Author: Harbhajan S. Batth
Publisher: Harbhajan S. Batth
ISBN: 9789789782642
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 266
Book Description
The phenomenon of stereotyping is commonly used to make things mindlessly easier for us to understand. To categorize individuals and to classify them into groups so we can make sense of the world. We use it in various contexts: "Indians are snobs, arrogant and underendowed, Chinese do not know how to drive, blondes are dumb, Nigerians are scammers etc." We are all guilty of stereotyping at some point in our lives. It may be base on nationality, color of skin, gender, race etc. The categorization of a group of people that we tend to pigeon-hole is based on but limited to our personal experiences, what is showcased and broadcast in media, the stories that we have heard and so on; but we make the mistake to apply it to an entire group.Having spent two decades of my life in West Africa, through this book I intend to challenge the epidemic of stereotyping of Nigeria. There is corruption in Nigeria but don't label the entire country as being corrupt, there is corruption in India too.There are scams in Nigeria but don't label all Nigerian as scammers, there are scams in Hong Kong too. There is drug trafficking in Nigeria but don't label all Nigerian as drug peddlers, there is drug trafficking in Mexico too.What follows in this book shall give a window into the consciousness of the minds housing Nigerian stereotypes. Please be mindful that along the way the filter of typecasts will cloud your vision. Therefore, through my narrative based on first-hand experiences, I invite you to get to know what Nigeria and Nigerians are all about.Remember, oftentimes the reality is far more attractive and superior than we dare to acknowledge.
Fixing Stereotypes...My Way: My Story of Two Decades in Nigeria
Author: Harbhajan S. Batth
Publisher: Harbhajan S. Batth
ISBN: 9789789782642
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 266
Book Description
The phenomenon of stereotyping is commonly used to make things mindlessly easier for us to understand. To categorize individuals and to classify them into groups so we can make sense of the world. We use it in various contexts: "Indians are snobs, arrogant and underendowed, Chinese do not know how to drive, blondes are dumb, Nigerians are scammers etc." We are all guilty of stereotyping at some point in our lives. It may be base on nationality, color of skin, gender, race etc. The categorization of a group of people that we tend to pigeon-hole is based on but limited to our personal experiences, what is showcased and broadcast in media, the stories that we have heard and so on; but we make the mistake to apply it to an entire group.Having spent two decades of my life in West Africa, through this book I intend to challenge the epidemic of stereotyping of Nigeria. There is corruption in Nigeria but don't label the entire country as being corrupt, there is corruption in India too.There are scams in Nigeria but don't label all Nigerian as scammers, there are scams in Hong Kong too. There is drug trafficking in Nigeria but don't label all Nigerian as drug peddlers, there is drug trafficking in Mexico too.What follows in this book shall give a window into the consciousness of the minds housing Nigerian stereotypes. Please be mindful that along the way the filter of typecasts will cloud your vision. Therefore, through my narrative based on first-hand experiences, I invite you to get to know what Nigeria and Nigerians are all about.Remember, oftentimes the reality is far more attractive and superior than we dare to acknowledge.
Publisher: Harbhajan S. Batth
ISBN: 9789789782642
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 266
Book Description
The phenomenon of stereotyping is commonly used to make things mindlessly easier for us to understand. To categorize individuals and to classify them into groups so we can make sense of the world. We use it in various contexts: "Indians are snobs, arrogant and underendowed, Chinese do not know how to drive, blondes are dumb, Nigerians are scammers etc." We are all guilty of stereotyping at some point in our lives. It may be base on nationality, color of skin, gender, race etc. The categorization of a group of people that we tend to pigeon-hole is based on but limited to our personal experiences, what is showcased and broadcast in media, the stories that we have heard and so on; but we make the mistake to apply it to an entire group.Having spent two decades of my life in West Africa, through this book I intend to challenge the epidemic of stereotyping of Nigeria. There is corruption in Nigeria but don't label the entire country as being corrupt, there is corruption in India too.There are scams in Nigeria but don't label all Nigerian as scammers, there are scams in Hong Kong too. There is drug trafficking in Nigeria but don't label all Nigerian as drug peddlers, there is drug trafficking in Mexico too.What follows in this book shall give a window into the consciousness of the minds housing Nigerian stereotypes. Please be mindful that along the way the filter of typecasts will cloud your vision. Therefore, through my narrative based on first-hand experiences, I invite you to get to know what Nigeria and Nigerians are all about.Remember, oftentimes the reality is far more attractive and superior than we dare to acknowledge.
Fixing Stereotypes...My Way
Author: Dr. Harbhajan S. Batth
Publisher: Dr. Batth
ISBN: 0463994787
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 174
Book Description
The phenomenon of stereotyping is commonly used to make things mindlessly easier for us to understand. To categorize individuals and to classify them into groups so we can make sense of the world. We use it in various contexts: Indians are snobs, arrogant and under-endowed, Chinese do not know how to drive, blondes are dumb, Nigerians are scammers etc. We are all guilty of stereotyping at some point in our lives. It may be based on nationality, color of skin, gender, race etc. The categorization of a group of people that we tend to pigeon-hole is based on but limited to our personal experiences, what is showcased and broadcast in media, the stories that we have heard and so on; but we make the mistake to apply it to an entire group. Having spent two decades of my life in West Africa, through this book I intend to challenge the epidemic of stereotyping of Nigeria. There is corruption in Nigeria but don't label the entire country as being corrupt, there is corruption in India too. There are scams in Nigeria but don't label all Nigerian as scammers, there are scams in Hong Kong too. There is drug trafficking in Nigeria but don't label all Nigerian as drug peddlers, there is drug trafficking in Mexico too. What follows in this book shall give a window into the consciousness of the minds housing Nigerian stereotypes. Please be mindful that along the way the filter of typecasts will cloud your vision. Therefore, through my narrative based on first-hand experiences, I invite you to get to know what Nigeria and Nigerians are all about. Remember, oftentimes the reality is far more attractive and superior than what we dare to acknowledge.
Publisher: Dr. Batth
ISBN: 0463994787
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 174
Book Description
The phenomenon of stereotyping is commonly used to make things mindlessly easier for us to understand. To categorize individuals and to classify them into groups so we can make sense of the world. We use it in various contexts: Indians are snobs, arrogant and under-endowed, Chinese do not know how to drive, blondes are dumb, Nigerians are scammers etc. We are all guilty of stereotyping at some point in our lives. It may be based on nationality, color of skin, gender, race etc. The categorization of a group of people that we tend to pigeon-hole is based on but limited to our personal experiences, what is showcased and broadcast in media, the stories that we have heard and so on; but we make the mistake to apply it to an entire group. Having spent two decades of my life in West Africa, through this book I intend to challenge the epidemic of stereotyping of Nigeria. There is corruption in Nigeria but don't label the entire country as being corrupt, there is corruption in India too. There are scams in Nigeria but don't label all Nigerian as scammers, there are scams in Hong Kong too. There is drug trafficking in Nigeria but don't label all Nigerian as drug peddlers, there is drug trafficking in Mexico too. What follows in this book shall give a window into the consciousness of the minds housing Nigerian stereotypes. Please be mindful that along the way the filter of typecasts will cloud your vision. Therefore, through my narrative based on first-hand experiences, I invite you to get to know what Nigeria and Nigerians are all about. Remember, oftentimes the reality is far more attractive and superior than what we dare to acknowledge.
We Should All Be Feminists
Author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 110191176X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 65
Book Description
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The highly acclaimed, provocative essay on feminism and sexual politics—from the award-winning author of Americanah In this personal, eloquently-argued essay—adapted from the much-admired TEDx talk of the same name—Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie offers readers a unique definition of feminism for the twenty-first century. Drawing extensively on her own experiences and her deep understanding of the often masked realities of sexual politics, here is one remarkable author’s exploration of what it means to be a woman now—and an of-the-moment rallying cry for why we should all be feminists.
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 110191176X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 65
Book Description
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The highly acclaimed, provocative essay on feminism and sexual politics—from the award-winning author of Americanah In this personal, eloquently-argued essay—adapted from the much-admired TEDx talk of the same name—Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie offers readers a unique definition of feminism for the twenty-first century. Drawing extensively on her own experiences and her deep understanding of the often masked realities of sexual politics, here is one remarkable author’s exploration of what it means to be a woman now—and an of-the-moment rallying cry for why we should all be feminists.
Half of a Yellow Sun
Author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Publisher: Vintage Canada
ISBN: 0307373541
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 562
Book Description
With her award-winning debut novel, Purple Hibiscus, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was heralded by the Washington Post Book World as the “21st century daughter” of Chinua Achebe. Now, in her masterly, haunting new novel, she recreates a seminal moment in modern African history: Biafra’s impassioned struggle to establish an independent republic in Nigeria during the 1960s. With the effortless grace of a natural storyteller, Adichie weaves together the lives of five characters caught up in the extraordinary tumult of the decade. Fifteen-year-old Ugwu is houseboy to Odenigbo, a university professor who sends him to school, and in whose living room Ugwu hears voices full of revolutionary zeal. Odenigbo’s beautiful mistress, Olanna, a sociology teacher, is running away from her parents’ world of wealth and excess; Kainene, her urbane twin, is taking over their father’s business; and Kainene’s English lover, Richard, forms a bridge between their two worlds. As we follow these intertwined lives through a military coup, the Biafran secession and the subsequent war, Adichie brilliantly evokes the promise, and intimately, the devastating disappointments that marked this time and place. Epic, ambitious and triumphantly realized, Half of a Yellow Sun is a more powerful, dramatic and intensely emotional picture of modern Africa than any we have had before.
Publisher: Vintage Canada
ISBN: 0307373541
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 562
Book Description
With her award-winning debut novel, Purple Hibiscus, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was heralded by the Washington Post Book World as the “21st century daughter” of Chinua Achebe. Now, in her masterly, haunting new novel, she recreates a seminal moment in modern African history: Biafra’s impassioned struggle to establish an independent republic in Nigeria during the 1960s. With the effortless grace of a natural storyteller, Adichie weaves together the lives of five characters caught up in the extraordinary tumult of the decade. Fifteen-year-old Ugwu is houseboy to Odenigbo, a university professor who sends him to school, and in whose living room Ugwu hears voices full of revolutionary zeal. Odenigbo’s beautiful mistress, Olanna, a sociology teacher, is running away from her parents’ world of wealth and excess; Kainene, her urbane twin, is taking over their father’s business; and Kainene’s English lover, Richard, forms a bridge between their two worlds. As we follow these intertwined lives through a military coup, the Biafran secession and the subsequent war, Adichie brilliantly evokes the promise, and intimately, the devastating disappointments that marked this time and place. Epic, ambitious and triumphantly realized, Half of a Yellow Sun is a more powerful, dramatic and intensely emotional picture of modern Africa than any we have had before.
Things Fall Apart
Author: Chinua Achebe
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0385474547
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 226
Book Description
“A true classic of world literature . . . A masterpiece that has inspired generations of writers in Nigeria, across Africa, and around the world.” —Barack Obama “African literature is incomplete and unthinkable without the works of Chinua Achebe.” —Toni Morrison Nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American Read Things Fall Apart is the first of three novels in Chinua Achebe's critically acclaimed African Trilogy. It is a classic narrative about Africa's cataclysmic encounter with Europe as it establishes a colonial presence on the continent. Told through the fictional experiences of Okonkwo, a wealthy and fearless Igbo warrior of Umuofia in the late 1800s, Things Fall Apart explores one man's futile resistance to the devaluing of his Igbo traditions by British political andreligious forces and his despair as his community capitulates to the powerful new order. With more than 20 million copies sold and translated into fifty-seven languages, Things Fall Apart provides one of the most illuminating and permanent monuments to African experience. Achebe does not only capture life in a pre-colonial African village, he conveys the tragedy of the loss of that world while broadening our understanding of our contemporary realities.
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0385474547
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 226
Book Description
“A true classic of world literature . . . A masterpiece that has inspired generations of writers in Nigeria, across Africa, and around the world.” —Barack Obama “African literature is incomplete and unthinkable without the works of Chinua Achebe.” —Toni Morrison Nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American Read Things Fall Apart is the first of three novels in Chinua Achebe's critically acclaimed African Trilogy. It is a classic narrative about Africa's cataclysmic encounter with Europe as it establishes a colonial presence on the continent. Told through the fictional experiences of Okonkwo, a wealthy and fearless Igbo warrior of Umuofia in the late 1800s, Things Fall Apart explores one man's futile resistance to the devaluing of his Igbo traditions by British political andreligious forces and his despair as his community capitulates to the powerful new order. With more than 20 million copies sold and translated into fifty-seven languages, Things Fall Apart provides one of the most illuminating and permanent monuments to African experience. Achebe does not only capture life in a pre-colonial African village, he conveys the tragedy of the loss of that world while broadening our understanding of our contemporary realities.
A Culture of Corruption
Author: Daniel Jordan Smith
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400837227
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 290
Book Description
E-mails proposing an "urgent business relationship" help make fraud Nigeria's largest source of foreign revenue after oil. But scams are also a central part of Nigeria's domestic cultural landscape. Corruption is so widespread in Nigeria that its citizens call it simply "the Nigerian factor." Willing or unwilling participants in corruption at every turn, Nigerians are deeply ambivalent about it--resigning themselves to it, justifying it, or complaining about it. They are painfully aware of the damage corruption does to their country and see themselves as their own worst enemies, but they have been unable to stop it. A Culture of Corruption is a profound and sympathetic attempt to understand the dilemmas average Nigerians face every day as they try to get ahead--or just survive--in a society riddled with corruption. Drawing on firsthand experience, Daniel Jordan Smith paints a vivid portrait of Nigerian corruption--of nationwide fuel shortages in Africa's oil-producing giant, Internet cafés where the young launch their e-mail scams, checkpoints where drivers must bribe police, bogus organizations that siphon development aid, and houses painted with the fraud-preventive words "not for sale." This is a country where "419"--the number of an antifraud statute--has become an inescapable part of the culture, and so universal as a metaphor for deception that even a betrayed lover can say, "He played me 419." It is impossible to comprehend Nigeria today--from vigilantism and resurgent ethnic nationalism to rising Pentecostalism and accusations of witchcraft and cannibalism--without understanding the role played by corruption and popular reactions to it. Some images inside the book are unavailable due to digital copyright restrictions.
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400837227
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 290
Book Description
E-mails proposing an "urgent business relationship" help make fraud Nigeria's largest source of foreign revenue after oil. But scams are also a central part of Nigeria's domestic cultural landscape. Corruption is so widespread in Nigeria that its citizens call it simply "the Nigerian factor." Willing or unwilling participants in corruption at every turn, Nigerians are deeply ambivalent about it--resigning themselves to it, justifying it, or complaining about it. They are painfully aware of the damage corruption does to their country and see themselves as their own worst enemies, but they have been unable to stop it. A Culture of Corruption is a profound and sympathetic attempt to understand the dilemmas average Nigerians face every day as they try to get ahead--or just survive--in a society riddled with corruption. Drawing on firsthand experience, Daniel Jordan Smith paints a vivid portrait of Nigerian corruption--of nationwide fuel shortages in Africa's oil-producing giant, Internet cafés where the young launch their e-mail scams, checkpoints where drivers must bribe police, bogus organizations that siphon development aid, and houses painted with the fraud-preventive words "not for sale." This is a country where "419"--the number of an antifraud statute--has become an inescapable part of the culture, and so universal as a metaphor for deception that even a betrayed lover can say, "He played me 419." It is impossible to comprehend Nigeria today--from vigilantism and resurgent ethnic nationalism to rising Pentecostalism and accusations of witchcraft and cannibalism--without understanding the role played by corruption and popular reactions to it. Some images inside the book are unavailable due to digital copyright restrictions.
In Case of Emergency
Author: Mahsa Mohebali
Publisher: Feminist Press at CUNY
ISBN: 1952177871
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 95
Book Description
In this prize-winning Iranian novel, a spoiled and foul-mouthed young woman looks to get high while her family and city fall to pieces. What do you do when the world is falling apart and you’re in withdrawal? Disillusioned, wealthy, and addicted to opium, Shadi wakes up one day to apocalyptic earthquakes and a dangerously low stash. Outside, Tehran is crumbling: yuppies flee in bumper-to-bumper traffic as skaters and pretty boys rise up to claim the city as theirs. Cross-dressed to evade hijab laws, Shadi flits between her dysfunctional family and depressed friends—all in search of her next fix. Mahsa Mohebali's groundbreaking novel about Iranian counterculture is a satirical portrait of the disaster that is contemporary life. Weaving together gritty vernacular and cinematic prose, In Case of Emergency takes a darkly humorous, scathing look at the authoritarian state, global capitalism, and the gender binary.
Publisher: Feminist Press at CUNY
ISBN: 1952177871
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 95
Book Description
In this prize-winning Iranian novel, a spoiled and foul-mouthed young woman looks to get high while her family and city fall to pieces. What do you do when the world is falling apart and you’re in withdrawal? Disillusioned, wealthy, and addicted to opium, Shadi wakes up one day to apocalyptic earthquakes and a dangerously low stash. Outside, Tehran is crumbling: yuppies flee in bumper-to-bumper traffic as skaters and pretty boys rise up to claim the city as theirs. Cross-dressed to evade hijab laws, Shadi flits between her dysfunctional family and depressed friends—all in search of her next fix. Mahsa Mohebali's groundbreaking novel about Iranian counterculture is a satirical portrait of the disaster that is contemporary life. Weaving together gritty vernacular and cinematic prose, In Case of Emergency takes a darkly humorous, scathing look at the authoritarian state, global capitalism, and the gender binary.
Questions for Ada
Author: Ijeoma Umebinyuo
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN: 9781505984347
Category : Nigeria
Languages : en
Pages : 0
Book Description
The poet uses the artistry of words to embody the pain, the passion, and the power of love rising from the depths of our souls.
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN: 9781505984347
Category : Nigeria
Languages : en
Pages : 0
Book Description
The poet uses the artistry of words to embody the pain, the passion, and the power of love rising from the depths of our souls.
Ghana Must Go
Author: Taiye Selasi
Publisher: Penguin UK
ISBN: 0670919896
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 336
Book Description
A stunning novel, spanning generations and continents, Ghana Must Go by rising star Taiye Selasi is a tale of family drama and forgiveness, for fans of Zadie Smith and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. This is the story of a family -- of the simple, devastating ways in which families tear themselves apart, and of the incredible lengths to which a family will go to put itself back together. It is the story of one family, the Sais, whose good life crumbles in an evening; a Ghanaian father, Kweku Sai, who becomes a highly respected surgeon in the US only to be disillusioned by a grotesque injustice; his Nigerian wife, Fola, the beautiful homemaker abandoned in his wake; their eldest son, Olu, determined to reconstruct the life his father should have had; their twins, seductive Taiwo and acclaimed artist Kehinde, both brilliant but scarred and flailing; their youngest, Sadie, jealously in love with her celebrity best friend. All of them sent reeling on their disparate paths into the world. Until, one day, tragedy spins the Sais in a new direction. This is the story of a family: torn apart by lies, reunited by grief. A family absolved, ultimately, by that bitter but most tenuous bond: familial love. Ghana Must Go interweaves the stories of the Sais in a rich and moving drama of separation and reunion, spanning generations and cultures from West Africa to New England, London, New York and back again. It is a debut novel of blazing originality and startling power by a writer of extraordinary gifts. 'Ghana Must Go is both a fast moving story of one family's fortunes and an ecstatic exploration of the inner lives of its members. With her perfectly-pitched prose and flawless technique, Selasi does more than merely renew our sense of the African novel: she renews our sense of the novel, period. An astonishing debut' Teju Cole, author of Open City Taiye Selasi was born in London and raised in Massachusetts. She holds a B.A. in American Studies from Yale and an M.Phil. in International Relations from Oxford. "The Sex Lives of African Girls" (Granta, 2011), Selasi's fiction debut, appears in Best American Short Stories 2012. She lives in Rome.
Publisher: Penguin UK
ISBN: 0670919896
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 336
Book Description
A stunning novel, spanning generations and continents, Ghana Must Go by rising star Taiye Selasi is a tale of family drama and forgiveness, for fans of Zadie Smith and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. This is the story of a family -- of the simple, devastating ways in which families tear themselves apart, and of the incredible lengths to which a family will go to put itself back together. It is the story of one family, the Sais, whose good life crumbles in an evening; a Ghanaian father, Kweku Sai, who becomes a highly respected surgeon in the US only to be disillusioned by a grotesque injustice; his Nigerian wife, Fola, the beautiful homemaker abandoned in his wake; their eldest son, Olu, determined to reconstruct the life his father should have had; their twins, seductive Taiwo and acclaimed artist Kehinde, both brilliant but scarred and flailing; their youngest, Sadie, jealously in love with her celebrity best friend. All of them sent reeling on their disparate paths into the world. Until, one day, tragedy spins the Sais in a new direction. This is the story of a family: torn apart by lies, reunited by grief. A family absolved, ultimately, by that bitter but most tenuous bond: familial love. Ghana Must Go interweaves the stories of the Sais in a rich and moving drama of separation and reunion, spanning generations and cultures from West Africa to New England, London, New York and back again. It is a debut novel of blazing originality and startling power by a writer of extraordinary gifts. 'Ghana Must Go is both a fast moving story of one family's fortunes and an ecstatic exploration of the inner lives of its members. With her perfectly-pitched prose and flawless technique, Selasi does more than merely renew our sense of the African novel: she renews our sense of the novel, period. An astonishing debut' Teju Cole, author of Open City Taiye Selasi was born in London and raised in Massachusetts. She holds a B.A. in American Studies from Yale and an M.Phil. in International Relations from Oxford. "The Sex Lives of African Girls" (Granta, 2011), Selasi's fiction debut, appears in Best American Short Stories 2012. She lives in Rome.
Dear Ijeawele, or A Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions
Author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 1524733148
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 41
Book Description
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • The award-winning author of We Should All Be Feminists and Americanah gives us this powerful statement about feminism today—written as a letter to a friend. A few years ago, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie received a letter from a childhood friend, a new mother who wanted to know how to raise her baby girl to be a feminist. Dear Ijeawele is Adichie’s letter of response: fifteen invaluable suggestions—direct, wryly funny, and perceptive—for how to empower a daughter to become a strong, independent woman. Filled with compassionate guidance and advice, it gets right to the heart of sexual politics in the twenty-first century, and starts a new and urgently needed conversation about what it really means to be a woman today. A Skimm Reads Pick ● An NPR Best Book of the Year
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 1524733148
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 41
Book Description
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • The award-winning author of We Should All Be Feminists and Americanah gives us this powerful statement about feminism today—written as a letter to a friend. A few years ago, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie received a letter from a childhood friend, a new mother who wanted to know how to raise her baby girl to be a feminist. Dear Ijeawele is Adichie’s letter of response: fifteen invaluable suggestions—direct, wryly funny, and perceptive—for how to empower a daughter to become a strong, independent woman. Filled with compassionate guidance and advice, it gets right to the heart of sexual politics in the twenty-first century, and starts a new and urgently needed conversation about what it really means to be a woman today. A Skimm Reads Pick ● An NPR Best Book of the Year