Hot on the trail of her 2018 Grammy Award winning and best-selling freshmen memoir, Becoming, Mrs. Obama took to Twitter to announce her project.
“These past few years, I’ve been thinking about how to stay centered in a world filled with so much uncertainty. And that process led me to writing my new book—The Light We Carry—coming out on November 15. Learn more at michelleobamabooks.com. #TheLightWeCarry
Expectations have been set high for her new memoir, due to the astonishing success of Becoming, which sold over 17 million copies worldwide, making it the highest selling book by any First Lady. The memoir chronicled the journey of Mrs. Obama growing up as a child in the South Side of Chicago, all the way to her tenure as America’s first African-American First Lady.
Published by Penguin Random House, The Light We Carry will be released in 14 different languages and 27 countries, with an initial 2.75 million copies published by Crown.
Thursday’s announcement by the Random House Publishing Group and its imprint Crown.
“We become bolder in brightness. If you know your light, you know yourself. You know your own story in an honest way. In my experience, this type of self-knowledge builds confidence, which in turn breeds calmness and an ability to maintain perspective, which leads, finally, to being able to connect meaningfully with others — and this to me is the bedrock of all things. One light feeds another. One strong family lends strength to more. One engaged community can ignite those around it. This is the power of the light we carry.”
The memoir will aim to encourage making strides towards progress during challenging times and will consist of a series of reflective stories from Mr. Obama life and experiences.
“I’ve learned it’s okay to recognize that self-worth comes wrapped in vulnerability, and that what we share as humans on this earth is the impulse to strive for better, always and no matter what,” wrote Obama in the introduction of her book. “We become bolder in brightness. If you know your light, you know yourself. You know your own story in an honest way,” the former First Lady said.
Markus Dohle, the chief executive of Penguin Random House, said in a statement in regards to the optimism on the memoir’s reception
“As the world struggles with an unprecedented health pandemic, deep political divisions, social and racial injustice and anxiety about the future,” Dohle said. “I am confident that her new book will provide all of us with some urgently needed reassurance while rekindling a spirit of optimism about the power we all hold to positively shape our personal and collective futures.”
Penguin Random House recently made the announcement that it will rename an annual writing prize in the former First Lady’s honor—the $10,000 Michelle Obama Award for Memoir.