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68th out of 1,316 books
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1,773 voters
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Stuff White People Like
They love nothing better than sipping free-trade gourmet coffee, leafing through the Sunday New York Times, and listening to David Sedaris on NPR (ideally all at the same time). Apple products, indie music, food co-ops, and vintage T-shirts make them weak in the knees.
They believe they’re unique, yet somehow they’re all exactly the same, talking about how they “get” Sarah...more
They believe they’re unique, yet somehow they’re all exactly the same, talking about how they “get” Sarah...more
Paperback, 211 pages
Published
August 6th 2008
by Random House Trade Paperbacks
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Stuff White People Like may be misleading to some because, from the title, they'll expect this book to be about stuff that white people like.
Various white demographics weren't hurt in the making of this book.
This is not necessarily the fact. In Lander's own words (pulled indiscreetly from wikipedia), this book is "rather a stereotype of affluent, environmentally and socially conscious, anti-corporate white North Americans, who typically hold a degree in the l...more
Various white demographics weren't hurt in the making of this book.
This is not necessarily the fact. In Lander's own words (pulled indiscreetly from wikipedia), this book is "rather a stereotype of affluent, environmentally and socially conscious, anti-corporate white North Americans, who typically hold a degree in the l...more
view all 16 comments
In one of my more earth-shattering moments of glorious word-spinning, allow me to summarize the deepest oceans that are my thoughts on this book: "Umm...heh...this book was pretty funny, dude."
Let me tell you something else I learned...
As you may have noticed, I am, in fact, white. However, as far as these guys are concerned, I am, like, THE WHITEST PERSON IN THE ENTIRE WORLD. I'm like the daughter in that scene in The People Under the Stairs where the mom thr...more
Let me tell you something else I learned...
As you may have noticed, I am, in fact, white. However, as far as these guys are concerned, I am, like, THE WHITEST PERSON IN THE ENTIRE WORLD. I'm like the daughter in that scene in The People Under the Stairs where the mom thr...more
Hey Brian,
Do you guys want play Cranium tomorrow night? Otherwise you could come over at like 10:30 and we could go to the farmer's market. I have been trying to buy local and it is actually the cheapest place to get organic apples. Anyway, you guys could come if you want. There is a new brunch place I want to try. You could also go to the thrift store with us. We want to get tacky wedding decorations.
OMG, have you ever seen that movie Flirting? We watched it last nig...more
Do you guys want play Cranium tomorrow night? Otherwise you could come over at like 10:30 and we could go to the farmer's market. I have been trying to buy local and it is actually the cheapest place to get organic apples. Anyway, you guys could come if you want. There is a new brunch place I want to try. You could also go to the thrift store with us. We want to get tacky wedding decorations.
OMG, have you ever seen that movie Flirting? We watched it last nig...more
Okay, I have to admit that what I liked most about this was that each of the 150 "chapters" were about a page each, which made it really easy to pick up and read when I just had a minute or two.
Although according to the quiz I am only 10% white, I got a good chuckle over quite a few of the things "the right kind of white person" likes. Two of my favorites?
#87 Outdoor Performance Clothes
"When white people aren't working, they generally ...more
Although according to the quiz I am only 10% white, I got a good chuckle over quite a few of the things "the right kind of white person" likes. Two of my favorites?
#87 Outdoor Performance Clothes
"When white people aren't working, they generally ...more
What White People Will Learn:
-That everything you do to be different makes you the same as everyone else.
-Whether or not you're 'the right kind of white person'
-What other white people are doing that you could be doing to become even whiter.
What People of Color Will Learn:
-How to become friends with/manipulate white people
-How to make sure you only befriend/manipulate 'the right kind of white person'
-How to talk to white people and have them think ...more
-That everything you do to be different makes you the same as everyone else.
-Whether or not you're 'the right kind of white person'
-What other white people are doing that you could be doing to become even whiter.
What People of Color Will Learn:
-How to become friends with/manipulate white people
-How to make sure you only befriend/manipulate 'the right kind of white person'
-How to talk to white people and have them think ...more
Smug condesention from a white guy, mostly about how his friends are and going under the assumption all white people of a certain income bracket are the exact same way. Of course, I do some of the things in here, but just as many were totally unappealing or ridiculous. It's just a hype book and I won't be reading the second book by Mr. Lander. It's a clear example of a blog with semi-original material getting a book deal based on hits. The blog has similar content for free.
This was ...more
This was ...more
This book is mortifying! It lists short essays on 150 things white people embrace. And not the "wrong kind" of white people, who would be those considered trashy or not within the important artistic and aware cities of New York, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle or Austin. According to it, I am at least 40% white, which = pompous. At first I was a little nervous about the title because I thought it might be idiotically off-base or embarrassigly white while pretending not to be. Nope. It...more
selena
rated it
Recommends it for:
aspiring white folks and those interested in a white upgrade
Recommended to selena by:
Colin B.
As any true white person knows, our book came out just a few weeks ago. Stuff White People Like by Christian Lander is one of the funniest things I’ve read all year. If you aren’t up on how to be the whitest you can be, this will definitely tell you everything from which authors to read (stick to Sedaris) and which newspapers you should make sure to always have on your coffee table while other white people visit your Ikea infested abode(The New Yorker and the New York Times, respectively).
...more
...more
I don't really know what I think about this book or even how to describe it.
i just read it while house sitting. i wanted something to read while soaking in the bathtub. While the family I am house sitting for has literally hundreds of books, most are novels (lots and lots and lots of mysteries) or historical/academic texts. I didn't want to start something that I wouldn't be able to finish and I didn't really want to get into any heavy reading. So I poked around until I found this. ...more
i just read it while house sitting. i wanted something to read while soaking in the bathtub. While the family I am house sitting for has literally hundreds of books, most are novels (lots and lots and lots of mysteries) or historical/academic texts. I didn't want to start something that I wouldn't be able to finish and I didn't really want to get into any heavy reading. So I poked around until I found this. ...more
Edit: I'm done with this. At least as much as I'm going to read. I didn't read every single one, mostly just the ones that I felt applied to me/ people I know. Otherwise it'd just not really interesting to me. I don't care how stereotypical it is for white people to snowboard, 'cause I don't snowboard or know anything about snowboarding. Anyway, it's amusing.. pure silliness. OR IS IT. I admit it also makes you question your choices/tastes. I mean, if this random white guy is able to predict you...more
I have to say, I was excited whan I saw this book at Borders, because I've read the blog and thought it was hilarious, but I was really disappointed when I read the book. The humor from the blog doesn't transfer well into the printed medium, and it felt like the majority of the book content was no more than entries from his blog in a print-and-bound version, with a few added visual aids.
While Lander's sense of humor is fine for small daily doses on a blog, it wears thin quickly when...more
While Lander's sense of humor is fine for small daily doses on a blog, it wears thin quickly when...more
Becky
rated it
So, Umm... Do "white people" like this book?
No, they don't. They liked the idea of the website before it was created, and may have even laughed at one of the references when they were in on the joke before you. But by the time the site hit the web, it was old news, and they'd moved on to newer and/or older, less mainstream entertainment. Like reading blogs devoted to "How to wear your multiple knotted scarves in ways different from everyone else." And now that I'...more
No, they don't. They liked the idea of the website before it was created, and may have even laughed at one of the references when they were in on the joke before you. But by the time the site hit the web, it was old news, and they'd moved on to newer and/or older, less mainstream entertainment. Like reading blogs devoted to "How to wear your multiple knotted scarves in ways different from everyone else." And now that I'...more
After Salman Rushdie exposed me for the ignoramus that I am (I couldn’t claim a full appreciation for his prize-winning allegory Midnight’s Children), I decided to go light with my next selection. So now I’ve been exposed for fitting a cultural stereotype a little too closely. It’s all in good fun, though. So what if I’m a coffee-drinking, European-traveling, New Balance-wearing, Wrigley Field-attending, dog-loving, documentary-watching white guy who likes irony, apologies, the idea of soccer...more
This book is based on a blog by the same name. You have to be pretty okay with 'self-deprecating humor' (which, by the way, is something white people like) because you will find yourself laughing and cringing at the same time. My favorite entries are 'Public Transportation That is Not a Bus', 'Coffee', 'Gay Friends' and 'International Travel'. The book has some extras that the website doesn't have like silly flow charts and fill in the blank letters. The book is written as if it was an inst...more
Kerry
rated it
Recommends it for:
People who don't take themselves too seriously
Recommended to Kerry by:
Lisa
So I really think the concept of this book is clever. I also enjoyed the little tests that rate the % of whiteness you are according to the scale.
I am 73% according to one of the tests.
What can I say...I too love farmers markets, being outdoors, NPR, books, reusable grocery bags, etc.
What the heck is she talking about you might ask....well you will just have to read the book or listen to this interview/reading from the author on this NPR clip.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story......more
I am 73% according to one of the tests.
What can I say...I too love farmers markets, being outdoors, NPR, books, reusable grocery bags, etc.
What the heck is she talking about you might ask....well you will just have to read the book or listen to this interview/reading from the author on this NPR clip.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story......more
I love the website and give it 5 stars:
stuffwhitepeoplelike.wordpress.com
But I was disappointed by the book. It does have the same uncanny insight into "white" culture that the site does, but not much else. Yes, there is some content that isn't available on the site. Also, a few amusing graphics, i.e. a flowchart telling you how to name your white child, and a pie chart showing what you'll find in a white person's reusable canvas shopping bag. But there are ...more
stuffwhitepeoplelike.wordpress.com
But I was disappointed by the book. It does have the same uncanny insight into "white" culture that the site does, but not much else. Yes, there is some content that isn't available on the site. Also, a few amusing graphics, i.e. a flowchart telling you how to name your white child, and a pie chart showing what you'll find in a white person's reusable canvas shopping bag. But there are ...more
According to the quiz at the end, I'm only 20% white. Maybe that's why I only found the book mildly amusing. I definitely chuckled at some spots, recognizing myself in an observation that wasn't totally flattering.
I wish I hadn't bought this book. I should have checked out this guy's blog first because then I would have realized his humour annoys me more than it makes me laugh. The book, and his blog for that matter, could be more accurately labeled "Stuff Pretentious West Coast Yuppies Like". The few times I did laugh were when I recognized someone I know (including myself) that fit the stereotype he was describing, and I was like "wow, am I that annoying!?" Maybe these past few years...more
According to the quiz at the back of this book I am 11.5% white. I think that figure about tells you what I think of this book and how much I liked it. Yes, yes, there were a couple stereotypes that were laughable, but it was basically just talking about the elite, creme-de-la-creme leftist liberal. Just not a book I was all over.
This is a fun read, capturing lots of things I've been thinking about as I find myself surrounded by lots of white folks here in an urban setting. It's a satirical guide for us non-whites to "their" world.
I find much truth in entries such as no. 42 Sushi; no. 53 Dogs; no. 72 Study Abroad; and no. 145 Cheese. Especially cheese. I could go on and on about my realization that some people have an "extensive and deep knowledge of cheese." Wow. Growing up where my chees...more
I find much truth in entries such as no. 42 Sushi; no. 53 Dogs; no. 72 Study Abroad; and no. 145 Cheese. Especially cheese. I could go on and on about my realization that some people have an "extensive and deep knowledge of cheese." Wow. Growing up where my chees...more
This is one of those list books - the kind which provide supporting examples and, at times, illustrations. It's hardly fine literature, but this thing is dead on for a whole lotta people, and it's pretty entertaining.
Obviously, not everything is true of every white person around. My mother, for one, does not (and likely will not ever) own a container of sea salt. (But I do.) And my neighbor Bill probably hasn't read anything by David Sedaris (though I have), listen to NPR (it's o...more
Obviously, not everything is true of every white person around. My mother, for one, does not (and likely will not ever) own a container of sea salt. (But I do.) And my neighbor Bill probably hasn't read anything by David Sedaris (though I have), listen to NPR (it's o...more
This book only embodies whiteness in how ignorant and blind the author is to any realities of race. The "stuff white people like" include such banal things as floors, relaxing, eating good food, and reading the news. At first I thought that was the joke-- that "whiteness" is so normative and white privilege so invisible that the stuff white people like is plain, normal stuff. However Christian goes onto offer lengthy explanations of why white people like the stuff, 98% of whi...more
These books are hilarious and really, the most hilarious thing about them is that white people think they are hilarious. Why is that?
I mean, it's all true. But why doesn't that mean that white people DON'T find it funny?????!
Read this morning:
I mean, it's all true. But why doesn't that mean that white people DON'T find it funny?????!
Read this morning:
...more
To fully understand why white people love [Adult Swim] so much you have to understand the world of 'under-ground animation,' which is something that has been beloved by white people since Fritz the Cat. The
The white people referred to in this book are middle- to upper middle-class college-educated white people who probably live on one of the coasts (or Chicago, which also has a coast). The portrayal makes broad generalizations that appear to be spot-on, give or take a few entries. Although the book is tongue-in-cheek it could be a useful guide for a young person of any ethnicity or socioeconomic background who is determined to have the cultural currency of upper middle class taste. As outlined ...more
First off, there is a quiz in the back of the book to figure out how white you are and I came out to be 25% White..haha! Okay so basically it is a book about stereotypes; however, throughout the entire book, I was like, wow that is so me! Personally, I view this book as an analysis of a subculture instead of a race. From the first chapter about the importance of coffee to the need to buy bottle water I couldn't stop relating and wanted to find out the next thing that I related to because of the ...more
I know people exactly like this. Perhaps even more frighteningly, I recognise myself in a lot of this. The number of times I flipped the page, saw the next entry and grinned ruefully...well, let's not go into that. It's a very humourous and light-hearted 'dig' at, let's face it, the overwhelmingly white middle class. I've heard there was a wee bit of controversy about this book, that it was accused of being racist, but I find that ridiculous. If there's any talk of racism in this book it's about...more
I was saving this book for when I was in need of a pick me up and maybe that need and my already depressed feelings of the day going into this book were too strong, as though the humor was a little short to balance out my mood. For whatever the reason, I had hoped this book would be better than it ended up.
Anyways...I snickered a good amount but there were no deep belly laughs or rolling on the floor laughing escapades. I almost feel as though the author tried too hard. This book is...more
Anyways...I snickered a good amount but there were no deep belly laughs or rolling on the floor laughing escapades. I almost feel as though the author tried too hard. This book is...more
A book that mocks--gently--all things beloved by white people. (Well, hipster white people.) So what makes Lander’s 150-item-long list? IKEA, Netflix, organic foods, diversity, David Sedaris, irony, wine, ’80s nights, Barack Obama, sushi, the Sunday New York Times, liberal arts degrees, recycling, standing still at concerts, and any kind of Apple product. But there’s more--lots more!--with each item receiving its own hilarious entry.
Take the one for the TV show Arrested Development, f...more
Take the one for the TV show Arrested Development, f...more
Mariel
rated it
Recommends it for:
scenesters
Recommended to Mariel by:
my mommy
Shelves:
high-larious
My mother got me this for my birthday. She's totally making fun of me! I'm gonna show her the entry on Noam Chomsky because that's her. We'll see who is laughing then. (She'll then point to the entries on glasses, Michel Gondry, vegetarianism and Arrested Development. Then I'll point to "hating your parents".) (Or she might've gotten this for me since one of my weirdo pasttimes is making my african parrot speak to me in a little voice I created for him: "Evil white man" [that...more
Amusing.
150 things that "white people" are in too.. trendy moderns he means.
Heres some of them:
#77 Musical Comedy
#76 Bottles of Water
#75 Threatening to Move to Canada
#74 Oscar Parties
#73 Gentrification
#72 Study Abroad
#71 Being the only white person around
#70 Difficult Breakups
#69 Mos Def
#68 Michel Gondry
#67 Standing Still at Concerts
#66 Divorce
#65 Co-Ed Sports
#64 Recyc...more
150 things that "white people" are in too.. trendy moderns he means.
Heres some of them:
#77 Musical Comedy
#76 Bottles of Water
#75 Threatening to Move to Canada
#74 Oscar Parties
#73 Gentrification
#72 Study Abroad
#71 Being the only white person around
#70 Difficult Breakups
#69 Mos Def
#68 Michel Gondry
#67 Standing Still at Concerts
#66 Divorce
#65 Co-Ed Sports
#64 Recyc...more
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Christian Lander is the creator of the website Stuff White People Like. He is a Ph.D. dropout who was the 2006 public speaking instructor of the year at Indiana University. He has lived in Toronto, Montreal, Copenhagen, Tucson, Indiana, and now Los Angeles, where he lives with his wife, Jess, a photographer who contributed many of the photos in the book.
More about Christian Lander...
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“This is because white people need to show off the books that they have read. Just as hunters will mount the heads of their kills, white people need to let people know that they have made their way through hundreds or even thousands of books.”
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6 people liked it
“If you are able to introduce a white person to a new cheese, it's like introducing them to a future spouse.”
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4 people liked it
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