You'll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey

Crazy Stories About Racism

By: Amber Ruffin, Lacey Lamar

Narrated by: Amber Ruffin, Lacey Lamar

Writer and performer on Late Night with Seth Meyers Amber Ruffin writes with her sister Lacey Lamar with humor and heart to share absurd anecdotes about everyday experiences of racism.

Now a writer and performer on Late Night with Seth Meyers and host of The Amber Ruffin Show, Amber Ruffin lives in New York, where she is no one's first Black friend and everyone is, as she puts it, "stark raving normal". But Amber's sister Lacey? She's still living in their home state of Nebraska, and trust us, you'll never believe what happened to Lacey.

From racist donut shops to strangers putting their whole hand in her hair, from being mistaken for a prostitute to being mistaken for Harriet Tubman, Lacey is a lightning rod for hilariously ridiculous yet all-too-real anecdotes. She's the perfect mix of polite, beautiful, petite, and Black that apparently makes people think "I can say whatever I want to this woman". And now, Amber and Lacey share these entertainingly horrifying stories through their laugh-out-loud sisterly banter. Painfully relatable or shockingly eye-opening (depending on how often you have personally been followed by security at department stores), this book tackles modern-day racism with the perfect balance of levity and gravity.

©2021 Amber Ruffin and Lacey Lamar (P)2021 Grand Central Publishing

Critic reviews

"I dare you to read this hilarious and eye-opening book and not become obsessed with Amber Ruffin." (Mindy Kaling)

"If you laugh half as hard as I did at the FIRST story in this book, let alone the rest of the book, you will have gotten your money's worth. The stories made me laugh and they made me sad. I know I'm not the only one to experience these kinds of moments but it helps to know that someone else - poor little Black Lacey taking on the lion's share of Nebraska's white ignorance all by her lonesome - experiences it too. From the mental gymnastics needed to call a black store dirty then drive out of state in order to avoid said dirt only to wind up shopping in a sty operating in a white neighborhood to having the gall to try and holluh at black women on a dating app when your profile pics have the confederate flag in them, Amber & Lacey point out how white folks are apparently doing the most in them parts." (Retta, comedian and actress, Parks & Recreation, Good Girls)

"The message of this book is for ALL of us and no matter why YOU'RE here - perhaps you're a fan of Amber Ruffin's comedy, or a Seth Meyers' fan, or a personal friend of Lacey's, or maybe you're just a person browsing for a book that will help you understand the Black experience in America and the other ones seem too much like school - I urge you to BUY THIS BOOK. The stories are delivered with the humor and horror they deserve. You will laugh, you will be enraged, and if you are a white person, you will understand more than you did before about the truth of being Black in America - even if you thought you understood a lot already because you read the hard school books." (Busy Philipps, author, actor, White lady)

Heartfelt, Heartbreaking, and Hilarious

This is the first audiobook I have ever finished. It was impossible to stop, heartbreaking to hear, and hopeful in tone. Such contradictions & stories masterfully incorporated, in this Black lady's opinion, the black experience in a short 5 and half hour read. Magnifique!

An education

I’m a white person from Omaha. I was horrified and embarrassed by the behavior of fellow whites. It also made me think of where I may have been racist and how I can change my own behavior. This is a must listen for all white people.

Real and Relatable

loved it and related to so many of the stories. As sad as it is to say, these things still happen all the time

My lifw!!!

So many of these instances!!! I love Amber and Lacy. Work, hair, healthcare, online dating.

relatable, made me laugh, made me sigh

I enjoyed listening to amber and lacey. felt like listening to my sister and I talk about growing up black and living in the racist part of the bay area. wish I could broadcast it through my neighborhood.

Funny, horrible, embarassing and great

I'm biased because I love everything Amber Ruffin does. She could be sawing off my feet with piano wire and she'd be cute and funny while doing it.
So that being said, this book was a joy to listen to. Amber reads it along with her sister, who most of the stories belong to.
A lot of these SOUND like tales from a different era... maybe not 20s (Lacey wouldn't have gotten those jobs at all), but no newer than the 60s... but nope, they're all waaaaaaaaay more recent than that. That's awful.
A lot of the stories are funny, but that's down to the personality of Amber and Lacey... and their delivery. In real life, being there... not so funny I'm sure. It's funny and disturbing. Like The Cookie Monster reading Stephen King.
Mind you, this book isn't an instructional how-to for white people who want to be less racist... but it might help. I know I saw a few foibles of my own pass before my eyes while listening. It's not a 'preachy' book. Just a recounting of tales of racist nonsense that has happened to this pair. And that's pretty much all it is.
It's also not a very long book. I made it through in two sittings.
I'm probably going to pick up a physical copy now because Amber references pictures in the book and I'd like to see those... and also read the book to see how it comes off without Amber's voice accompanying.

Amazing, Funny, and Sad

I loved this book. Started listening to it with my sister finished it without her I just couldn't wait to hear the next story. It was always funny but heart breaking that I could relate to so many of these stories.

I want to buy this book for everyone I know

thank you Amber and Lacey. I'll be a fan forever! I can't wait to see what they do next.

Eyes wide open? They will be!

If you are not moved by this book then you are asleep. I live in Minnesota, where everyone (that lives here) proclaims we are "Minnesota nice." NOT so much. Read this book!!!

I laughed at the hilarity of the stories. I also cried. Now, I'm off to read more books by BIPOC.

I love this book and I’m a white woman.

This is a great book. I loved it. I truly hope that it will help people understand racism better. I laughed at certain points and I was appalled at a lot of things. At one point when she goes to the car dealership I forgot what this book was about and remained optimistic but in the end it was another racist story.😐 All in all it’s a great book and I loved it.