informative inspiring medium-paced

reeka's review

3.5
informative inspiring reflective medium-paced
informative inspiring medium-paced
challenging hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

As a woc who is also a stem student,  I really needed this book. Alotbof the struggles the author wrote about was very relatable and I found this book inspiring. This book literally landed on my lap and told me to not quit uni yet so......I'm taking it as a win. 
The stuff that I wasn't a huge fan of was that she came off as very American loving, don't get me wrong, America's okay , good infact when it comes to tech but it rubbed me the wrong way when she mentioned how other countries uses AI to spy on civilians and made America seem against spying , which is stupid.  America does that too so.....either way still a good book
hopeful informative slow-paced

Nice blend of life story + some tech parts, very interesting to see progression through a CS career and such an exciting part of AI work being done.
emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

Let me begin by saying that Rana El Kaliouby is a role model for success for any Egyptian girl, she's a great person. I read about her briefly when I got this audiobook as a gift from a friend, and I liked her so much, and after reading the book I like her even more. However, I don't like her book, let me illustrate more...
I've always hated it when someone financially able to succeed talks about success, Rana and her family are of the upper classes of Egyptian families, her parents never truly objected to her journey, yes they may have expressed their disapproval, however, there were no real attempts to stop her from pursuing her dreams. Her husband was supportive of her, he agreed to be separated from her if it meant that she does something she likes. Her mother supported her emotionally. She became emotionally independent under the care of her family. Another thing I didn't like was that she never spoke about money or finances in her book, which is the major problem for any person striving to succeed in Egypt. She was able to pursue her dreams because she never had to worry about money, again she became financially independent under the care of her family. As an Egyptian girl who wants to work in the field of AI and ML, I can talk about plenty of problems with society and my family concerning it that Rana had never mentioned having. I felt that throughout her journey, she was constantly choosing between a good situation and a better one. I'm not saying she's not successful, I'm just saying that she didn't suffer so much to achieve that success as she claims to have...
Another point I didn't like about the book was the propaganda that she made for AI and its applications, it's good to mention how much AI can help people and how varying the fields of applications can be, however, this is a biography! I felt that she was marketing for her company and that was annoying.
In the end, I didn't hate the book or the writer, I just found it annoying in some parts. The writer's style is simple and amusing to read, she's sincere and honest, I can feel her every word. I feel supportive of her, and it was inspiring to go through her journey and see how much she has grown, I hope one day I grow to be even one-tenth of the woman she's become.
adventurous challenging hopeful inspiring medium-paced

For woman looking for rolemodels and understanding how one tries to balance work ambition and family life in a conservative setting. 
informative inspiring reflective medium-paced