Colonialism & Postcolonialism

With best-selling novels like Barbara Kingsolver's The Poisonwood Bible and influential academic texts such as Edward Said's Orientalism, this collection gathers books from across genres to explore the complex dynamics and lasting legacies of colonialism.

Neither Wolf Nor Dog

by Kent Nerburn

Publication year 1994

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Indigenous Identity, Language, Animals, Place, Colonialism, Nation, Equality, Justice, Power & Greed

Tags Race & Racism, US History, Travel Literature, Creative Nonfiction, Philosophy, Philosophy, World History, Biography

Neither Wolf Nor Dog: On Forgotten Roads with an Indian Elder is a memoir by American author Kent Nerburn. The book describes a road trip Nerburn took with two Lakota men, weaving Nerburn’s personal experiences with lengthy speeches from the men on indigenous history and culture. Major themes in the book include The Role of Language in Oppression, The Lasting Trauma of America’s Violence Against Indigenous Communities at the hands of white colonizers, and The... Read Neither Wolf Nor Dog Summary

Neo-Colonialism

by Kwame Nkrumah

Publication year 1965

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Economics, Colonialism, Race, Globalization, Nation, Politics & Government, Equality, Power & Greed

Tags Politics & Government, History: African , Philosophy, African Literature

... Read Neo-Colonialism Summary

Nervous Conditions

by Tsitsi Dangarembga

Publication year 1988

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Family, Colonialism, Coming of Age

Tags Historical Fiction, Coming of Age, African Literature, Colonialism & Postcolonialism, Race & Racism, Gender & Feminism, Education, Education, African American Literature, Classic Fiction

Nervous Conditions (1988) is a semi-autobiographical literary fiction novel written by Tsitsi Dangarembga, an international author, playwright, filmmaker, and director. The novel is the first in a three-part trilogy and is followed by The Book of Not (2006) and This Mournable Body (2017). Tambudzai, a young girl living with her family on a homestead in Rhodesia, narrates the novel and serves as the primary protagonist. Four other female protagonists—a deuteragonist, Nyasha, and three supporting protagonists... Read Nervous Conditions Summary

Network Effect

by Martha Wells

Publication year 2020

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Space, Grief, Hate & Anger, Memory, Future, Friendship, Teamwork, Self Discovery, Colonialism, Politics & Government, Equality, Justice, Science & Technology

Tags Science Fiction, Action & Adventure, Humor

... Read Network Effect Summary

New Atlantis

by Francis Bacon

Publication year 1627

Genre Short Story, Fiction

Themes Science & Technology, Colonialism, Nation

Tags Classic Fiction, Symbolic Narrative, British Literature, Renaissance, Science Fiction, Education, Education, World History, Fantasy, Philosophy, Philosophy, Politics & Government

New Atlantis is an unfinished novel published posthumously in 1626 by the English philosopher Francis Bacon. It details the customs and culture of a utopian island society known as Bensalem, at the center of which lies a science and research institution called Salomon’s House. The work expresses many of Bacon’s scientific, philosophical, political, and religious ideas, though its unfinished status has made it the subject of intense scholarly debate over the novel’s meaning and themes... Read New Atlantis Summary

New England Bound

by Wendy Warren

Publication year 2016

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Colonialism, Nation, Politics & Government

Tags Race & Racism, Education, Education, US History, American Literature, World History

New England Bound: Slavery and Colonization in Early America is a 2017 history book by American historian and Princeton University professor Wendy Warren. In her work, Warren explores how 17th-century colonists in New England participated in the transatlantic slave trade by purchasing enslaved Africans and selling Indigenous peoples into slavery. Warren shows how this process of enslavement was integral to the expansion of English settlements and wealth in New England and explains the different manifestations... Read New England Bound Summary

Night at the Fiestas

by Kirstin Valdez Quade

Publication year 2015

Genre Short Story Collection, Fiction

Themes Forgiveness, Femininity, Race, Coming of Age, Place, Family, Colonialism, Religion & Spirituality

Tags Latin American Literature, American Literature, Modern Classic Fiction

Night at the Fiestas is a 2015 story collection by New Mexican author Kirstin Valdez Quade. The collection won the National Book Critics Circle John Leonard Award, and after its publication, Valdez Quade was recognized as a “Top 5 Writer Under 35” by the National Book Foundation. In 2021, Valdez Quade revised one of the stories, “The Five Wounds” into an award-winning novel of the same title, establishing herself as an important new voice in... Read Night at the Fiestas Summary

Night Flying Woman

by Ignatia Broker

Publication year 1983

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Colonialism, Religion & Spirituality, Community, Coming of Age, Childhood & Youth, The Past, Family, Shame & Pride, Hope

Tags Women`s Studies, Education, Education, US History, Coming of Age, Religion & Spirituality, American Literature, Anthropology, Anthropology, World History, Arts & Culture

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Noli Me Tángere

by José Rizal

Publication year 1887

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Colonialism, Social Class, Power & Greed, Politics & Government

Tags Satirical Literature, Historical Fiction, Asian Literature, Asian History, Politics & Government, Asian Literature, World History, Romance, Classic Fiction

Noli Me Tángere (1887)—which translates to “Touch Me Not” in Latin—is a novel written by Filipino writer José Rizal. The novel tells the story of Don Crisóstomo Ibarra, a young man of Filipino and Spanish descent who returns to the Philippines after a seven-year trip to Europe. Upon his return, and because he is now old enough to better understand the world, Ibarra sees the oppression wrought on the Indigenous population by Spanish colonialism. As... Read Noli Me Tángere Summary

No Longer at Ease

by Chinua Achebe

Publication year 1960

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Family, Social Class, Colonialism, Community

Tags Heinemann African Writers, African Literature, Historical Fiction, Colonialism & Postcolonialism, African American Literature, World History, Classic Fiction

No Longer At Ease (1960) is a novel by Nigerian author Chinua Achebe. The story takes place in the years prior to Nigeria’s independence from the British Empire and focuses on Obi Okonkwo. Obi is a young Nigerian man who returns home after studying English in Britain and finds a job in the civil service. He finds himself situated within the conflict between African and Western culture, raising questions about his identity and worldview. No... Read No Longer at Ease Summary

Nostromo

by Joseph Conrad

Publication year 1904

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Power & Greed, Colonialism, Community, Economics, Nation, Politics & Government, War, Justice, Loyalty & Betrayal

Tags British Literature, Historical Fiction, Action & Adventure

Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard is a 1904 modernist novel by Polish British author Joseph Conrad. Originally published as a two-volume serial in T.P.’s Weekly, Nostromo is the story of an Italian dockworker who becomes swept up in the political turmoil of a fictional Latin American country in the late 19th Century. An example of modernist literature, Nostromo has been heralded as one of Conrad’s greatest works and has been adapted for film, television... Read Nostromo Summary

Olga Dies Dreaming

by Xóchitl González

Publication year 2022

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Politics & Government, Family, Mothers, Sexual Identity, Race, Power & Greed, Colonialism, Economics

Tags Realistic Fiction, LGBTQ+, Social Class, Finance, US History, Natural Disaster, Parenting, Modern Classic Fiction, Romance

... Read Olga Dies Dreaming Summary

Omeros

by Derek Walcott

Publication year 1990

Genre Novel/Book in Verse, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Forgiveness, Grief, Guilt, Hope, Loneliness, Memory, Regret, Shame & Pride, Femininity, Indigenous Identity, Language, Masculinity, Mental Health, Race, Midlife, Death, Future, The Past, Climate, Environment, Plants, Place, Friendship, Social Class, Colonialism, Community, Literature, Religion & Spirituality

Tags Colonialism & Postcolonialism, Narrative Poem, Afro-Caribbean Literature, Postmodernism

Omeros (1990) by Derek Walcott is an epic poem that reimagines The Iliad and The Odyssey by Homer on the island of Saint Lucia in the Caribbean. Walcott explores themes of post-colonial identity and trauma while linking life on the island to Homer’s legendary characters, such as Achilles, Helen, and Hector. Omeros has been celebrated as a foundational work of post-colonial fiction and has won numerous awards. This guide refers to the 1992 Farrar, Straus... Read Omeros Summary