Book Review PUNISHED FOR DREAMING Bettina L. Love

Thank you to the author Bettina L. Love, publishers St. Martin's Press, and as always NetGalley, for an advance digital copy of ᴘᴜɴɪsʜᴇᴅ ғᴏʀ ᴅʀᴇᴀᴍɪɴɢ . All views are mine.



Black life in America is itself a trigger, from the moment you open your eyes in the morning until you close them at night—and even then, your nightmares are White rage and violence. Loc. 3808

This is a book about education and about how racism in the US prohibits students of color from accessing the vast educational resources that belong to every child in this country as a national right, how the lack of access to proper education affects these students' entire lives, and the reparations the author proposes to begin correcting the educational deficit students of color have historically been forced to accept. 

Beautifully organized and composed, ᴘᴜɴɪsʜᴇᴅ ғᴏʀ ᴅʀᴇᴀᴍɪɴɢ is not just a source of excellent content, it's also a pleasure to read. Whether you're reading this because you're a book lover looking for a great nonfiction book, or you're a sociology student reading for assignment, you'll appreciate Love's accessible and readable style, her deep passion, and amazing treatment of her topic!

Sometimes, you come across a book that is deeply moving, inspiring, and full of amazing value. For me, ᴘᴜɴɪsʜᴇᴅ ғᴏʀ ᴅʀᴇᴀᴍɪɴɢ is one of these books. Love teaches so much, and clearly, about instructional racism.

Three (or more) things I loved:

1. I love that this book discusses the perhaps not unintended but certainly awful results of charter schools. "[T]he corporate takeover of public education ...privileges economic efficiency and individual success over collective justice.” 116 [T]he takeover of public education in the last forty years ..., reforms “exist not to develop, but to underdevelop Black people,” transforming the role and function of government in the process. loc. 933.

2. The American myth of education: My family, like many others, bought into the American myth that education would be the great equalizer— that obtaining a “good” education would keep their children safe and afford them their piece of the American dream. loc. 957 

3. I deeply appreciate that this book clearly defines the term Critical Race Theory, as it has become an extremely politicized term.

4. I appreciate the acknowledgement of disability as a compounding factor.

5. No one is disposable. Loc. 3962

6. The definition ofatonement. Loc. 4258

Three (or less) things I didn't love:

This section isn't only for criticisms. It's merely for items that I felt something for other than "love" or some interpretation thereof.

 I have no criticisms for this book at this time. 

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