White Fragility (DiAngelo) - Book Reviews

Book Reviews
The value in White Fragility lies in its methodical, irrefutable exposure of racism in thought and action, and its call for humility and vigilance. Combatting one’s inner voices of racial prejudice, sneaky and, at times, irresistibly persuasive, is a life’s work.
New Yorker


[O]ne-part jeremiad and one-part handbook. It is by turns mordant and then inspirational, an argument that powerful forces and tragic histories stack the deck fully against racial justice.… White Fragility reads better as evidence of where we are mired than as a how-to guide.…White Fragility may… be too pessimistic as well as too cheery…. But it does much help us to get there.
Los Angeles Review of Books


 DiAngelo wants white people to… start uncomfortable conversations with family and friends.… It is easy to overstate the value of "conversations about race" and, in the process, de-emphasize the need for material change. But it is hard to deny that a great many new conversations are likely needed…. The number of conversations coaxed into existence by DiAngelo's work will be a central measure of its success. I hope it is a great one.
Pacific Standard


(Starred review) [T]houghtful, instructive, and comprehensive… primarily intended for white audiences… in order to challenge racism.…[I]mpressive in its scope and complexity… a powerful lens for examining, and practical tools for grappling with, racism today.
Publishers Weekly


[C]oncrete examples of how to move awareness of white fragility into meaningful antiracist action.… [H]elpful for those new to the critical analysis of whiteness… [and] useful refresher to anyone committed to… self-assessment and antioppression work. —Anna J. Clutterbuck-Cook, Massachusetts Historical Soc.
Library Journal


(Starred review) White Fragility is a book everyone should be exposed to. With any luck, most who are will be inspired to search themselves and interrupt their contributions to racism.
Shelf Awareness