Alex Nabaum was commissioned to illustrate a dual book review for the Washington Post. The two new books take radically different approaches to these questions of race introspection - one academic, the other anecdotal.

“Decades later, Americans are still struggling with racial definitions. Is the president black or biracial? Are we Latino or Hispanic? Is the n-word an insult or an affectionate term? What does it mean to be authentically black? And does any of that matter anymore? Didn't the 2008 election signal that the country that elected its first black president is now post-racial?”