Class

This thematic collection covers texts that investigate the particularly fraught dynamics and divisions of class, including Upton Sinclair's The Jungle and Ernesto Galarza's Barrio Boy.

Checkers

by Richard Nixon

Publication year 1952

Genre Essay / Speech, Nonfiction

Themes Social Class, Economics, Politics & Government, Truth & Lies

Tags Politics & Government, US History, Cold War

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Children of Blood and Bone

by Tomi Adeyemi

Publication year 2018

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Race, Social Class, Colonialism

Tags Fantasy, Romance, Action & Adventure, Trauma & Abuse

Children of Blood and Bone (2018) by Tomi Adeyemi is a young adult fantasy novel and the first book in the Legacy of Orϊsha trilogy. Adeyemi is a Nigerian American author and creative writing coach who graduated from Harvard University with a degree in English literature. Following her graduation, she studied West African mythology in Brazil, which partly inspired her to write Children of Blood and Bone. Adeyemi also wrote Children of Blood and Bone... Read Children of Blood and Bone Summary

China Rich Girlfriend

by Kevin Kwan

Publication year 2015

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Family, Economics, Social Class, Shame & Pride, Love

Tags Humor, Satirical Literature, Romance, Asian Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Chinese Literature

China Rich Girlfriend is an adult novel published by Doubleday in 2015, the sequel to Singapore-born author Kevin Kwan’s internationally bestselling romantic comedy Crazy Rich Asians (2013) and second in a trilogy which concludes with Rich People Problems (2017). Billed as a satire, a mock-epic, and a sprawling family saga that peers into the lives of the ultra-wealthy in Asia, China Rich Girlfriend depicts the efforts of Rachel Chu, a Chinese-born American university professor, and... Read China Rich Girlfriend Summary

Christine

by Stephen King

Publication year 1983

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Safety & Danger, Conflict, Fear, Hate & Anger, Nostalgia, Femininity, Masculinity, Mental Health, Sexual Identity, Coming of Age, Death, Family, Friendship, Self Discovery, Social Class, Community, Beauty, Fate, Good & Evil, Loyalty & Betrayal, Order & Chaos, Trust & Doubt, Truth & Lies

Tags Horror & Suspense, Fantasy, Mystery & Crime Fiction

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Christy

by Catherine Marshall

Publication year 1967

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Place, Social Class, Religion & Spirituality

Tags World History, Religion & Spirituality, Historical Fiction, Classic Fiction, Christian, Romance, Inspirational

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Chronicles

by Jean Froissart

Publication year 1400

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes War, Religion & Spirituality, Power & Greed, Social Class

Tags European History, Medieval, Military & War, Social Class, Religion & Spirituality, World History, French Literature, Classic Fiction

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Class Act

by Jerry Craft

Publication year 2020

Genre Graphic Novel/Book, Fiction

Themes Education, Race, Self Discovery, Social Class, Equality, Friendship

Tags Realistic Fiction, Arts & Culture, Social Class, Diversity, Education, Race & Racism, African American Literature, Children`s Literature, Education, Modern Classic Fiction

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Class

by Stephanie Land

Publication year 2023

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Mothers, Social Class, Perseverance, Shame & Pride, Education

Tags Poverty, Social Justice, Education, Education, Sociology, Biography, Politics & Government

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Cleopatra

by Saara El-Arifi

Publication year 2026

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Love, Femininity, Gender Identity, Death, Animals, Place, Daughters & Sons, Friendship, Marriage, Mothers, Siblings, Social Class, Politics & Government, War

Tags Historical Fiction, Mythology, Fantasy

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Cloud Atlas

by David C. Mitchell

Publication year 2004

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Power & Greed, Loyalty & Betrayal, Religion & Spirituality, Colonialism, Social Class, Future, The Past, Justice, Order & Chaos, Truth & Lies

Tags Science Fiction, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Social Justice, Anthropology, Social Class, Depression & Suicide, Finance, Politics & Government, Love & Sexuality, Race & Racism, Sociology, Religion & Spirituality, Modern Classic Fiction, World History

Cloud Atlas is a 2004 dystopian novel by British author David Mitchell. The sprawling narrative is composed of a series of nested stories, spanning centuries into the past and the future. In addition to winning numerous literary and science fiction awards, the novel was adapted into a 2012 film of the same name. This guide uses the 2014 Sceptre edition of Cloud Atlas.Content Warning: The novel and this guide depict slavery and discuss racism, death... Read Cloud Atlas Summary

Code of the Street

by Elijah Anderson

Publication year 1999

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Race, Family, Hope, Social Class

Tags Sociology, Race & Racism, Trauma & Abuse, Poverty, Education, Education, Anthropology, Anthropology, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Social Science, Urban Development, World History

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Coming Up for Air

by George Orwell

Publication year 1939

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Nostalgia, Social Class, The Past, War, Nation, Memory

Tags Historical Fiction, Satirical Literature, British Literature, World History, Classic Fiction

Coming Up For Air is an interwar novel written by British author George Orwell shortly before the outbreak of World War II. Originally published in 1939, the novel was written in Morocco while Orwell was recovering from injuries received while fighting in the Spanish Civil War. Set in the late 1930s, the novel follows a middle-aged insurance salesman named George Bowling as he struggles with anxieties about the coming war. Like Orwell’s more famous novels... Read Coming Up for Air Summary

Confessions of a Shopaholic

by Sophie Kinsella

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

Confessions of the Fox

by Jordy Rosenberg

Publication year 2018

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Gender Identity, Sexual Identity, Social Class, Colonialism, Community

Tags Historical Fiction, Coming of Age, LGBTQ+, Social Class, Incarceration, Gender & Feminism, Love & Sexuality, Social Justice, Colonialism & Postcolonialism, World History

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Coolie

by Mulk Raj Anand

Publication year 1936

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Social Class, Fate, Coming of Age

Tags Poverty, Social Class, Indian Literature, Realism, Asian Literature, World History, Dramatic Literature, Historical Fiction, Classic Fiction

Since its publication in 1936, Mulk Raj Anand’s novel Coolie has become a landmark in modern Indian literature. The novel condemned the social, economic, and cultural impact of more than two centuries of British occupation and indicted India’s own rigid caste system, which had long separated its citizens into groups based on their work status and their ethnicity. The novel appeared at the height of a turbulent decade in which India itself, under the moral... Read Coolie Summary