In the bookclub I'm a member of, we get to suggest books 4 times a year, and we have a poll about which books to read. I've noticed a trend, and it is very aggravating.
We can read about all sorts of specific stories of white people in strange environments compared to the average, like a lot of prep schools, for instance. Or even sister-wife stuff. Okey dokey
But apparently in order to read about PoC or other cultures, the person has to be of a very low social class. They are usually incredibly oppressed, and that's what the book is about. We read maybe 1 of those out of every 5 books or so.
Out of my 3 suggestions for the books to read, the one that the group organizer picked was about a small-town white guy, written by a white guy.
We actually don't do badly at all on the gender split. Our group has a huge majority women, btw.
But race and ethnicity-wise, we are very diverse. We have a lot of people who just moved to the area, too, who are looking to meet people. Many of these folks are from other countries.
So why the hell are people's suggestions for non-white people in more average settings and circumstances never included? I think the more historical books are excellent -- don't get me wrong -- but what makes PoC or a different ethnic groups something you can't just read about in a straightforward way?
The two books I suggested had foreign authors about foreign settings, but there was no anthropological angle in them, if you get my meaning. They were just good stories.
I wish our organizer would let us vote to reduce the overall choices, and then vote again for the final picks. She's getting on my last nerve with how she's whittling down the list
We can read about all sorts of specific stories of white people in strange environments compared to the average, like a lot of prep schools, for instance. Or even sister-wife stuff. Okey dokey
But apparently in order to read about PoC or other cultures, the person has to be of a very low social class. They are usually incredibly oppressed, and that's what the book is about. We read maybe 1 of those out of every 5 books or so.
Out of my 3 suggestions for the books to read, the one that the group organizer picked was about a small-town white guy, written by a white guy.
We actually don't do badly at all on the gender split. Our group has a huge majority women, btw.
But race and ethnicity-wise, we are very diverse. We have a lot of people who just moved to the area, too, who are looking to meet people. Many of these folks are from other countries.
So why the hell are people's suggestions for non-white people in more average settings and circumstances never included? I think the more historical books are excellent -- don't get me wrong -- but what makes PoC or a different ethnic groups something you can't just read about in a straightforward way?
The two books I suggested had foreign authors about foreign settings, but there was no anthropological angle in them, if you get my meaning. They were just good stories.
I wish our organizer would let us vote to reduce the overall choices, and then vote again for the final picks. She's getting on my last nerve with how she's whittling down the list
