Reviewer Conny Withay:Operating her own business in office management since 1991, Conny is an avid reader and volunteers with the elderly playing her designed The Write Word Game. A cum laude graduate with a degree in art living in the Pacific Northwest, she is married with two sons, two daughters-in-law, and three grandchildren.
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Author: Allison Samuels
Publisher: Gotham Books
ISBN: 978-1-59240-708-8
Author: Allison Samuels
Publisher: Gotham Books
ISBN: 978-1-59240-708-8
What Would Michelle
Do? is a book by Allison Samuels of the life, upbringing and nuances
of the U.S. First Lady, Michelle Robinson Obama. It is not a book
written by Obama, but her supposed in-depth attitudes, attributes and
thoughts, crafted through an expert writer's eyes and ears along with
knowledgeable resources.
This hard bound book has a pale
lavender jacket cover with the First Lady smiling at the reader in
her dark purple dress. The back jacket has two paragraphs about the
book with no reviews. The inside front and back jacket briefly depict
topics discussed along with a photograph of the writer and her short
biography. The book is written in casual format with no obvious
grammatical or typographical errors. Each chapter has a purple
drawing of Michelle Obama at different stages of her life, which
reminds the reader of Simplicity sewing pattern designs in the 1960s
(young, too thin-waist Barbie-doll icons). Besides several fonts
being used, the color purple highlights topics, special themes, tips
or rules to remember.
This is virtually a self-help book for
any woman who wants to excel, look or act like Michelle Obama. It
breaks down to sections about the First Lady's idealistic childhood,
her feeling of self-worth, her close relationships with girlfriends,
mother and husband, her beauty tips including hair, make-up and
clothing, attitudes about exercising, finding a soul-mate, marriage
challenges, and parenting along with entertaining. It is a
step-by-step, topic-by-topic compilation to achieve grace, class,
style, etc - everything that Michelle Obama emulates.
Although
Samuels does not know Mrs. Obama personally, she writes based on her
sources, research and publications and pulls it off fairly well. The
author is cheerleader, tutor, advisor, and go-to person if one wants
to idolize and be like the President's wife. Several times you as the
reader are comparing your own life, history, traits and beliefs to
Obama, even when the topic does not mention the First Lady.
As
per the author, the key to Obama's success is her valued belief in
being sane, organized and structured in all facets of life. This is
seen throughout the book's discussions of her upbringing and choices
she makes for herself in regard to employment changes, selecting a
spouse, better ways to parent and maintaining her public image. From
hair wigs, make-up tips and types of shoes to protecting her morals
or dealing with a weekend-only husband/father during early married
life, Samuels applies her understanding of Michelle's core beliefs
and morals. Obama's supposed favorite websites for clothes and
make-up, Chicago restaurants, Facebook and texting tips, and home
decoration along with favorite food recipes are included. There are
several quotes from not only Obama but friends, teachers, stylist and
others.
This book is an easy read and a perfect gift for the
young woman entering adulthood or one in their twenties as it not
only can help navigate, confirm and encourage maturity, grace, class
and style in the reader, but also establish and ground her own
beliefs, healthy attributes and realistic attitudes.