Rebel Book Club on why we need to push ourselves out of our reading comfort zones

Rebel Book Club members. Three women stand shoulder to shoulder holding a book towards the camera. The book titles are TinTin, Powerhouse and Why Nations Fail
Image from Tom Joy
James Massoud
by James Massoud
14 June 2020

Rebel Book Club recently celebrated their fifth anniversary. Here co-founder Ben Keene recalls how it all began at Virgin HQ, explains the importance of non-fiction and recommends books on anti-racism we should all pick up.

Rebel Book Club recently celebrated their fifth anniversary. Here co-founder Ben Keene recalls how it all began at Virgin HQ, explains the importance of non-fiction and recommends books on anti-racism we should all pick up.

It was a sunny spring evening in May 2015 as 15 of us stepped out onto the roof terrace of the Virgin Battleship building in West London for our first meeting. We’d been invited to use the famous terrace as I was a business advisor at Virgin StartUp. The book? Happiness by Design by Paul Dolan. The drink? Duppy Share (lots of rum). Rebel Book Club had begun.

Recently we celebrated our fifth birthday with 300 of our members from 15 different countries joining for a digital meetup to discuss modern spirituality, a community meditation, share what we've learnt this month, connect with their book club buddies and enjoy a “cocktail from the cupboard”.

Not surprisingly there has been a lot of discussion in our community this month about books on race and black history. 

A group of people sit on a rooftop drinking and discussing books
Image from Rebel Book Club

In 2018 we read Reni Eddo-Lodge’s Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race, which helped many of us better understand white privilege. Recently on her Instagram, Reni asked people - whether they buy the book or not - to donate to the Minnesota Freedom Fund. We have. The meet was particularly memorable as members shared their very personal stories of how race has shaped them.

There are a significant number of excellent books on racism and black history. The important thing, as with any book we read, is to really learn from it as well as from those who have a lived experience of the subject. The best way to do this is by reading together.

We launched Rebel Book Club because we wanted to read non-fiction books to help us make more sense of our changing world and sharpen our daily tools to make life better. 

Even before the pandemic, lifelong or continuous learning is something that many of us want to get better at, but find it challenging because of the rush of life and its digital distractions. With this enforced hiatus we're perhaps seeing a re-prioritisation for people and communities to do more of what matters - community, wellbeing and learning.

If you can average 30 minutes of focused reading a day you can easily read more than 20 300-page books a year at a steady reading pace. Many of our members have gone from reading three or four books a year to two or three books a month – one with us and one or two of their own choosing. But we're not just interested in helping our members accelerate their reading quantity, we're equally focused on the diversity of what we read. In our world where echo chambers and unconscious biases dominate, it's really important that we do our best to step outside our reading comfort zones.

A hand holds the book Me and White Supremacy
Image from @iwillnotbequiet on Instagram

📖  5 books we recommend on anti-racism

📚 Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge. "In 2018 we read @renieddolodge, which helped many of us better understand white privilege. 

📚 Natives: Race and Class in the Ruins of Empire by Akala. "Natives is a history lesson of the kind you should get in school but don't." Stylist⠀ 

📚 Me & White Supremacy by Layla F. Saad. "An indispensable resource for white people who want to challenge white supremacy but don't know where to begin." Robin DiAngelo⠀ 

📚 When They Call You a Terrorist by Patrisse Khan-Cullors + Asha Bandele. Recommended by Nikesh Shukla, author of The Good Immigrant "Patrisse Khan-Cullors is a leading visionary and activist, feminist, civil rights leader who has literally changed the trajectory of politics and resistance in America by co-founding Black Lives Matter." Eve Ensler⠀ 

📚 How to Argue With a Racist by Adam Rutherford. A brilliant, concise re-education of the biology of skin colour (it's all about proteins in the pigmentation just like hair colour) and the history of race.

Virgin Red has two offers for Rebel Book Club currently on their app. Until the end of June, Virgin Red members can either save 25% on a 90-day membership, costing just £33 (normally £45) or you can pay £13 per month for a monthly membership. Download / visit the app to find out more.