Welcome to Litsy!

A short but powerful book that packs a punch; a necessary read. Each book I read on my anti-racist journey is telling the world and me the same thing. I learn something from every Black voice, every word, every page. The author shares her struggles within a sea of white from her childhood, adolescence, and as an adult. She rightfully criticizes the church and demands it let its white superiority go, demands it do more. Demands a radical love.

Very good!

This memoir astonished and altered me. Coming of age as an American Sikh in the aftermath of 9/11, Valarie Kaur‘s dedication to making a difference and her extraordinary courage in the face of hate crimes, police brutality, and sexual assault are made only more remarkable by her resilient compassion toward those who‘d harm her. Read this if you believe a better world takes both courage and kindness and you‘d like to become more of both.

I had to bail on this one. It seems like a really good book, but I‘ll have to read the physical book. This book is so dense that with the audiobook, the words go in one ear and out the other.

I‘m afraid I cannot recommend this book, despite it being about an important topic. I thought it was an organizational mess. I also felt that way about his previous book called Deep Dark Down so clearly this just isn‘t an author for me. I don‘t like his style at all. 😵‍💫

“DiAngelo illuminates the phenomenon of white fragility and “allows us to understand racism as a practice not restricted to ‘bad people‘. Referring to defensive moves white people make when challenged racially, white fragility is characterized by emotions such as anger, fear, and guilt, and argumentation and silence. These behaviors then function to reinstate white racial equilibrium and prevent any meaningful cross-racial dialogue.”

I love Joel Christian Gill's work, but this just didn't do it for me. It felt like an adaptation from someone way too familiar with the source material; there wasn't a good flow, and it felt like things were glossed over. I would be interested in reading the original text, but I had a hard time with this version.

The tagged book is one of my #bookspin drawings, but our statewide interlibrary loan system blocks new books from circulation. It will have been out a year in May, so fingers crossed I'll see it at some point.
#bookspinbingo @thearomaofbooks