Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You — Jason Reynolds & Ibram X. Kendi

June 5, 2020

52220686. sx318 sy475 TITLE: Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You
AUTHOR: Jason Reynolds & Ibram X. Kendi
GENRE: Nonfiction
AGE RANGE: YA
PAGES: 294pg
SOURCE: LibroFM

The construct of race has always been used to gain and keep power, to create dynamics that separate and silence. This remarkable reimagining of Dr. Ibram X. Kendi’s National Book Award-winning Stamped from the Beginning reveals the history of racist ideas in America, and inspires hope for an antiracist future. It takes you on a race journey from then to now, shows you why we feel how we feel, and why the poison of racism lingers. It also proves that while racist ideas have always been easy to fabricate and distribute, they can also be discredited. Through a gripping, fast-paced, and energizing narrative written by beloved award-winner Jason Reynolds, this book shines a light on the many insidious forms of racist ideas–and on ways readers can identify and stamp out racist thoughts in their daily lives.

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“There will come a time when we will love humanity, when we will gain the courage to fight for an equitable society for our beloved humanity, knowing, intelligently, that when we fight for humanity, we are fighting for ourselves.”

This was absolutely phenomenal. I haven’t read the original by Ibram X. Kendi yet, but I certainly plan to after listening to Jason Reynolds’ magnificent YA re-working of it. I don’t know how much this book will help educate many of the Black individuals in my lives who grew up knowing this information and who work hard for civil rights, but as a white person who was raised in the deep south, so much of the truth that Jason Reynolds revealed here was painfully skimmed over in my upbringing and education. I feel like I learned things that I should have known a long time ago, and I was certainly reminded of how little I will ever truly grasp the Black experience, especially here in the US. But it also reminded me that there are always things I can do as long as I keep learning and listening and do everything in my power to be anti-racist.

I’d also like to say that Reynolds’ narration skills are unparalleled; he’s so much fun to listen to, and I can see why so many people have raved to me now about audiobooks of his works. I could have listened to him for hours longer and I know I’ll be reaching for audio formats of everything else he’s written because it was just so enjoyable.

Thank you so much to the publisher and LibroFM ALC Program for providing me with this finished audio copy in exchange for an honest review!
content w a r n i n g s →

discussions of racism, slavery, abuse

d i v e r s i t y →

Jason Reynolds & Ibram X. Kendi are both Black authors writing about Black history and the Black experience

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Informative, beautifully written, and delightfully narrated.
WOULD I RECOMMEND IT? YES.

destiny

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More about Destiny @ Howling Libraries

Just a horror aficionado/geek girl trying to juggle motherhood, reading, blogging, gaming, and everyday life.

14 Comments
    1. This book is SO fantastic, now especially! I listened to it when it came out and I agree, there was so much I didn’t know or remember or even learned in school. His narration is unlike any other narrator, I swear I could listen to this man read to me all day every day. Highly recommend everything else he’s narrated, he’s such a pleasure to listen to and his words hold so much meaning. I’m glad you listened to this one 🙂

      1. Yes yes yes to all of this!! I was blown away by listening to him speak. It was literally so captivating and it made me wish he did TED talks or something. I just wanna meet him and sit down for dinner and listen to him tell me stories haha!

        1. I agree!!! I’m sure he has some great stories to tell, and he just tells them in SUCH an elegant yet relatable yet!

        1. I’m looking forward to reading it. I started reading Just Mercy last night, and I didn’t want to put it down.

    1. I added it to my TBR after seeing you read it 🙂 I’ve read “long way down” by Reynolds and want to try more of his stuff 🙂

    1. This review was great! I look forward to reading this book too.

    1. I added this to my TBR recently and it makes me happy to see you enjoyed it, I think it’s such an important book to read right now. Thank you for your review, beautiful ❤️✨

    1. Good to hear you enjoyed this! I have had this one hold for awhile. My library originally only had one copy but thankfully, Libby tells me they’ve acquired four more since I placed my request. I don’t know if I’ll pick up the original version after I read this (cos I’m not American and would rather read more about the Canadian context), but I do have Kendi’s How to be Anti-Racist on request as well.

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