Attention prospective readers: How To Be Black is not a book about how to change the color of your skin. Rather Baratunde Thurston has given us a thought- provoking and humorous examination that explores the ideas of what it means to be black and challenges the thoughts within the African American community of the definition of blackness.
Thurston tells his own story of being raised by a single mother in the inner city of Washington DC while attending the primarily white, privileged school, Sidwell Friends. Thurston advises his black readers on how to handle different life situations such as the chapter on "How to be the Black Employee" and the required thought process of deciding whether or not to eat the watermelon at your employer's holiday party.
Thurston also solicits the personal experience of "The Black Panel" to answer questions such as "When did you first realize you were black?" and "Do you know how to swim?". If you like open and candid discussions of race flooded with sarcastic and racial humor, How To Be Black will be an interesting read no matter what color your skin is.
Kimberly @ Forest Home
