WHITE FRAGILITY (ADAPTED FOR YOUNG ADULTS)

The bestselling primer on racism and complicity, reworked for teen readers.

With this adaptation, Williamson (who is Black) and Michael (who is White) do far more than edit DiAngelo’s text; they take its fundamental concepts and thoughtfully contextualize them for their audience, referencing both media and events that postdate the original work’s 2018 publication. The basic structure of the original is observed, covering White people’s discomfort with talking about race, White supremacy, the myth of colorblindness, and so forth, concluding with steps readers can take to move “from fragility to agility.” A wholly new chapter on understanding racism and allyship in media is tailored to readers who are digital natives. “Afterthoughts” such as journal prompts follow each chapter. Throughout, the co-adapters offer illustrative personal anecdotes, and they set up hypotheticals grounded in the world of teen readers, as when they explore affirmative action through the lens of scholarships and college admissions. When DiAngelo’s own words appear, they are set off as pull quotes in a discordantly fussy faux handwritten display type. Design choices such as this consistently undermine the text. Illustrations range from uninspiring portraits of thinkers referenced to opaque graphics that baffle more than illuminate. Callout boxes occasionally offer definitions, but it’s not clear how definition-worthy vocabulary was determined; in one section, socialization is defined but not meritocracy or ideology. Such elements undermine the work’s ability to serve its intended readership.

Solid content let down by poorly executed, reader-unfriendly design.