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melissa_bookworm's review against another edition
5.0
This is a short but very powerful book. I thought it was going to just discuss the issues white people have with racism but it was so much more than that. It really makes you look at your own behaviour. One of the really interesting topics was the good/bad binary, that people can't fathom that they may be racist because only 'bad' people are racist. This binary is a simplification, racism is a societal construct that is all around us and by denying it, you are part of the problem. I highly recommend this, it gives some examples of how to raise the issue of race with people to disengage from white solidarity and become a more effective ally to people of colour.
lauraborkpower's review against another edition
4.0
I recommend this highly to all of the white people I know.
ababs's review against another edition
4.0
I am a white woman. I read this book to better understand what that means. While I would advocate for reading books by people of color, I do think Robin has experience behind her. It was educational and interesting.
jenmangler's review against another edition
4.0
"What has enabled you to be a full, educated, professional adult and not know what to do about racism?" Seriously. Think about that. How did we let this become the way things are? This book has been extremely helpful to me and has encouraged deep introspection. I highly recommend reading it.
jmrprice's review against another edition
3.0
Much to think about and process - especially if you’ve had a ‘II’m not.a racist because _____’ mindset. Racism is/has been a structural part of Western culture and it ‘s going to tale much work, reflection, and redirection to mitigate & overcome.
nikread84's review against another edition
5.0
“Interrupting those [racist] patterns must be more important than working to convince others that we don’t have them. We do have them. And people of color already know we have them”
This book teaches you (the white reader)how you are propagating racism in society without knowing it. It’s worth a read, a discussion, and commitment to be aware of patterns that seem non harmful to you but may be triggering to BIPOC. I think the biggest thing this book presents is a great lesson for everybody, in a lot of situations - when someone gives you feedback, don’t automatically get defensive. Listen and try to understand.
This book teaches you (the white reader)how you are propagating racism in society without knowing it. It’s worth a read, a discussion, and commitment to be aware of patterns that seem non harmful to you but may be triggering to BIPOC. I think the biggest thing this book presents is a great lesson for everybody, in a lot of situations - when someone gives you feedback, don’t automatically get defensive. Listen and try to understand.
graecus_'s review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
i think that this is a really valuable book for white people who want to become more educated on racism, and their own implicit racial biases. there were very solid discussions on the ways in which white people are frequently centered in discussions about race and racism. the book didn’t extensively discuss explicit racism, but i would say that that wasn’t the point of the book. would definitely say that it felt like an introduction to addressing one’s own racist socialization, but a good place to start for white people resistant to addressing their racial biases. it did definitely feel like a book by white people for white people, so i would keep that in mind when reading.
mcmoon's review against another edition
I’m still deciding how I feel about this book. I may post a specific rating in the future after processing it. There are several thought-provoking insights here. I found myself nodding several times while listening to the audio. The sociological view offers some important perspectives, yet in terms of understanding human complexity, generalities are useful only to extent. Still I’m glad I read it. I would recommend it. The book isn't perfect, but it presents a provocative way to enter conversations about race.
trash_reader_'s review against another edition
I listen to audiobooks at 1.5x speed and the voice was so robotic it was unbearable. I also wasn't as interested in this as I hoped to be. It was pretty much just telling me everything that I already know and that's not why I wanted to read this book.