Publication year 2023
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Environment, Colonialism, Economics, Globalization, Power & Greed
Tags History: African , Politics & Government, Business & Economics, Technology, Social Justice, Science & Nature, World History
Challenging Authority
In this Collection, we've gathered together a selection of fictional and real-life narratives that share the theme of Challenging Authority. These selections feature protagonists and real-world figures who stand up to both powerful individuals and oppressive systems in an array of cultural and historical settings.
Cobalt Red: How the Blood of the Congo Powers Our Lives
Code of Hammurabi
Conclave
Confessions of a Shopaholic
Coriolanus
Counting the Cost
Crash
Crazy Jane Talks with the Bishop
Crime and Punishment
Crispin: The Cross of Lead
Crossroads of Twilight
Cryptonomicon
Culture and Imperialism
Cursed Fates
Curse of Shadows and Thorns
Dangerous Liaisons
Dark Age
Darkstalker
Das Kapital
Daughter of No Worlds
Publication year 2023
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Environment, Colonialism, Economics, Globalization, Power & Greed
Tags History: African , Politics & Government, Business & Economics, Technology, Social Justice, Science & Nature, World History
Publication year 1781
Genre Scripture, Nonfiction
Themes Social Class, Community, Politics & Government, Justice, Power & Greed
Tags Crime & Law, Asian History, Politics & Government, Religion & Spirituality, Philosophy
Publication year 2016
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Religion & Spirituality, Politics & Government, Trust & Doubt, Perseverance, Power & Greed, Sexual Identity, Good & Evil
Tags Horror & Suspense, Mystery & Crime Fiction
Publication year 2000
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Conflict, Fear, Guilt, Hope, Love, Regret, Shame & Pride, Mental Health, Midlife, Family, Friendship, Teamwork, Self Discovery, Social Class, Community, Economics, Education, Politics & Government, Beauty, Literature, Loyalty & Betrayal, Power & Greed, Truth & Lies
Tags Romance, Humor
Published in 2000, Confessions of a Shopaholic was the breakout success of British novelist Sophie Kinsella (the pen name of Madeleine Wickham), a former financial journalist from London. Before adopting the Kinsella pseudonym, Wickham published several traditional novels, but she gained international recognition through the Shopaholic series, along with later stand-alone works such as Can You Keep a Secret? and The Undomestic Goddess.The novel follows Rebecca Bloomwood, a journalist whose compulsive spending habits clash comically... Read Confessions of a Shopaholic Summary
Publication year 1608
Genre Play, Fiction
Themes Shame & Pride, Masculinity, Nation, Politics & Government, Power & Greed
Tags Classic Fiction, Elizabethan Era, Tragedy, Historical Fiction, British Literature, Education, Education, Dramatic Literature
Coriolanus is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, likely written around 1607-1608. The play is set in Ancient Rome, much like Shakespeare’s other plays Julius Caesar, Titus Andronicus, and Antony and Cleopatra. Coriolanus dramatizes the life of the legendary Roman soldier Gnaeus Marcius Coriolanus, a patrician who was exiled from the Roman Republic in the 5th century BC after an unsuccessful bid to become consul. Through this narrative, Shakespeare explores themes of the difficulties of controlling... Read Coriolanus Summary
Publication year 2023
Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction
Themes Religion & Spirituality, Power & Greed, Loyalty & Betrayal
Tags Religion & Spirituality, Christian
Publication year 1996
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Friendship, Teamwork, Siblings, Daughters & Sons, Family, Shame & Pride, Power & Greed, Equality, Appearance & Reality, Truth & Lies, Fathers, Death, Wins & Losses, Perseverance, Conflict, Guilt, Gratitude, Grandparents, Self Discovery
Tags Realistic Fiction, Children`s Literature, Sports, Bullying, Education, Education, Modern Classic Fiction
Publication year 1932
Genre Poem, Fiction
Themes Religion & Spirituality, Death, Shame & Pride, Beauty, Power & Greed, Colonialism
Tags Lyric Poem, Modernism, Philosophy, Grief & Death, Love & Sexuality, European History, Religion & Spirituality
Publication year 1866
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Shame & Pride, Forgiveness, Power & Greed
Tags Classic Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Trauma & Abuse, Philosophy, Poverty, Social Class, Russian Literature, Education, Education, World History, Philosophy
Crime and Punishment is a novel by Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky, first published in 1866. The story charts the alienation of a student named Raskolnikov who decides to commit the perfect crime to philosophically proving his superiority over others. The novel traces the depths of his mental disintegration as he comes to grips with the psychological consequences of being a murderer, exploring themes like Alienation and Shame, Criminality, and The Necessity of Suffering.Dostoevsky, a stalwart... Read Crime and Punishment Summary
Publication year 2002
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Coming of Age, Appearance & Reality, Power & Greed
Tags Historical Fiction, Action & Adventure, Medieval, Coming of Age, Social Class, Depression & Suicide, European History, Politics & Government, Poverty
Crispin: The Cross of Lead is a 2002 children’s historical fiction novel by Avi. Set in medieval England, the novel follows the adventures of a boy who goes on the run after he is falsely accused of theft and murder and explores themes related to poverty, education, choice, and freedom. Crispin won the Newbery Medal in 2003. A sequel, Crispin at the Edge of the World, was released in 2006, while a third novel, Crispin:... Read Crispin: The Cross of Lead Summary
Publication year 2003
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Loneliness, Nation, War, Fate, Good & Evil, Power & Greed, Religion & Spirituality
Tags Fantasy, Science Fiction, Action & Adventure
Publication year 1999
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes War, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger, Science & Technology
Tags Science Fiction, Horror & Suspense, Historical Fiction, World War II
Cryptonomicon (1999) is a science fiction novel by Neal Stephenson. Describing events in two different time periods—World War II and an unspecified period in the 1990s—the novel tells the interconnected stories of a large cast of characters. One timeline follows Lawrence Pritchard Waterhouse, a mathematician and naval captain who is assigned to a 1942 secret, anti-Nazi cryptographic mission, and the other follows his grandson, Randy, a crypto-hacker uncovering a decades-old conspiracy in the present day... Read Cryptonomicon Summary
Publication year 1993
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Colonialism, Power & Greed, Literature
Tags Colonialism & Postcolonialism, World History, Philosophy, Politics & Government, European History, Middle Eastern History, Asian History, Literary Criticism, Sociology, Philosophy, Arts & Culture
Culture and Imperialism is a nonfiction book published in 1993 by the Palestinian American author and academic Edward Said. Originating from a series of lectures that Said delivered in 1985 and 1986, Culture and Imperialism is an expansion of the ideas set out in his groundbreaking earlier work, Orientalism (1978). Considered one of the founders of the field of post-colonial studies, Said looks at how the formerly colonized margins influence the metropolitan centers, and vice... Read Culture and Imperialism Summary
Publication year 2020
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Conflict, Hate & Anger, Shame & Pride, Nature Versus Nurture, Fathers, Siblings, Teamwork, Social Class, Good & Evil, Power & Greed
Tags Fantasy, Romance
Cursed Fates (2020) is a dark fantasy romance novel by British writing duo Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti. It is the fifth book in the internationally bestselling Zodiac Academy series, which is part of the larger United States of Solaria interconnected universe. The series gained significant popularity through social media platforms, particularly TikTok, and has appeared on bestseller lists from outlets including the Wall Street Journal and USA Today. The novel continues the story of... Read Cursed Fates Summary
Publication year 2021
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Love, Equality, Justice, Power & Greed
Publication year 1782
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Marriage, Loyalty & Betrayal, Power & Greed, Femininity, Love, Revenge, Sexual Identity
Tags Classic Fiction, French Literature, Historical Fiction, Romance, Love & Sexuality
Dangerous Liaisons is an epistolary novel (i.e., a story told through a series of letters) first published in 1782, seven years before the start of the French Revolution, by Pierre-Ambroise-François Choderlos de Laclos. The story revolves around the scheming and manipulative activities of two aristocrats, the Marquise de Merteuil and the Vicomte de Valmont. They take pleasure in seducing and ruining the reputations of others, using their wit and charm to manipulate those around them... Read Dangerous Liaisons Summary
Publication year 2019
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Space, Politics & Government, War, Power & Greed
Tags Science Fiction, Fantasy
Publication year 2016
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Future, Fate, Good & Evil, Power & Greed
Tags Fantasy, Children`s Literature, Action & Adventure, Animals
Publication year 1867
Genre Book, Nonfiction
Themes Economics, Power & Greed, Social Class, Wins & Losses, Colonialism
Tags Philosophy, Business & Economics, Politics & Government, Poverty, German Literature
Capital: A Critique of Political Economy (also popularly known in the English-speaking world by its original German title, Das Kapital) by Karl Marx is an influential critique of capitalism that sought to define the economic system’s functions. The first volume—which is the only volume fully written by Karl Marx himself—was published in 1867. Two further volumes were written by Marx’s long-time collaborator, Friedrich Engels, based on Marx’s notes, and were published in 1885 and 1894... Read Das Kapital Summary
Publication year 2022
Genre Novel, Fiction
Themes Perseverance, Guilt, Hate & Anger, Love, Revenge, Coming of Age, Animals, Colonialism, War, Loyalty & Betrayal, Power & Greed
Tags Fantasy, Romance