‘Whitopia’ Hits the Shelves with a Bang

‘Whitopia’ gains popularity on day one

If you already own a Kindle, you could save a bunch of money on "Whitopia." Image from wikimedia.

Rich Benjamin’s book “Whitopia: An Improbable Journey to the Heart of White America” came out today, and already it’s getting all kinds of attention. In the book, African-American author Benjamin chronicles his experiences as he lives in and studies Whitopias, which he explains are “whiter than the nation, its respective region, and its state.”

I was a little nervous to find out what Benjamin has to say about Whitopias, considering that I have lived in or near some of the places he writes about. However, a woman from Cour d’Alene, one of the Whitopias where Benjamin lived for a while, says the “writing is phenomenal, and it’s hard to put down.” Those don’t sound like the words of a woman who is offended. Either that or people from North Idaho like being painted as racist hicks. Who knows?

‘Whitopia’ for sale online

Amazon.com is selling “Whitopia” for $24.99 for the hardcover version. If you own a Kindle, you can buy “Whitopia” for $9.99. You might not need easy cash loans to get the text, but a Kindle will run you about $300, so you might need a no fax payday loan for that.

I think Benjamin is going to make a killing on this novel. I predict “Whitopia” will show up on the bestseller list.

‘Whitopia’ excerpt

To get an idea of what “Whitopia” is really about, here is an excerpt from the book, which I found posted on NPR.

If so, you would join a growing number of white Americans homesteading in a constellation of small towns and so-called “exurbs” that are extremely white. They are creating communal pods that cannily preserve a white-bread world, a throwback to an imagined past with “authentic” 1950s values and the nifty suburban amenities available today.

I think that whether the author thinks the people in these Whitopias are racist depends on whether he believes they are creating these mostly white communities on purpose. North Idaho definitely has a reputation in surrounding areas of being racist, while southern Utah is generally considered white by religion.

Race in America

Regardless of whether Whitopias are racist, Benjamin is racist or everyone is racist, this book is bound to sell very well, simply based on the fact that rascism is a hot topic in America, and it’s getting hotter every day.