This was my second read-through of So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo. I read it when it first came out in paperback, and then when one of my jobs* decided to read a book about racism as part of our DEI initiative, this was the one everyone wanted to read. It’s a good book, and it was worth a second read, and now I get to count it for a book bingo prompt, too.
So You Want to Talk About Race was originally published in 2018, and the paperback copy that I have came out in 2019, with an updated preface from the author. It already feels a little dated, as does everything that was published before COVID-19, but it’s still a great starting to place for your anti-racism journey.
This book is largely drawn from Oluo’s experience as a Black woman, and a mother of Black sons. Because she lives and works in Seattle, I feel like it’s especially beneficial for those of us in the PNW to read it, because her stories illustrate that however progressive we are about some things, there’s still a lot of racism in places like Seattle and Portland.
Oluo touches a bit on matters of intersectionality, but it’s not the big focus of the book. It really is a starting place, not an exhaustive examination of race in America.
I think this book is really approachable, because Oluo uses accessible language, her real-life experiences, and examples of how we can be better. I’m really looking forward to reading her new book, Be a Revolution.
*I’m a Millennial, of course I work two jobs.
TWs and CWs: This book discusses racism and sexism. It does contain racial slurs and examples of real-life micro aggressions and other racist acts.
Format and Source: I read this in paperback and I believe I purchased it at Third Place Books, but 2019 was approximately one million years ago so I may be misremembering.
Book Bingo Prompts
Nook & Cranny (Card 1): Re-Read. I honestly almost never re-read books because I have a hard enough time staying on top of all the new-to-me books I want to read, so I’m glad I was re-reading this one for work.
Book Bingo Progress
Nook & Cranny (Card 1): 12 out of 25 prompts complete. 1 bingo.
Nook & Cranny (Card 2): 6 out of 25 prompts complete. 0 bingos.