Becoming Lesson Plan

“The White House is where our two girls played ball in the hallways and climbed trees on the South Lawn. It’s where Barack sat up late at night, pouring over briefings and drafts of speeches in the Treaty Room, and where Sunny, one of our dogs, sometimes pooped on the rug” (xvii).

Why do you think Michelle Obama included the detail about the dog popping on the rug here? How does this detail help to preface the book?

Strong responses will note that this detail, while trivial at the surface, helps to characterize Michelle and set the tone for this memoir. Specifically, telling readers that the Obama family's dog pooped on the rug in the White House helps to move Michelle...