Exacting, thorough, interesting

It took me a while to get into it because of the dates and names, but then I realized how well researched and blissfully thorough the book is. Which is what the best of science is to me. As a white woman in the US, I appreciate this book because I have rarely gotten a real solid answer on whiteness in the US, and IMO we all need to know where we come from--conceptually and spiritually if not literally. Nell Irvin Painter sheds light on this.

As a middle class/working class disabled white woman from a working class family, I value Painter's insight on class and the construction of racial whiteness and how that leads to pressure on each of us to live a certain role. The details and history are jaw dropping. The current day play of this legacy is *facepalm* really obvious after listening and inexcusable.

I have to honor the horrors that have been and are still done by your everyday, pleasant seeming white person to people of color and even poor (for example, homeless) white people in the interest of maintaining a certain standard of middle class whiteness. It's hard for me to hear, although this is not a new idea to me. But it's better to hear it and deal with it and stop doing that bs. The subtle humor of the author comes into view at various times of the read, and it's refreshing when the weight of the facts and sheer illogic of racism and classism can really weigh you down.

One thing I wish Painter would dealve into more: the othering of Indigenous Americans and how the process of colonialism and our current settler society (meaning the land we live on is, literally, stolen from the recent ancestors of our American Indian neighbors) ties into the house of cards of whiteness and settler identity.

I recommend this book. Thank you Nell Irvin Painter.

20 people found this helpful

Destroys the myth that race is about skin color

What made the experience of listening to The History of White People the most enjoyable?

I found this book to be enlightening and even though it contains a huge amount of information it is still bearable. The presentation of illogical, contradictory race theory about different European races really revealed how the concept of race in general is a social construct.

Which scene was your favorite?

I was surprised to learn about 1920's eugenics and the campaign against "degenerate" families...meaning poor whites... who contradicted the theory that Anglo Saxons where a superior race..

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

This book covers a great deal of time and contains many names and dates while addressing a very complex topic. It would have been impossible for me to listen to it all in one sitting. Still I found it very engaging, and I just accepted that I would never be able to retain all the details in my memory.

Any additional comments?

Economics, religion, science, literature and politics have all played their part in the invention and maintenance of race theories that have been used to justify inequality and the status quo of keeping power from those deemed as "other."

63 people found this helpful

Enraged & Engaged

This book enraged and engaged me -- It's really the history of privileged white men pontificating about what beauty means and pulling science out of their butts as a tool to feel good about their pinkness. I was rolling my eyes at them for 3/4 of the book.

Rage aside, I was enthralled. I'm currently also reading Zinn's People's History and appreciated the additional race-centered perspective regarding historical events. Also, it's fascinating to watch the progressive transformation of thought and to think about what the future may bring, in light of new science and climate change.

Loved the narration and a great book that racists will probably can't learn from because division is their myth, their religion...

13 people found this helpful

A Great Listen

This book gave me a new look at the concept of race. The author did excellent research and introduced me to thoughts I never knew existed. I loved this book.

26 people found this helpful

Great Book on the Construction of American Whiteness

Painter's analytical account takes the reader from Greek Antiquity to the recent American past (Obama-era), detailing important thinkers and history otherwise. Clearly written and easy to read. The author finds a rational middle ground between important broad strokes and specific supporting detail (i.e. motif of the changing ideas of western political leaders, such as Caesar, Napoleon, and a litany of America presidents, which supplements the analysis of academic racial thought and reflects the trends in this history's progression). It's an admirable balance unless one hopes for a more exhaustive look at such history, in which case I'd still recommend this book, albeit along with further research. Though racial discourse can seem inherently divisive, this fair, largely detached description of informational storytelling offers only the analysis-based conclusions that readers ought to come to on their own. It shouldn't be controversial to anyone not personally invested in protecting the notion of biological determinism, or racial permanence. That being said, readers should not expect "deep" sociological analysis. Rather, readers should expect to gain understanding with respect to the history of "whiteness", whether or not they are familiar with notions of social construction and race. It's my personal opinion that we'd all feel less divided for understanding and learning from this history. Definitely read this book; definitely listen to this audiobook.

10 people found this helpful

Important history

It's hard to say you can dislike a history book. it's nothing more than the narration of supposedly factual events. I believe this historical text is something that should be taught in American public schools. We should understand this social construct of race. How it originated, developed, and divides us today is something that the youth deserve to know so they can lead in effectively in the future. For those reasons this book is a great academic introduction to this concept.

32 people found this helpful

Very Interesting

all white people should read this book without judging this woman who did a great job writing it

12 people found this helpful

Brilliant

An eye-opening exploration of the construct of race. Regardless of whether you're "black" or "white" or anything in between, this book will change the way you think of the concept of "race".

14 people found this helpful

wonderfully done!

This book does a a phenomenal job of pulling together pertinent authorship research and presentation of race and ethnicity not only from America but from its Global ancestry. How the author was able to tie in very important works of literature, science, religion, and sociology together to explicate the issue and presence of race today in America was fantastic! Great book!!

7 people found this helpful

must read

a completely different take on race in America and it's emergence without vitriolic finger-pointing. am awesome read and narration

6 people found this helpful