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QINGDAO TODAY
在线翻译:
szdaily -> Opinion -> 
Becoming a best self
    2019-01-21  08:53    Shenzhen Daily

Winton Dong

dht0620@126.com

JUST two weeks after its release, Michelle Obama’s memoir “Becoming” became the No.1 book of the year on three best-seller lists including those by The New York Times, USA Today and Publishers Weekly.

The book, which hit the market on Nov. 13, 2018, sold more than 2 million copies in the United States and Canada across all formats in two weeks. The hardcopy edition alone sold more copies than any other book in the U.S. The book’s popularity is not limited to North America; it also became a best-seller in the U.K., Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Norway, Finland and Greece and it is being published in 31 languages all over the world.

The book offers a surprisingly intimate look at the life of the former first lady of the United States, beginning with her childhood years on the South Side of Chicago and ending with the reflections of the current U.S. administration. In her memoir, Michelle takes great care to illustrate the roles she spent her life preparing for: a dutiful daughter, excellent high school student, diligent Princeton undergraduate, studious Harvard law attendee, dedicated lawyer, loving wife and mother of two well-mannered daughters.

According to the publisher Penguin Random House, in the memoir, a work of deep reflection and mesmerizing storytelling, Michelle invites readers into her world, chronicling the experiences that have shaped her — from her childhood in Chicago to her years as an executive balancing the demands of motherhood and work, and to her time spent at the world’s most famous address. With honesty and lively wit, she describes her triumphs and disappointments, both private and public, telling her full story as she has lived it, in her own words and on her own terms. Warm, wise and revelatory, the book is the deeply personal reckoning of a woman of soul and substance who has steadily defied expectations, and whose story inspires us to do the same.

Born in 1964, Michelle Obama was a black girl growing up in a poor Chicago community with her close-knit family in a one-bedroom bungalow owned by her great-aunt. For black people, continuing to strive is important for being accepted and validated by society. “I spend much time of my childhood listening to the sound of striving. The sound of people trying to do everything becomes the soundtrack of our life,” Michelle wrote in her book.

She never forgets and is proud of her black origin. After their engagement, Michelle and Barack Obama went back to Kenya to meet Obama’s extended family from his paternal side. When Michelle was first introduced to Obama’s grandmother, Granny Sarah, she asked Michelle, “Which one of your parents is white?” Michelle, with a feeling of hard-to-explain sadness, laughed and said that she was black through and through.

“Becoming” is at its most striking moment when it offers readers a glimpse at the former first lady’s fears and frustrations. As an accomplished black woman who was reluctant to face the spotlight, she challenged the archetype of the U.S. political spouses, public suspicion and even sharp criticism by campaigning alongside the first half-Kenyan black man with the funny name of Obama to secure a nomination for the presidency of the most powerful country in the world.

Covering Obama’s transformation from a young and uninhibited guy on the South Side of Chicago to one of the most formidable and influential political figures in the U.S. history, the book is also a political memoir. It functions partly to solidify Obama’s political legacy as a complex and multidimensional milestone for the country.

The book is particularly memorable not just because the author spoke from the bottom of her heart, but also because she has found her agency as more than just a politician’s wife. “The more I told my story, the more my voice settled into itself,” Michelle said. In a life filled with meaning and accomplishment, Michelle is surely one of the most iconic and successful women of our era. As first lady of the United States and the first African-American to serve in that role, she helps to create the most welcoming and inclusive White House in history, while also establishing her image as a powerful advocate to black people, women and girls in the U.S. and even in the world, dramatically changing the ways that families pursue healthier and more active lives, and standing firmly with her husband as he led America through some of its most harrowing times.

As the title shows, “Becoming” was written in the present continuous tense in English. This means that every person is becoming a best self, “becoming me,” “becoming us” and “becoming more” through nonstop efforts. In this regard, Michelle’s ascension and contribution to the world is an inspiration and encouragement that exist far beyond the universe of her husband’s political decisions. This may be the main reason why readers from all over the world are attracted to her book.

(The author is the editor-in-chief of the Shenzhen Daily with a Ph.D. from the Journalism and Communication School of Wuhan University.)

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