Reviews tagging 'Cancer'

Becoming by Michelle Obama

18 reviews

thewordsdevourer's review against another edition

hopeful informative reflective medium-paced

3.25

this book offers a rare glimpse into the former first lady's life before and during her tenure in the white house. i particularly enjoyed reading abt michelle's journey towards finding her own purpose-driven work, and her juggle of work and family life which im sure resonate w/ countless women. the minute ways inequality dis-levels the playing field were revealing, while her hope and integrity were at times inspiring as well.

however, the pacing's a bit off for me: the book was quite slow going in the beginning, then simply blasted thru her time in the white house--8 yrs of jam packed life--in simply a couple chapters. i wish there were more, at least a lil more details and events described. surprisingly, becoming also didnt elicit much emotions from me, thus the seemingly-unpopular-opinion of 3ish stars.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism and Racism

Moderate: Death of parent, Death, Terminal illness, and Chronic illness

Minor: Classism, Gun violence, and Cancer

mirajuliee's review against another edition

hopeful informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Violence, Mass/school shootings, and Racism

Minor: Child death, Death of parent, Death, Hate crime, Grief, and Cancer

angstyevie's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

4.25

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Content Warnings

Minor: Cancer, Car accident, Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infertility, Mass/school shootings, Misogyny, Murder, and Racism

hurricaneflora's review against another edition

funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer

jojo_'s review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Misogyny, Racism, and Terminal illness

Minor: Murder, Police brutality, Cancer, and Death

lindseyhall44's review against another edition

inspiring medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Racism, and Grief

Moderate: Gun violence

Minor: Cancer, Mass/school shootings, Miscarriage, Police brutality, and Slavery

claudiamacpherson's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.5

Wow! I'm finishing Black History Month with this autobiography. I've been meaning to read it for a while, but I'm not typically into nonfiction or memoirs. I wanted to listen to the audiobook, which is read by Michelle Obama herself, and I was surprised both by how much I loved it and how emotional it made me. I found myself in tears nearly every time I listened (I'm often weepy, but usually not this much); from sad parts, like when Obama described the decline of her dad's health to MS, her realization that her traditional path through college and her career wasn't fulfilling, and her descriptions of several difficult events during her time as First Lady, like the Sandy Hook shooting and Donald Trump's election, as well as the happy parts, like when Obama and Malia snuck outside to see the White House lit up in a rainbow to celebrate marriage equality. My favorite thing, which she continued to mention throughout the book, was the importance of female friends and role models throughout her life. I felt like I really got to know Obama through this book, like I'm one of her girlfriends and she's telling me about her life over a glass of wine at one of her all-female retreats.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Cancer, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Racism, Sexism, and Terminal illness

readandfindout's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective slow-paced

4.5

On first read in 2019: 4.5 stars. Don't mind me, I'm just sitting here crying.

On 2024 reread:

Overall rating: still 4.5 stars!

Style/writing: 4.5 stars
Themes: 4.5 stars
Perspective: 4.5 stars

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Mass/school shootings, Child death, Gun violence, Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, Violence, Racism, Terminal illness, and Sexism

Minor: Hate crime, Cancer, War, Slavery, Miscarriage, Police brutality, Grief, and Infertility