Scan barcode
unladylike's review against another edition
5.0
A beautifully laid-out sequential picture book highlighting the need to talk with children about how [white people, myself included] uphold white supremacy and contribute to a legacy of inequity and cultural theft.
This should be bumped up high in the collections of white families and libraries as a picture book to read repeatedly and talk about.
This should be bumped up high in the collections of white families and libraries as a picture book to read repeatedly and talk about.
lattelibrarian's review against another edition
5.0
What an incredible book, from its epigraph, its illustrations, its message, its plotline. When a young child sees news coverage about a police officer who shot a black person, they immediately know that it's morally wrong--and yet nobody is willing to talk about it. They all think that the child is too young to understand, and that the topic is too difficult and too depressing. But he does understand, and he wants to understand more, and he wants to understand why nobody wants to talk about it!
A while ago, somebody told me that they didn't think that children really knew or cared about what's going on in the greater world. But here's the thing--children do care, and they're curious, and they want to know what's going on. By not discussing such hard topics, we're preventing important and uncomfortable conversations. And that's why this book is here: to jump start those conversations. Because if we can't have these conversations, then how can we think that we'll ever solve the problem or make the problem better?
And those illustrations!! The pictures are made via a brown bag, collage-style, and it's just so incredible and shows a homey, loving touch on each page, which is just what's needed for a picture book discussing such difficult topics, and topics so hard for white folks to discuss.
Overall, a hugely necessary and important book, certainly a need for any and every book shelf.
Review cross-listed here!
A while ago, somebody told me that they didn't think that children really knew or cared about what's going on in the greater world. But here's the thing--children do care, and they're curious, and they want to know what's going on. By not discussing such hard topics, we're preventing important and uncomfortable conversations. And that's why this book is here: to jump start those conversations. Because if we can't have these conversations, then how can we think that we'll ever solve the problem or make the problem better?
And those illustrations!! The pictures are made via a brown bag, collage-style, and it's just so incredible and shows a homey, loving touch on each page, which is just what's needed for a picture book discussing such difficult topics, and topics so hard for white folks to discuss.
Overall, a hugely necessary and important book, certainly a need for any and every book shelf.
Review cross-listed here!
johnnymacaroni's review against another edition
5.0
Wow. I wish I had this book years and years ago - for myself and for my library when I worked in one. It's a very powerful book with a message that may (and probably should) make some white readers uncomfortable. But it is honest and important.
lannthacker's review against another edition
I wanted to like this, but found it very abstract. Ignoring the dialogue simplifies the message for a younger audience, so perhaps reading it twice (or many times) would garner the best results in terms of conversation and understanding.
courtneys_shelves's review against another edition
4.0
This is a kid's book, but I sort of feel like a copy of it needs to be issued to every white person. It's a basic beginner's guide to dealing with things like white supremacy and privlege, told on a way that kids can understand and that allows them to think about things and see that they can make a difference.
mbrandmaier's review against another edition
5.0
People should not bury their head in the sand about racism, which is still very much alive and well today. I loved learning about Juliette Hampton Morgan. If all white people (including myself) would speak out like she did, the world would be a very different place.
lesbrary's review against another edition
5.0
A much-needed resource to teach white children about white supremacy, racism, and police shootings. A quotation from a Toni Morrison interview is included in the book: "White people have a very, very serious problem, and they should start thinking about what they can do about it . . . Take me out of it." Higginbotham teaches that it is white people who need to fight against this system: “You can be WHITE without signing on to whiteness.” She encourages us to grow justice inside us. As for concerns that kids are too young to learn about this? She counters this argument with the simple statements "Innocence is overrated. Knowledge is Power. Get some. Grow wise. Make history."
rhymeswithjoey's review against another edition
5.0
This book handles the hard task of owning one's whole identity when the history behind that identity is not pretty. It touches on the angry realization that every piece of history has been curated to make the people writing it look good. This book is a breath of fresh air in the racial justice conversation. It is incredibly important because it addresses white privilege in a way that doesn't villianize the color of skin, but realizing that whiteness has power. It answers the question a lot of white people have when faced with white history "that wasn't me. it wasn't my idea. what about me?". Too many times I've seen white people dismissed because they're the beneficiaries of a racist system. Change starts with acknowledgement of the problem, and that acknowledgement can't happen if there aren't books like this to take a good look at the scars from all perspectives.
thenextgenlibrarian's review against another edition
5.0
A powerful picture/collage book about whiteness and dealing with race and racism. This can spark change and inform our youth. It should be required reading in every elementary classroom.
veronicalathroum's review against another edition
4.0
“Not My Idea” teaches a valuable lesson: That white people do not have to buy in to white supremacy. And that by pretending white supremacy doesn’t exist, we are just perpetuating it. The illustrations are very cool - done with many different textures and mediums, and are more like a collage. They also include subtle representations of white supremacy, so I think the book would be accessible to children of a variety of reading levels. Though written by a white person, I think this is one instance where that is beneficial to the book because it addresses how white people are responsible for overthrowing white supremacy and racism - not Black people. I definitely recommend this for parents, teachers, and families looking to face difficult topics head on.