Sunday, November 18, 2018

Nonfiction November, Week 3: Reading About Race

As Nonfiction November moves into week 4, I'm playing catch up with week 3's prompt:
Be The Expert/Ask the Expert/Become the Expert - hosted by Julie @ JulzReads: Three ways to join in this week! You can either share three or more books on a single topic that you have read and can recommend (be the expert), you can put the call out for good nonfiction on a specific topic that you have been dying to read (ask the expert), or you can create your own list of books on a topic that you’d like to read (become the expert).

Reading About Race


Though it's been a couple of years, I must begin this post with Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates. The book has had a profound impact on the way I think about race and the racial issues facing our country today.




 I read a few more books about race this year:



In this book, the author speaks very candidly about her awakening to race, racial issues, and her previous pattern of avoidance. She comes to realize that white IS, in fact, a race. This was a fascinating book... I've never read anything quite like it. It sent me in search of hard information... something more scientific and less subjective.



by Robin DiAngelo
This turned out to be just what I was looking for... not as personal, backed up by research. It also includes plenty of resources and suggestions for further reading. But before tackling those lists,  I returned to memoir...



This is my book club's December selection... and fits in nicely with my theme. Noah talks about his childhood in South Africa during and after apartheid. This extended my "race in the US" scope, but kept me reading on topic.


Books I'd Like to Read





by Shannon Sullivan


by Ta-Nehisi Coates



Can you recommend other books for my list?



Previous Be the Expert/Ask the Expert  posts:
2017 - Books About Books 
2016 - Supreme Reading (The Supreme Court)
2015 - Nonfiction Foodie Favorites


31 comments:

  1. Great list. I suggested Between the World and Me for my book club a few years ago and it didn't go over well. One woman stormed out of the meeting. :( I'd like to read White Rage as well.

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    1. "stormed out of the meeting"? WOW!

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    2. Yikes!! That must have been some meeting...

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    3. Did she ever come back to book club? Was she ever able to talk about what triggered her? I'd love to hear more about this!

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  2. I like your list of books...they all look tempting. Enjoy your week, and thanks for visiting my blog.

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    1. Laurel-Rain Snow - Funny how our reading takes us on theses unexpected journeys. Hope you have a good week, too :)

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  3. I really enjoyed the books by Trevor Noah and Ta-Nehisi Coates, but I haven't read the others. Most are on my TBR list, but you have a couple that I hadn't heard of. Thanks for this post!

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    1. Monika - Glad you found a couple of new books here... this has been an unexpected twist in my reading, but I'm happy to see where it leads.

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  4. I see a few that I might read. I've been wanting to read Born A Crime.

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    1. Vicki - I don't even watch Trevor Noah's show regularly, but still enjoyed his memoir. Hope you do, too.

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  5. I haven't read any of these, but I might check out White Fragility.

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    1. Angela - White Fragility offered an interesting perspective... one that I'd never considered prior to a few months ago. Hope you get a chance to read it.

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  6. Great list: I've read (3) of these - Trevor Noah,Ta-Nehisi Coates, and Debby Irving. I thought they were all very good.

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    1. Diane - I'm hoping the titles in my tbr section are just as good!

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  7. I’ve been reading about race, too! I read The Blood of Emmett Till for Nonfiction November. It was mostly just a refresher course for stuff I learned in high school. I really want to read Trevor Noah’s book. I watch his show all the time.

    Aj @ Read All The Things!

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    1. AJ - Great suggestion. I'll add it to my list - thanks!

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  8. Great list....I can see myself reading all of these books!
    Suggestion: the 'race factor' is evident in this blockbuster
    Heather Thompson's Pulitzer Prize winner History "Blood in the Water"
    Riveting.

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    1. Nancy - I've seen a few reviews of Blood in the Water and it sounds fascinating. My family lived in central NY at that time, but I was a little too young to be paying much attention.. adding to my list!

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  9. I highly recommend Not Quite Not White by Sharmila Sen, who immigrated with her parents to the US from India when she was 12. Its subtitle is "Losing and Finding Race in America". It may not be your blockbuster read like Na-Nehesi Coates's, but I find its sentiments authentic and what it describes I can relate to. I came to Canada from Hong Kong when I was 15. Although my background and situation are very different from hers, I can empathize with her struggles. And empathy is exactly what we aim for while reading about race. Thanks for taking up this topic in your November Non-fiction reading.

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    1. Arti - This book sounds fascinating... and what a recommendation that her experience resonates. I've requested a copy from the library. Thank you for the suggestion!

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  10. I haven't read anything about race except Black Berry, Sweet Juice: on Being Black in Canada by Lawrence Hill.

    I really need to since I have biracial grandchildren and I have trouble seeing race - and the 'race issue' - as anything but a social construct. Thanks for the extensive reading list - I have just put a library reserve on Between the World and me. A starting point.

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    1. Debbie - Between the World and Me is a great place to start. It's been an enlightening journey for me and I'm looking forward to reading more. Hope you enjoy the book.

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  11. Maybe throw in a James Baldwin novel .... such as the one that is coming out as a movie this month: If Beale Street Could Talk. It looks powerful.

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    1. Susan - Thanks for the suggestion... sounds very good!

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  12. Such an important topic! I was really blown away by Between the World and Me and I also enjoyed We Were Eight Years in Power. Although it felt both a little denser and a little less emotional, it was just as good in its own way. The rest of these books are still on my to-read list!

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    1. Katie - I'll be reading We Were Eight Years in Power sometime next year... glad I got started on this reading project!

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  13. There are two on there I haven't heard of! I've read all of Coates' books and have a few of the others on my list. Trevor Noah's experience in South Africa was incredible. Loved listening to him.

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    1. Heather G. - Listening to Noah narrate his book definitely added to the experience!

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  14. That's a great list! I would add Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race, by Reni Eddo-Lodge. It's very well done and very readable.

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    1. Robin - That's an excellent suggestion. Thanks!

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