respect for Melinda Gates--someone I didn't really know anything about before this memoir. If Michelle Obama hadn't released a memoir this year, this might have been my memoir of the year.
There are so many wonderful little pearls of wisdom and insight for working women/women in marriages AS WELL AS a honest look at the state of affairs around the world. Melinda also takes about my very nervousness with billionaires and their charities (and soothed my nerves, at least with her foundation--she respects it should be up to the people they serve -- that give your money but ask those you're helping "how can we help" let them direct and speak rather than try to "westernize" or make everyone be "american").
I also found it intriguing that her and Bill both tend to follow Jante's law (popular in Scandinavian workplaces)--they may not be aware of it, but much of their beliefs and how they operate is one of the 10 rules.
Final comment: birth control benefits everyone. EVERYONE.
As expected, this book was well planned, well researched and well written. I am not sure how much I learned as I'm familiar with the ground she covered here. I imagine most people I'm connected with here on Goodreads would say the same.