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mariab27's review against another edition
5.0
Now here's a book White people should read. The Q&A, step-by-actionable step format of this book was so helpful to me. Although the book is short and easy to read, I often had to sit and ponder what Oluo had just written. This shows how much is jam-packed into the pages. A very important read, and one that I will need to return to again and again.
gegao97's review against another edition
4.0
This was a good refresher – high-level yet with impressive breadth. I hope this appears in more middle and high school curricula.
sarahrogers1's review against another edition
5.0
so extremely well done
information is presented clearly, intelligently, with care and passion
really made me feel just about every emotion possible
i also just personally really enjoyed the writing style
definitely a must-read
information is presented clearly, intelligently, with care and passion
really made me feel just about every emotion possible
i also just personally really enjoyed the writing style
definitely a must-read
emmabeckman's review against another edition
5.0
What a wonderful book! I really regret not picking it up sooner. I think I was under some sort of impression that I didn't ~need~ to read it, that I was already well-versed in these discussions. But I am DEFINITELY not and there is absolutely NO VALUE in pretending to be!
I think this book is a great place to start for people to delve deeper into anti-racism (read: all people). I think in this book Ijeoma Oluo does an excellent job of combining personal anecdotes and cold, hard facts. Some people out there really need personal anecdotes to feel sympathy for a community at large, so Oluo's inclusion of those will really help people who are more reluctant to embark on this journey (I think). Then she delves deeper into the actual facts and statistics that give weight to the anecdotes--they're not just stories about one person's life, they are systemic and occur throughout our society.
I also think it's a good place to start because it talks about a wide variety of topics, some of which may be more relevant to certain readers than others. Of course every topic is relevant to our society as a whole, but there might be some that effect readers in different regions in different ways. Anyway, I'm not sure if that makes sense but at least I know what I mean? At any rate, it is also good for beginners because the book asks you to look at yourself, how you have acted in the past, and how you will act in the future. It is a relatively judgment-free zone in terms of: you've taken the steps to read the book, therefore you are actively looking to improve yourself, therefore the "we" of the ether supports your endeavor even if you have not always behaved perfectly in the past.
Anyway, all that to say, I will definitely be recommending this to people generally in my life as well as specifically at the bookstore I work at. And I think it will definitely be a staple book that I will come back to when I have questions or need grounding.
I think this book is a great place to start for people to delve deeper into anti-racism (read: all people). I think in this book Ijeoma Oluo does an excellent job of combining personal anecdotes and cold, hard facts. Some people out there really need personal anecdotes to feel sympathy for a community at large, so Oluo's inclusion of those will really help people who are more reluctant to embark on this journey (I think). Then she delves deeper into the actual facts and statistics that give weight to the anecdotes--they're not just stories about one person's life, they are systemic and occur throughout our society.
I also think it's a good place to start because it talks about a wide variety of topics, some of which may be more relevant to certain readers than others. Of course every topic is relevant to our society as a whole, but there might be some that effect readers in different regions in different ways. Anyway, I'm not sure if that makes sense but at least I know what I mean? At any rate, it is also good for beginners because the book asks you to look at yourself, how you have acted in the past, and how you will act in the future. It is a relatively judgment-free zone in terms of: you've taken the steps to read the book, therefore you are actively looking to improve yourself, therefore the "we" of the ether supports your endeavor even if you have not always behaved perfectly in the past.
Anyway, all that to say, I will definitely be recommending this to people generally in my life as well as specifically at the bookstore I work at. And I think it will definitely be a staple book that I will come back to when I have questions or need grounding.
kaydawn's review against another edition
4.0
I think this is a very good starting point book. I’ve had it on my list forever and finally got to it and think I would have liked it more had I read it back when I added it. Very important info and given well but if you aren’t new to antiracism then it is a bit repetitive (not that hearing these things again isn’t helpful or needed) and doesn’t do any deep dives into the topics. It really is like a quick intro into discussing racism.
samsundaram's review against another edition
5.0
Wow - this is an excellent book. I found ch. 13, “Why are our students so angry?”, to be especially impactful.
Also:
“I think about every Black and brown person, every queer person, every disabled person, who could be in the room with me but isn’t, and I’m not proud. I’m heartbroken. We should not have a society where the value of marginalized people is determined by how well they can scale often impossible obstacles that others will never know. I have been exceptional, and I shouldn’t have to be exceptional to be just barely getting by. But we live in a society where if you are a person of color, a disabled person, a single mother, or an LGBT person you have to be exceptional. And if you are exceptional by the standards put forth by white supremacist patriarchy, and you are lucky, you will most likely just barely get by. There’s nothing inspirational about that.”
-Ch. 7, “How can I talk about affirmative action?”
Also:
“I think about every Black and brown person, every queer person, every disabled person, who could be in the room with me but isn’t, and I’m not proud. I’m heartbroken. We should not have a society where the value of marginalized people is determined by how well they can scale often impossible obstacles that others will never know. I have been exceptional, and I shouldn’t have to be exceptional to be just barely getting by. But we live in a society where if you are a person of color, a disabled person, a single mother, or an LGBT person you have to be exceptional. And if you are exceptional by the standards put forth by white supremacist patriarchy, and you are lucky, you will most likely just barely get by. There’s nothing inspirational about that.”
-Ch. 7, “How can I talk about affirmative action?”
shailydc's review against another edition
5.0
Really informative and it has easy to follow chapters, not at all textbooky. I learned a ton of new information and the examples helped explain each point. Definitely recommend.
lalawoman416's review against another edition
5.0
Thought provoking read. It's a frank, brutal look at our systems based on white supremacy. Oulo explains race and identity in a way that anyone, white people included, can understand. However, she is incredibly optimistic and offers real world mandates as solutions.