من الأشهر اليوم؟

From fiction to fact, polemic to memoir, Nikesh Shukla chooses five indispensable books on race issues
Reni Eddo-Lodge’s award-winning book Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race is a great place to start when trying to understand Britain’s relationship with race and racism. It interrogates whiteness and white privilege and asks us to look at issues around class, sexism, the way our education system is set up and how we relate to each other online and in person. It contains a wonderfully expansive look at the history of black British people and also prompts us to ask ourselves fundamentally uncomfortable questions. Her writing is urgent and powerful and I’ve seen how the book has resonated with young people of colour.
Chinua Achebe once wrote: “Until the lion learns to speak, the tale of the hunt will always glorify the hunter.” Which might be why in 2016 a poll found that 43% of British people thought the British empire was a good thing. Shashi Tharoor’s Inglorious Empire seeks to dispel that myth. The book, which seethes with anger and resentment, lays out in chillingly plain prose how the British empire plundered India’s resources and riches and left the country broken. Continue reading...