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.

Shooting an Elephant

by George Orwell

Publication year 1936

Genre Essay / Speech, Nonfiction

Themes Order & Chaos, Colonialism, Power & Greed

Tags Education, Education, World History, Classic Fiction, Politics & Government, Biography

“Shooting an Elephant,” is an essay by British author George Orwell, first published in the magazine New Writing in 1936. Orwell, born Eric Blair, is world-renowned for his sociopolitical commentary. He served as a British officer in Burma from 1922 to 1927, then worked as a journalist, novelist, short-story writer, and essayist for the remainder of his career, going on to produce celebrated works such as Animal Farm (1945) and 1984 (1949). Before penning this... Read Shooting an Elephant Summary

Sing Down the Moon

by Scott O'Dell

Publication year 1970

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Community, Gender Identity, Colonialism

Tags Historical Fiction, Action & Adventure, US History, Children`s Literature, World History, Classic Fiction

Scott O’Dell’s children’s novel Sing Down the Moon (1970) is a work of historical fiction focusing on a mid-19th-century Navajo teen girl who calls herself Bright Morning. She and her people live as shepherds and farmers in Canyon de Chelly in Arizona. Bright Morning faces a series of trials in the novel: First, she is taken captive and sold into slavery; after she escapes home, white soldiers force her people to leave their village and... Read Sing Down the Moon Summary

Sister of My Heart

by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

Publication year 1999

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Friendship, Love, Grief, Femininity, Gender Identity, Family, Mothers, Siblings, Self Discovery, Social Class, Colonialism, Immigration

Tags Historical Fiction, Indian Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Asian Literature

In the novel Sister of My Heart, the Indian-born American author and poet Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni explores issues of family, womanhood, and diasporic experience, constantly affirming and exploring the redemptive power of storytelling. Divakaruni’s first collection of stories, Arranged Marriage, won an American Book Award, a PEN Josephine Miles Award, and a Bay Area Book Reviewers Award. Her novel The Mistress of Spices was released as a film of the same name in 2005. Sister of My Heart was made into a television series... Read Sister of My Heart Summary

Solibo Magnificent

by Patrick Chamoiseau

Publication year 1997

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Race, Plants, Food, Nature Versus Nurture, Place, Colonialism, Community, Art, Justice, Literature

Tags Mystery & Crime Fiction

Solibo Magnificent (1988) is an allegorical detective novel by Martinican author Patrick Chamoiseau. One night during Carnival in Fort-de-France, the capital of Martinique, the master storyteller and charcoal seller, Solibo Magnificent, is telling a story under the tamarind tree when he suddenly falls dead. Police inspectors Bouaffesse and Pilon investigate the suspicious death, but their interrogations of the witnesses reveal more about the life and culture on the island than they do about the circumstances... Read Solibo Magnificent Summary

Solo

by Mary Rand Hess, Kwame Alexander

Publication year 2017

Genre Novel/Book in Verse, Fiction

Themes Family, Apathy, Conflict, Perseverance, Forgiveness, Grief, Gratitude, Hate & Anger, Joy, Guilt, Memory, Shame & Pride, Coming of Age, Daughters & Sons, Fathers, Mothers, Siblings, Art, Music, Trust & Doubt, Fame, Love, Death, Self Discovery, Social Class, Community, Colonialism, Appearance & Reality

Tags Realistic Fiction, Coming of Age, Prose, Free Verse, Addiction & Substance Abuse, Music, Modern Classic Fiction

... Read Solo Summary

South to America

by Imani Perry

Publication year 2022

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Colonialism, Nation, Race

Tags US History, Race & Racism, Social Justice, Southern Literature, Immigration & Refugeeism, World History, Travel Literature, Politics & Government

... Read South to America Summary

Spare

by Prince Harry

Publication year 2023

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Family, Perseverance, Conflict, Grief, Hope, Loneliness, Love, Shame & Pride, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Self Discovery, Social Class, Colonialism, Politics & Government, Truth & Lies, Trust & Doubt, Loyalty & Betrayal, Justice, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger

Tags European History, Politics & Government, British Literature, Animals, Grief & Death, Depression & Suicide, Social Class, Relationships, Journalism, Bullying, World History, Biography

... Read Spare Summary

Sparks Like Stars

by Nadia Hashimi

Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Love, War, Grief, Family, Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Guilt, Memory, Childhood & Youth, Colonialism, Globalization, Immigration

Tags Historical Fiction, Survival Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, World History, Arts & Culture

... Read Sparks Like Stars Summary

Speaker for the Dead

by Orson Scott Card

Publication year 1986

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Space, Guilt, Loneliness, Future, Environment, Family, Colonialism, Politics & Government, Equality, Justice

Tags Science Fiction, Fantasy, Action & Adventure

Speaker for the Dead (1986) is the second book in the Ender sextet written by Orson Scott Card. Card is a renowned American science fiction author and has won numerous awards for his writing, including four for Speaker of the Dead—the Hugo Award for Best Novel, the Nebula Award for Best Novel, the Science Fiction Chronicle Reader Award for Best Novel, and the Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel.Speaker for the Dead is set... Read Speaker for the Dead Summary

SPQR

by Mary Beard

Publication year 2015

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes The Past, Colonialism, Community, Wins & Losses

Tags World History, Classic Fiction

Mary Beard’s SPQR: A History of Ancient Rome (2015) is a work of nonfiction history that chronicles the rise of Rome from a small village into a sprawling empire. The narrative spans nearly 1000 years, from the city’s mythic origins to Emperor Caracalla’s 212 CE decree granting citizenship to all free inhabitants of the empire. A New York Times bestseller and a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award, SPQR challenges traditional historical perspectives... Read SPQR Summary

Strange Pilgrims

by Gabriel García Márquez

Publication year 1992

Genre Short Story Collection, Fiction

Themes Nostalgia, The Past, Colonialism

Tags Magical Realism, Latin American Literature, Classic Fiction, Spanish Literature

Strange Pilgrims is a collection of 12 short stories written by acclaimed Colombian author Gabriel García Márquez. García Márquez, the winner of the 1972 Neustadt International Prize for Literature and the 1982 Nobel Prize in Literature, is the author of 11 novels and novellas, dozens of short stories, and various works of nonfiction and film. Strange Pilgrims was published in 1992, though most of its stories were initially written in the 1970s and 1980s. The... Read Strange Pilgrims Summary

Sugar Changed the World

by Marc Aronson, Marina Budhos

Publication year 2010

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Economics, Colonialism, Power & Greed

Tags World History, History: African , Children`s Literature, Education, Education, Science & Nature, Food

Sugar Changed the World: A Story of Magic, Spice, Slavery, Freedom, and Science is a non-fiction history book written for young adults that was first published in 2010. It is primarily about how the cultivation of sugar has impacted societies across the world socially, economically, and culturally. The book is written by historian Marc Aronson and novelist Marina Budhos. It was a finalist for both the Los Angeles Times Book Award and the YALSA Excellence... Read Sugar Changed the World Summary