Ep. 144 Citizen by Claudia Rankine — The Stacks Book Club (Darnell Moore)

It’s The Stacks Book Club day, and we’re joined again by author (No Ashes in the Fire), activist, and podcaster (Being Seen), Darnell Moore to dissect Citizen: An American Lyric by Claudia Rankine. We talk about how the book, published in 2014 holds up, who gets to express rage and joy, and what Rankine forces her readers to reckon with throughout the book.
There are no spoilers on this episode.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes and on Bookshop.org and Amazon.

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The Stacks Book Club — December 2020

In a book that combines essays, poetry and visual art, Claudia Rankine has crafted an instant classic with 2014’s Citizen: An American Lyric. The book is a powerful examination of racial aggression, from the types of interactions that are easy to overlook to overt acts of violence against Black bodies. Citizen, like anti-Black racism, does not stick to one tactic or form, instead it shape shifts leaving the reader surrounded by the many insidious ways that white supremacy functions and thrives. Art, sport, police violence, and more are part of this brilliant work of social criticism.

We will be discussing Citizen: An American Lyric on the podcast on Wednesday, December 30th. You can find out who our guest will be by listening to the podcast on December 2nd. If you’d like even more discussion around the book consider joining The Stacks Pack on Patreon and participating in The Stacks’ monthly virtual book club.

Order your copy of our December book on Bookshop.org or Amazon.


To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page (https://www.patreon.com/thestacks). We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of The Stacks.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed. For more information click here.