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  • So You Want to Talk About Race

  • Written by: Ijeoma Oluo
  • Narrated by: Bahni Turpin
  • Length: 7 hrs and 41 mins
  • 4.8 out of 5 stars (514 ratings)

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So You Want to Talk About Race

Written by: Ijeoma Oluo
Narrated by: Bahni Turpin
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Publisher's Summary

In this #1 New York Times bestseller, Ijeoma Oluo offers a revelatory examination of race in America

A current, constructive, and actionable exploration of today’s racial landscape, offering straightforward clarity that readers of all races need to contribute to the dismantling of the racial divide

In So You Want to Talk about Race, editor-at-large of the Establishment Ijeoma Oluo offers a contemporary, accessible take on the racial landscape in America, addressing head-on such issues as privilege, police brutality, intersectionality, micro-aggressions, the Black Lives Matter movement, and the “N” word. Perfectly positioned to bridge the gap between people of color and white Americans struggling with race complexities, Oluo answers the questions readers don’t dare ask, and explains the concepts that continue to elude everyday Americans.

Oluo is an exceptional writer with a rare ability to be straightforward, funny, and effective in her coverage of sensitive, hyper-charged issues in America. Her messages are passionate but finely tuned, and crystallize ideas that would otherwise be vague by empowering them with aha-moment clarity. Her writing brings to mind voices like Ta-Nehisi Coates and Roxane Gay, and Jessica Valenti in Full Frontal Feminism, and a young Gloria Naylor, particularly in Naylor’s seminal essay “The Meaning of a Word.”

©2018 Ijeoma Oluo (P)2018 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

What the critics say

"Narrator Bahni Turpin's impassioned voice clearly conveys the gravity of this book on race and racism.... Key points are repeated to help listeners absorb ideas and definitions, and Turpin engagingly reads real-life examples Oluo uses to illustrate complex concepts such as intersectionality and white privilege." (AudioFile)  

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What listeners say about So You Want to Talk About Race

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Interesting listen

Now I understand where all these words and ideas circulating have come from. So much good information. I really appreciated her personal stories. It makes a lot of sense why she is so angry and has adopted this framework for seeing the world. The critical theory she invokes to create this universe of self perpetuating white supremacy and oppression, for me simplifies people to an unconscionable degree. So many essentialist notions of skin pigment as original sin or evidence of victimhood. The psychological state created by believing everything in this book seems very unhealthy. She states at the beginning of the book as one of her key points is that "if you believe it is racism then it is" This goes against every principle of modern psychotherapy. Thoughts should be interrogated and weighed against evidence to judge their validity and utility. It struck me as an almost religious text with very little room for interpretation. Her views are all encompassing and uses a kind of circular reasoning which always leads back to the infallible pronouncement of the white supremacist ether that spawned the west. Glad I listened to it but what a terrible way to perceive your fellow human beings. Skin colour rules the day. Sad. She does give a little wink to her audience near the end where she says maybe she is wrong and if so we will figure it out when the time comes but for now to move the bar we need to take this stance. This is what activists do to get things done Ive been told. Still a terrible resentful bitter way to see the world.

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6 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Important Read!

This book is very informative and everything is said possibly and direct with due urgency.

it's a must read!

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5 people found this helpful

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  • JR
  • 2018-05-23

A must listen

This book gives every reader a perspective they can connect to and learn from: a story, facts and data, tips and calls to action.

I loved it and learned from it and hope there is a second volume.

Reader was great!

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4 people found this helpful

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    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

disappointing, unbearable, empty, annoying

why did I waste my time with this?

narration was fine.

everything else is a regurgitation of leftist talking points that are freely available all over the news and the internet.

Oluo brings nothing new to the table apart from an organized, cohesive structure of complaints and rules for white people to follow

why did I expect anything different? I guess I was hoping for some new insights into leftist ideology. I wanted to see if it went any deeper than what we're all bombarded with every day.

what business does this person have writing a book? they should just work as a data entry clerk or a social worker and try her best to be happy with that. none of this entitled goofball prattling and statistics she googled on the spot

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2 people found this helpful

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Who knew?

I always thought of myself as a pretty decent guy. But thanks to this book (and others like it) I have come to realize that I'm nothing more than a racist, sexist, ableist, classist white man, and there is no redemption for me.
By simply being, I cause offense to all people on this planet (except other white men) and I need to learn to live with my shame, stand up for all others (by standing down myself) and except that I have caused irreparable damage to this world by being born.
I do wonder though, as this book and others have failed to inform. At what age do my two boys stop being boys, and become racist, sexist, abliest & classist, just like their Dad? Do they grow into it? Or were they born this way? On to the next one to hopefully find my answers.

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1 person found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent book, great narrator.

Ijeoma Oluo firmly, honestly, but respectfully, provides helpful advice and facts for the white reader who is trying to do better (like me). The narrator is excellent

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1 person found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Thought provoking and well arranged.

I hope I've learned enough coming away from this book being part of the solutions, instead of being complacent or worse yet, someone who directly perpetuates the problems. Very well written, tough and concise, not condescending. It was a pleasure hearing from Ijeoma how we can all recognize our own parts in this struggle towards a better society.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Just amazing

I loved it. I think it’s a great primer for people starting their decolonization journey to touch on important topics. You can dig deeper on your own time, but this book does a great job of starting the conversation and teaching you where to start.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Must Read!

A must read for anyone trying to unlearn racist thinking patterns and learn to act in anti-racist ways. Listen with open ears and an open heart!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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  • EH
  • 2022-11-18

Must read!

Anyone wanting to learn more about racism and is willing to dig into their own biases and be open to changing their minds or deepening their anti-racist work should read this. She does an excellent job explaining so many historical events, common myths and stereotypes, and other issues. It doesn’t just apply to Americans either. White supremacy is a world wide problem!

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