76,192 books
—
283,374 voters
to-read
(362)
currently-reading (30)
read (428)
fiction (112)
spirituality (73)
adventure (59)
autobiographical-memoir (54)
cultural-studies (39)
history (37)
philosophy (33)
mystery (32)
fantasy (30)
currently-reading (30)
read (428)
fiction (112)
spirituality (73)
adventure (59)
autobiographical-memoir (54)
cultural-studies (39)
history (37)
philosophy (33)
mystery (32)
fantasy (30)
love
(30)
healing-loss-of-love (27)
american-history (25)
buddhism (25)
motivational (22)
non-fiction (21)
religion (19)
epic-tales (17)
poetry (17)
world-history (17)
crime (16)
humor (16)
healing-loss-of-love (27)
american-history (25)
buddhism (25)
motivational (22)
non-fiction (21)
religion (19)
epic-tales (17)
poetry (17)
world-history (17)
crime (16)
humor (16)
“Following the anecdote, Beaumont explains the deadly meaning of race prejudice in the United States. Echoing Crèvecoeur and Jefferson, he concludes that white supremacy in America corrupts white people by schooling them in “domination and tyranny,” while blasting Negro fate and engendering in them violent hatreds and resentments bound to provoke bloody crisis.40”
― The History of White People
― The History of White People
“In Anglo-Saxon Britain as elsewhere, slaves were valuable property, worth each about eight oxen; in Ireland a female slave represented a unit of currency, like a dollar or a euro.4 Moreover, slavery in Anglo-Saxon Britain applied not merely to the captives themselves, for slave status could also be inherited, as had been the case among the Thracians of antiquity. We cannot know how many of the British poor sold themselves and their children into bondage, but the number must have been significant, for attempts at reform were made repeatedly. Kings Alfred the Great and Canute (1014–35) tried, with uncertain success, to restrict slavery, especially with regard to daughters. Nonetheless, about one-tenth of the eleventh-century British population is estimated to have been enslaved, a proportion rising to one-fifth in the West Country.5 So embedded were slaves in the economy of the British Isles that the Catholic Church, quite a wealthy institution, owned vast numbers of them.6”
― The History of White People
― The History of White People
“Beauty provokes harassment, the law says, but it looks through men's eyes when deciding what provokes it.”
― The Beauty Myth
― The Beauty Myth
“I would love to believe that when I die I will live again, that some thinking, feeling, remembering part of me will continue. But as much as I want to believe that, and despite the ancient and worldwide cultural traditions that assert an afterlife, I know of nothing to suggest that it is more than wishful thinking. I want to grow really old with my wife, Annie, whom I dearly love. I want to see my younger children grow up and to play a role in their character and intellectual development. I want to meet still unconceived grandchildren. There are scientific problems whose outcomes I long to witness—such as the exploration of many of the worlds in our Solar System and the search for life elsewhere. I want to learn how major trends in human history, both hopeful and worrisome, work themselves out: the dangers and promise of our technology, say; the emancipation of women; the growing political, economic, and technological ascendancy of China; interstellar flight. If there were life after death, I might, no matter when I die, satisfy most of these deep curiosities and longings. But if death is nothing more than an endless dreamless sleep, this is a forlorn hope. Maybe this perspective has given me a little extra motivation to stay alive. The world is so exquisite, with so much love and moral depth, that there is no reason to deceive ourselves with pretty stories for which there's little good evidence. Far better, it seems to me, in our vulnerability, is to look Death in the eye and to be grateful every day for the brief but magnificent opportunity that life provides.”
― Billions & Billions: Thoughts on Life and Death at the Brink of the Millennium
― Billions & Billions: Thoughts on Life and Death at the Brink of the Millennium
“Evolutionary biologists now reckon that the six to seven billion people now living share the same small number of ancestors living two or three thousand years ago. These circumstances make nonsense of anybody’s pretensions to find a pure racial ancestry.”
― The History of White People
― The History of White People
Ask Anne Lamott - Thursday, December 12th!
— 1186 members
— last activity Dec 16, 2014 10:21AM
Join us for a special discussion with author Anne Lamott on Thursday, December 12th! Anne will be discussing her latest book, Stitches, a follow u ...more
Rochelle’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Rochelle’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
More friends…
Polls voted on by Rochelle
Lists liked by Rochelle


















































