I received a complimentary digital copy of this book from the publishers and NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.
I initially received a preview through Bookish First Impressions of Chapter 5&6.
This excerpt begins with Darren Vender who seems to be satisfied working at Starbucks and hanging out with his girlfriend, Soraya. He is swooned to work for Rhett Daniels, CEO of Sumwun a start up company as a sales representative. This seems to be a fortuitous opportunity for him to change his family’s financial situation. His mother works for a chemical company and has a letter of interest on the sale of her home, “should she need” it. He assures her that he will be successful and alleviate any financial woes.
On his first day at Sumwun he feels like he walked into the twilight zone. Aside from being the only black person he seems to be surrounded by hyped up loud and obnoxious sales team. It seems they give all newbies nicknames which coins him as “Buck” due to him working at Starbucks. Every Monday is Sales Week fury and excitement celebrated with food and drinks. He is flummoxed when white paint tips in his head as a “welcome joke” so he wouldn’t be the only Black person. This story had me cringing as I wondered what lengths the sales force will go to achieve success!
Although labeled as satire some parts just didn’t feel too funny for me. When things seem too good to be true they usually are. Being the only person of color at this company certainly made him a target for Clyde who was determined to see Buck fail. The company is oddly representative of all things inappropriate with the names of the conference rooms to team groups. When Clyde claims not to be racist you know it’s because he is the definition of the word. He is a totally unlikeable character who is unfortunately present in most work places.
Buck represents the epitome of what one can achieve with determination and hard work. He literally bucks the status quo to prove he is worthy of success. There are many times when he wants to quit and go back to Starbucks where he had more control over his day. The story does end chapters with side comments and advice in a clever manner. Bucks internally processing is amusing as he maneuvers his way though obstacles that don’t appear for other employees.
The author states that he wrote this book as inspiration for other struggling black workers to realize it is possible to be successful. If you are not a person of color then you will most likely get a sense of how life experiences can be different based on the color of your skin.
I initially received a preview through Bookish First Impressions of Chapter 5&6.
This excerpt begins with Darren Vender who seems to be satisfied working at Starbucks and hanging out with his girlfriend, Soraya. He is swooned to work for Rhett Daniels, CEO of Sumwun a start up company as a sales representative. This seems to be a fortuitous opportunity for him to change his family’s financial situation. His mother works for a chemical company and has a letter of interest on the sale of her home, “should she need” it. He assures her that he will be successful and alleviate any financial woes.
On his first day at Sumwun he feels like he walked into the twilight zone. Aside from being the only black person he seems to be surrounded by hyped up loud and obnoxious sales team. It seems they give all newbies nicknames which coins him as “Buck” due to him working at Starbucks. Every Monday is Sales Week fury and excitement celebrated with food and drinks. He is flummoxed when white paint tips in his head as a “welcome joke” so he wouldn’t be the only Black person. This story had me cringing as I wondered what lengths the sales force will go to achieve success!
Although labeled as satire some parts just didn’t feel too funny for me. When things seem too good to be true they usually are. Being the only person of color at this company certainly made him a target for Clyde who was determined to see Buck fail. The company is oddly representative of all things inappropriate with the names of the conference rooms to team groups. When Clyde claims not to be racist you know it’s because he is the definition of the word. He is a totally unlikeable character who is unfortunately present in most work places.
Buck represents the epitome of what one can achieve with determination and hard work. He literally bucks the status quo to prove he is worthy of success. There are many times when he wants to quit and go back to Starbucks where he had more control over his day. The story does end chapters with side comments and advice in a clever manner. Bucks internally processing is amusing as he maneuvers his way though obstacles that don’t appear for other employees.
The author states that he wrote this book as inspiration for other struggling black workers to realize it is possible to be successful. If you are not a person of color then you will most likely get a sense of how life experiences can be different based on the color of your skin.