Michelle Obama kicks off 2 nights at Chicago Theater for book tour

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Former first lady Michelle Obama made her first appearance of a two-night stop in Chicago to promote her latest book: "The Light We Carry - Overcoming in Uncertain Times"

Former late night star David Letterman moderated Monday night's show at the Chicago Theater.

Mrs. Obama says the idea for this book started during the quarantine at the start of the COVID pandemic.

Among the things she could control during the death and isolation of the pandemic, the racial unrest and threats to democracy were her spools of yarn and her knitting needles.

She labels such thinking the "power of small," and she wrote that by focusing on a small task like knitting she was able to get through the worry, anxiety and stress of the past few unsettling years.

Michelle Obama will return to the stage at the Chicago Theater tomorrow night as she continues her book tour.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.