I picked this book up to educate myself as Black Lives Matter came to a more global stage in the last few weeks. I always thought that I was a good person, that I wasn’t racist, but I realised that may not be true. And even if it is true, it’s not enough. I needed to learn more about black experiences, so that I could be part of the solution and not part of the problem.

What I realised through reading this book, is that I have been blind to so much. Systematic racism that happens in the places that I hold dearest to my heart, in the places I would never expect there to be such hatred, and as a church (globally, not just locally), we need to do much better.

I appreciated how many people’s stories were weaved into this book, bringing different perspectives and experiences that we can and must learn from if we need to move forward into a society where your worth is not determined by the colour of your skin.

I also really appreciated the discussion questions at the end of each chapter. I read the book on my own, but I could see that this would be a great read as part of a house group or book club. The questions would definitely have been great springboards into meaningful discussion.

There are so many books on my list to read to educate myself more about race, but the fact that this one was British and with a Christian perspective definitely elevated it to the top of my list. And I’m so glad I did read it, because it opened my eyes to so much.

The book wasn’t an easy read in any way, in fact in places it was quite uncomfortable reading. But it was written in a way that made it quite easy to read.

I’d definitely recommend this book to everyone I know as a first step in education, and I’m glad that the author also recommends other things to read as I don’t want my learning to stop here.