Audio

I liked a lot of things about this but overall I found the audio experience kind of off putting. Having super jerk sales guys scream and curse directly in to your ears is not great! I might have enjoyed it more on paper. The characters also use the n word a lot which probably makes sense in their dialog but makes it awkward to play in audio if somebody might hear it out of context.

In general the story is engaging but maybe a bit predictable. I didn’t like the timeline - it all happened too quickly and it seemed more unrealistic because of it but just as a plot it was OK. The bad guys never fully made sense to me especially when some details were revealed about one of them that didn’t really align with their behavior - a little confusing to me.

Shines a light on systemic racism and people may find that objectionable (even though they shouldn’t.) That didn’t bother me and I loved the Happy Campers as a concept.

Excellent cover. ( )

audiobook performance 10/10. looooooved listening to this one. this book started off with a bang and i was all in. then i started getting mixed feelings. then i was like this is great again! and then the ending killed me... but i did find the journey of this book very satisfying. it’s memorable and i can't stop thinking about it. what i really didn't like was the rapid transformation of Buck. i felt his descent into horrible behavior was rushed, but at the same time it felt right with the pace of the book? idk i still have very mixed feelings about this book. this book was funny, shocking, cringe worthy, sad and full of twists and turns. Black Buck is not supposed to be a realistic depiction, but i think that people who operate inside corporate america can see that a lot of this isn't too far off from what really happens ( )

For this story, I think the humor would translate better on film, whether TV or movie. It comes off dry, awkward, and slightly offensive in writing. I get where the jokes are coming from; it’s like The Office meets Sorry to Bother You meets Boondocks vibes, but the execution is all over the place.

Darren/Buck was insufferable. It’s hard to root for him when he starts talking to everyone like dirt. Majority of the Sumwunner guys act like frat boys meets Wallstreet. Rhett was interesting, but I hated Clyde soooo much. Please stick a foot up his behind and push him down a stairway. If you read the story, you’ll want to kick his teeth in too.

In addition, the female characters outside of the mom and some aspects of Rose leave a lot to be desired. Sorry to be vulgar: But Soraya’s just there to be the voice of reason and hop on Darren’s dick. And Jason you hating ho, why are you here? I feel like he helped push Darren away. He was too defensive and hating so hard even before Darren lost his way.

The microaggressions get heavy and gaslighting abounds in this satire about Corporate America and startups. There are some clever digs at work culture and companies who pretend to care about diversity, but ultimately, this one wasn’t for me.

1.5 ( )

[Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review an ARC in return for sharing my honest assessment of this book]

Addressing the topic up front - yes, "Black Buck" is specifically about race. The name alone makes a statement, since it has a dark history rooted in the U.S.'s treatment of Black men. Black Buck is - on its surface - a quick read, but there are messages that are intended to be sticky, make us think, and perhaps shine a light on our own behavior. Darren, a young Black barista living in Brooklyn, lands himself in a very Glengarry Glenn Ross job situation. There are some larger than life 'symbolic' characters, but rather than annoy, they play the role of the Greek Chorus, highlighting messages to which we should pay attention.

While I'm not going to give away the story line, the take away is that this is a small but mighty tale that forces us to look at our conscious and subconscious preconceptions about race and racism - both in the workplace and in our general lives. RECOMMEND ( )

Oh my gosh. That was a decidedly DNF.
Really contrived and at times, just ridiculous.
I SO wanted to love it, but couldn't get past the stereotypical characters and plot. ( )