6 Inspiring Reads for Women in Search of (Authentic) Positivity
Let these uplifting books take you far, far, far away from the world’s negativity.
5 of 6
Michelle Obama: A Life
By Peter Slevin
432 pages;
Knopf
By now we’re
all familiar with the broad outline of our FLOTUS's
story, from her working-class childhood on Chicago’s South Side, to her Princeton and Harvard education,
her job at a blue-chip law firm and her first meeting with the handsome summer
associate with the big ears and the funny name. But Peter Slevin gives us a more detailed, nuanced look at
the rise of the girl named Michelle Robinson to "the
unlikeliest first lady in modern history." Most
striking is the source of her motivation: "It
was understood in the Robinson household that no matter what obstacles Michelle
or [her brother] Craig faced because of their race or their working-class
roots, life’s possibilities were unbounded." Michelle studied long hours, applied to Ivy League
schools (despite being told by teachers that she’d
never get in) and later put that same determination and discipline into the
service of her public life. We see her passion for equality and her commitment
to ending childhood obesity, but above all the takeaway is this: Never give
anyone else the power to decide what is possible for you.
— Dawn Raffel
Published 04/27/2015