Review: So You Want to Talk About Race

So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Since our country is in a state of upheaval, I have been making a concentrated effort to do my part to learn more about racism, anti-racism, and privilege. Primarily, I've been reading books about race relations, the history of how minorities are treated, and how this impacts present day America. Those books have really taught me a lot, but this book was something completely different.

It focuses on the here and now - what we can do to improve the world. Presented as a series of chapters, with titles of questions you've wanted to ask but never have, the book identifies the problems, analyzes why they are wrong, and provides stepping stones to begin developing change.

The writing is top notch, blending hard to swallow topics with personal anecdotes and levity where appropriate. While it's definitely a complex read, I honestly enjoyed every page, and learned so much. I know I can personally do better and this book provided a strong foundation for that.

I truly believe this book should be essential reading for everyone trying to understand what it going on in the world. Keep an open mind, be willing to learn, and look to be the change you wish to see.

View all my reviews

Comments

Review: A Christmas Carol Murder

A Christmas Carol Murder by Heather Redmond on Tour November 1 - December 31, 2020 Synopsis: The latest novel from Heather Redmond’s acclaimed mystery series finds young Charles Dickens suspecting a miser of pushing his partner out a window, but his fiancée Kate Hogarth takes a more charitable view of the old man's innocence . . . London, December 1835: Charles and Kate are out with friends and family for a chilly night of caroling and good cheer. But their blood truly runs cold when their singing is interrupted by a body plummeting from an upper window of a house. They soon learn the dead man at their feet, his neck strangely wrapped in chains, is Jacob Harley, the business partner of the resident of the house, an unpleasant codger who owns a counting house, one Emmanuel Screws. Ever the journalist, Charles dedicates himself to discovering who's behind the diabolical defenestration. But before he can investigate further, Harley's corpse is stolen. Followi...

Review: Mercy Creek

Mercy Creek by M.E. Browning October 11 - November 5, 2021 Tour Synopsis: In an idyllic Colorado town, a young girl goes missing—and the trail leads into the heart and mind of a remorseless killer. The late summer heat in Echo Valley, Colorado turns lush greenery into a tinder dry landscape. When a young girl mysteriously disappears, long buried grudges rekindle. Of the two Flores girls, Marisa was the one people pegged for trouble. Her younger sister, Lena, was the quiet daughter, dutiful and diligent—right until the moment she vanished. Detective Jo Wyatt is convinced the eleven-year-old girl didn’t run away and that a more sinister reason lurks behind her disappearance. For Jo, the case is personal, reaching far back into her past. But as she mines Lena’s fractured family life, she unearths a cache of secrets and half-lies that paints a darker picture. As the evidence mounts, so do the suspects, and when a witness steps forward with a shocking new revelation, Jo...

Review: Bird in Hand

Bird in Hand by Nikki Stern on Tour November 1-14, 2020 Synopsis: When the body of popular local guide Arley Fitchett washes up onto Maryland’s Eastern Shore, Lieutenant Sam Tate, just two months at her new job, is charged with investigating his death. She learns the dead man was searching for a carving he believed had been hidden in the area by pirates in 1718. He’s not the only one. Several others shared Fitchett’s obsession with the bird with the sapphire eye. But which one of them is the murderer—or the next victim? And how long does Sam have to catch a killer before her own past catches up with her? " The book... allows Tate to more fully come into herown as a formidable character on whose shoulders future procedurals could confidentially be placed. " ~ Kirkus Reviews " Bird in Hand will have prior Sam fans and newcomers thoroughly engrossed, all the way to the unexpected end. " ~ D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review " Eve...

Books with Bircky

Search This Blog