Books on Justice & Injustice

James Baldwin said, "It is certain, in any case, that ignorance, allied with power, is the most ferocious enemy justice can have." In this collection, we've compiled texts that explore the idea of what justice is — and how it can thrive.

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Family, Marriage, Aging, Nostalgia, Memory, Perseverance, Forgiveness, Love, Femininity, Sexual Identity, Midlife, Daughters & Sons, Fathers, Mothers, Beauty, Justice, Truth & Lies

Tags Literary Fiction, Humor, Modern Classic Fiction

Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Loneliness, Revenge, Gender Identity, Mental Health, Appearance & Reality, Good & Evil, Justice, Religion & Spirituality

Tags Romance, Horror & Suspense, Fantasy, Contemporary Literature

Publication year 2017

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Fear, Forgiveness, Grief, Guilt, Hate & Anger, Loneliness, Love, Memory, Shame & Pride, Mental Health, Death, Fathers, Mothers, Siblings, Community, Justice, Safety & Danger

Tags Horror & Suspense, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction

Publication year 1997

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Animals, Justice, Family, Friendship, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Forgiveness, Childhood & Youth, Coming of Age, Self Discovery, Community

Tags Realistic Fiction, Action & Adventure, Relationships

Publication year 2022

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Love, Revenge, Family, Politics & Government, Justice, Loyalty & Betrayal, Truth & Lies

Tags Fairy Tale & Folklore, Fantasy, Romance, New Adult, Horror & Suspense, Historical Fiction

Publication year 1982

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Good & Evil, Guilt, Justice, Power & Greed, Safety & Danger, Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Hate & Anger, Race, War

Tags Historical Fiction, Holocaust, World War II, Life-Inspired Fiction, Race & Racism, World History, Immigration & Refugeeism, Incarceration, Military & War, Politics & Government, Social Justice, Sociology, Trauma & Abuse, Classic Fiction, Biography

Schindler’s List (originally titled Schindler’s Ark) is a 1982 historical novel by Australian author Thomas Keneally. It tells the story of Oskar Schindler, a member of the Nazi party who used his position as a German industrialist to save more than 1,200 people’s lives during the war. In protecting as many people as he could from the genocidal Nazi regime, Schindler risked being sent to a concentration camp himself. Keneally wrote the novel with the... Read Schindler's List Summary

Publication year 1974

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Race, Justice, Family, Indigenous Identity

Tags Gender & Feminism, Race & Racism, African Literature, Historical Fiction, Trauma & Abuse, Women`s Studies, African American Literature, World History, Classic Fiction

Publication year 467

Genre Play, Fiction

Themes War, Fate, Family, Siblings, Justice, Hate & Anger

Tags Classic Fiction, Ancient Greece, Tragedy, Classical Period, Dramatic Literature, Fantasy

Seven Against Thebes is a tragedy composed by Aeschylus and performed for the first time at the City Dionysia festival in 467 BCE. It was the final play of a connected trilogy based on the myths of Oedipus and his family, but the first two plays—Laius and Oedipus—are now lost, as is the satyr play Sphinx that would have been performed following the trilogy. This set of plays won first prize the year it was... Read Seven Against Thebes Summary

Publication year 2004

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Appearance & Reality, Objects & Materials, Place, War, Fate, Good & Evil, Justice, Safety & Danger, Science & Technology, Trust & Doubt, Truth & Lies

Tags World History, World War II, Action & Adventure, Mystery & Crime Fiction, Military & War, Science & Nature, Biography

Shadow Divers: The True Story of Two Americans Who Risked Everything to Solve One of the Last Mysteries of World War II (2004) by Robert Kurson is a celebrated nonfiction adventure book. Kurson, an adventure journalist whose stories have been featured in Rolling Stone, Esquire, and The New York Times Magazine, is known for his immersive and entertaining style. His first book-length work, Shadow Divers was a New York Times Best Seller and won the... Read Shadow Divers Summary

Publication year 2024

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Perseverance, Femininity, Indigenous Identity, The Past, Environment, Family, Colonialism, Politics & Government, Justice

Tags Historical Fiction, Mystery & Crime Fiction

Publication year 2013

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Truth & Lies, Power & Greed, Fate, Science & Technology, Safety & Danger, Appearance & Reality, Future, The Past, Death, Community, Politics & Government, Order & Chaos, Trust & Doubt, Justice, Loyalty & Betrayal, Good & Evil

Tags Science Fiction, Fantasy, Survival Fiction, Health, Education, Food, Technology, Horror & Suspense

Publication year 1991

Genre Novella, Fiction

Themes Animals, Justice, Truth & Lies, Coming of Age

Tags Children`s Literature, Coming of Age, Realism, Education, Education, Animals, Realistic Fiction, Classic Fiction

Eleven-year-old Marty Preston fights to save an abused beagle from its cruel owner in Shiloh (1991). Marty bonds with the dog, Shiloh, and learns more about himself and others as he struggles to reconcile the letter of the law with what he knows in his heart is right. Acclaimed children’s author Phyllis Reynolds Naylor based Shiloh on a poignant, personal encounter with a mistreated dog. Marty’s character struggles with the same issues that troubled Naylor... Read Shiloh Summary

Publication year 2023

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Loneliness, Love, Revenge, Gender Identity, Coming of Age, Future, Nation, Politics & Government, War, Equality, Justice, Truth & Lies

Tags Science Fiction, Romance, New Adult

Genre Short Story, Fiction

Themes Power & Greed, Justice

Tags Race & Racism, Relationships, African Literature, Grief & Death, Education, Education, African American Literature, Colonialism & Postcolonialism, Classic Fiction

Nadine Gordimer’s “Six Feet of the Country” is one of the seven short stories in her collection of the same name (1956). Gordimer, who was born and lived in South Africa, often explored the country’s racial issues in the context of apartheid. She received numerous literary awards, including the 1991 Nobel Prize for Literature. This short story concerns the death of a native of Rhodesia (modern Zimbabwe). When the young man’s family wants to give... Read Six Feet of the Country Summary

Publication year 2024

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Perseverance, Forgiveness, Grief, Guilt, Hate & Anger, Hope, Loneliness, Shame & Pride, Gender Identity, Masculinity, Mental Health, Race, Coming of Age, Future, The Past, Family, Fathers, Self Discovery, Community, Politics & Government, Justice