... searing.

... the text is not simply a catalogue of terror; it is a conversational call to action, an urging to rewrite our definition of White manhood and diminish the power it holds. Oluo is asking us to evaluate the myths America tells itself about itself, see the violence within, be honest about the perpetrators and the victims, and then tell different stories. Truer ones. But she is also inviting us, on occasion, to chuckle. There is levity and voice in Mediocre, which Oluo dedicates to 'Black womxn.' The work presents nuanced historical accounts and analyses of America’s westward expansion, education system, mistreatment of women in workplaces, politics and sports, while interjecting the author’s personality and personal history..

... a deep-dive into socio-political research, research that ends up being personally traumatic and triggering for [Oluo], into just how unjust the patriarchal world is and proposes a solution.

... a wide-ranging study of white, male identity.

In Mediocre: The Dangerous Legacy of White Male America, Ijeoma Oluo punches up rather than down, reckoning culturally, politically and historically with white men.

Oluo persuasively argues that the result of leaving power in the hands of men like Cody and Preston is not equal, fair, or even advantageous. Mediocre is an eloquent and impassioned plea for the moral and practical value of pursuing a more just future..

Ijeoma Oluo, author of the bestselling book So You Want to Talk About Race , offers a historical and sociological view of the toxic white male identity in her new book, Mediocre: The Dangerous Legacy of White Male America . Oluo persuasively argues that American society is structured to preserve the power (and tastes) of white men and outlines how we got here.

A gifted storyteller and thorough researcher, Oluo analyzes these histories, many of them lesser known, with solid scholarship and useful pop-culture references.

... [an] incisive treatise.