A review by vinreads
The Truth About White Lies by Olivia A. Cole

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This was brutal, but needed. A look at racism and white supremacy from the eyes of a white person who lies complicit in others' hate. I stayed up until 2:30 am reading this because I couldn't put it down. I think everyone deserves to read this at least once, to really sink into the thought of what white people say and do as microagressions and even delving into hate crimes and white nationalism, because there's an abundance of it, especially in this day and age. In this book, we get a look at racism through the eyes of a white person who isn't so naive to believe her boyfriend isn't a white supremacist. She knows that he's a bad person. She watches his sister throw microagressions at someone who should be her friend, and she does nothing to stop it. She's a bystander in many instances of racism, towards her friends, and towards people she's never met. She doesn't change, and that's the point. To say that a white person would be more willing to go along with racism than to stand up against it is a hard but needed truth. Most white people won't say anything, and it's sad, but true. This book is meant to make white people think about any times they may have witnessed racism and said nothing, or been complicit themselves in racism. It's an eye opener, one that a lot of the population, especially here in the US, needs. 
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