Amazon link I hadn’t read any of Coates’s books since Between the World and Me, but I heard his interview with Trevor Noah, and knew I had to read his newest book, The Message, in part because the description of his visit to Palestine was controversial. Disclaimer: I recognize that Coates is only telling a […]
Category: politics
Be a Revolution, by Ijeoma Oluo
Amazon link This book, a follow-up from the author of So You Want To Talk About Race, is exactly what the subtitle describes: “How Everyday People Are Fighting Oppression and Changing the World – and How You Can, Too”. While the book was well-written and easy to read, Oluo challenged me with stories that showed […]
The Sum of Us, by Heather McGhee
Amazon link The plutocrats have always known that solidarity is the answer, that the sum of us can accomplish far more than just some of us. This is a fantastic book describing how racism has benefited “some of us”, while costing us the benefits of solutions that help all of us. McGhee suggests that “the […]
The price and cost of belonging
I listened to a podcast conversation between Annahid Dashtgard and Jerry Colonna this week that inspired me to write about my relationship with race and belonging. I first heard Dashtgard on an episode of Colonna’s Reboot podcast, and then read her book The Bones of Belonging to learn more about her journey, before discovering her […]
What’s Our Problem? by Tim Urban
Amazon link I was a fan of Tim Urban and his page Wait But Why, and have been supporting him for years on Patreon. So I was excited to read his new book, subtitled “a self-help book for societies”, which finally came out after years of waiting. Alas, I was very disappointed with it. My […]
The New Psychology of Leadership, by Haslam, Reicher and Platow
Amazon link Reading this book articulated concepts that changed how I view and talk about leadership. The authors start the book by debunking several conventional theories of leadership (e.g. the “Great Man” theory where it’s about the leader’s innate qualities, or a transactional or power approach where people follow leaders in exchange for something) and […]
What to do now?
[n.b. I can’t continue with my usual personal development content without acknowledging the seismic shifts taking place in the country where I live. While I don’t think this post will make a difference, I refuse to stay silent. But if you don’t want to read about US politics, skip this one.] We knew it was […]
You don’t have the answer
One of my pet peeves is when people tell me what I should do. Normally, this is because they did something that worked for them, and they want to tell me I should also do it. I generally don’t want such advice for a variety of reasons: I don’t want the same thing that they […]
So You Want to Talk About Race, by Ijeoma Oluo
Amazon link I was recently reminded of this book, and decided to read it during Black History Month. It’s a good introduction for those that want to educate themselves on racism in America. The book shares Oluo’s perspective on intersectionality, police brutality, affirmative action, microaggressions, cultural appropriation, and the school-to-prison pipeline. I particularly liked her […]
De-capitalization
A friend recently mentioned the concept of de-capitalization, which seems to be the idea of moving away from capitalism and the “market” as the only way to measure value. This really resonated with me, as a big part of my own recent journey has been to move away from that worldview. When I was deciding […]
