Almost ready!
In order to save audiobooks to your Wish List you must be signed in to your account.
Log in Create accountGet a free audiobook when you make the switch!
When you start a new membership in support of local bookstores with the promo code SWITCH, youโll get a bonus audiobook credit at sign-up.
Make the switchGift audiobook credit bundles
You pick the number of credits, your recipient picks the audiobooks, and your local bookstore is supported by your purchase.
Start giftingYou Can Keep That to Yourself
Bookseller recommendation
“Adam Smyer has written a book of humor that is totally on-point for today's cultural climate. A quick listen, YOU CAN KEEP THAT TO YOURSELF is a funny and blunt book that my 18 year old daughter and I both devoured and then discussed. I wanted to see if it seemed relevant to her, because it was very useful to me. She was more familiar with more of the content (youth!) but she learned some new things too. This book is the perfect jumping-off point for much-needed conversations about how to be an anti-racist. It's extremely short and very accessible.”
— Rachel • Avid Bookshop
At long last, a much-needed guidebook for well-intentioned people of pallor on what not to say to their African American "friends."
Greetings, well-intentioned person of pallor.
Your good intentions used to be enough. But in these diverse and divisive times, some people would hold you accountable for your actions. You were not raised for such unfairness. You need help.
And help you now have.
Let Daquan--that black coworker you are referring to when you claim to have black friends--help you navigate perilous small talk with African Americans with this handy field guide. This portable bit of emotional labor puts at your fingertips a tabbed and alphabetized list of things not to say to black people. Finally!
How to use: Keep this handbook close. Whenever you are confronted with an African American and you feel compelled to blurt out an observation about her hair or to liken your Tesla lease to slavery, ask for a moment to consult this reference. She'll wait. If the keen insight you want to share is listed herein, You Can Keep That to Yourself. It truly is that easy!
ADAM SMYER is an attorney, martial artist, and mediocre bass player. His nonfiction has appeared in the Johannesburg Review of Books, and his debut novel, Knucklehead, was the sole title short-listed for the 2018 Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence. Smyer lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife and cats.