Read More Nonfiction by Authors of Color!

The October topic for my #ReadPOC October Challenge is: Read More Nonfiction by Authors of Color!

I picked a book by a German journalist, writing about institutionalized racism in Germany. The book is based on experiences from her own life, aka mostly set up as a memoir.

Was weiße Menschen nicht über Rassismus hören wollen (Aber wissen sollten)
by Alice Hasters

I don‘t think this book has been translated into English. The title would be: What white people don’t want to hear about racism (but should know)

Translation of the German book blurb:

“May I touch your hair?”, “Can you get sunburn?”, “Where are you from?” Those who ask such questions usually don’t mean it badly. But still: they are racist. White people often don’t want to hear why. Alice Hasters explains it anyway. She vividly and patiently describes how racism shapes her everyday life as a black woman in Germany. It becomes clear that racism is not just a problem on the far-right of society. And confronting your own racism is painful at first, but the only way to overcome it.

I am about a third into the audiobook, narrated by the author. I was pretty hesitant about picking it up, not wanting to be told what a horrible, privileged and racist person I am. Plus, the reviews that I looked up were allover the place and, expectedly, very controversial and critical. About three hours into the audio I like it a lot. Hasters writes well, narrates well, gives great examples and presents her arguments objectively. Full review to come…