The Greatest Books of All Time on Racism

Click to learn how this list is calculated.

This list represents a comprehensive and trusted collection of the greatest books. Developed through a specialized algorithm, it brings together 759 'best of' book lists to form a definitive guide to the world's most acclaimed books. For those interested in how these books are chosen, additional details can be found on the rankings page.

View: List Grid Table
Filter by: Genres Dates Countries

Rank Book Authors Year Country Language Actions
10819 ‘Gapô Lualhati Bautista 1988 Filipino Filipino
10879 Women, Culture & Politics Angela Davis 1989 American English
10907 Rising Out Of Hatred Eli Saslow 2018 American English
11086 Praying for Sheetrock Melissa Fay Greene 1991 American English
11142 Devil in the Grove Gilbert King 2012 American English
11142 The End of the Myth Greg Grandin 2019 American English
11142 Wilmington's Lie David Zucchino 2020 American English
11142 His Name Is George Floyd Robert Samuels, Toluse Olorunnipa 2022 American English
11224 The Color Of Violence INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence 2006 Unknown English
11270 Song Of Blood & Stone L. Penelope 2018 American English
11258 Lemon Swamp And Other Places Mamie Garvin Fields 1983 American English
11306 A Raisin In The Sun Lorraine Hansberry 1959 American English
11325 Why I'm No Longer Talking To White People About Race Reni Eddo-Lodge, Ana Camallonga 2017 British English
11346 Yours In Struggle Barbara Smith, Minnie Bruce Pratt, Elly Bulkin 1984 American English
11390 The Devil In America Kai Ashante Wilson 2014 American English
11419 When No One Is Watching Alyssa Cole 2020 American English
11455 The Store Thomas Sigismund Stribling 1932 American English
11455 In This Our Life Ellen Glasgow 1941 American English
11513 Race Experts Elisabeth Lasch-Quinn 2001 American English
11581 Paradise Toni Morrison 1997 American English
11582 The Threshing Floor Barbara Burford 1986 British English
11634 Las Estrellas Son Negras Arnoldo Palacios 1949 Colombian Spanish
11663 Under The Skin Linda Villarosa 2023 American English
11663 On Juneteenth Annette Gordon-Reed 2021 American English
11663 Brown Kevin Young 2018 American English
11663 Friday Black Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah 2018 American English
11663 No Ashes In The Fire C. L. Moore 2018 Unknown English
11802 The Ballad Of Black Tom Victor LaValle 2016 American English
11861 Makes Me Wanna Holler Nathan McCall 1994 American English
11901 The Good Times Are Killing Me Lynda Barry 1988 American English
11901 Sans Souci And Other Stories Dionne Brand 1988 Canadian English
11901 A Small Place Jamaica Kincaid 1988 Antiguan English
11927 Sorcerer To The Crown Zen Cho 2015 Singaporean English
11938 Coffee Will Make You Black April Sinclair 1995 American English
11941 Booker T. Washington Louis R. Harlan 1983 American English
11941 Chasing Me To My Grave Winfred Rembert, Erin I. Kelly 2021 American English
12018 Infidel Pornsak Pichetshote 2018 Unknown English
12165 On the Bus with Rosa Parks Rita Dove 1999 American English
12178 Algorithms Of Oppression Safiya Umoja Noble 2018 American English
12260 Because It Is Bitter, And Because It Is My Heart Joyce Carol Oates 1990 American English
12260 Quiet Odyssey Mary Paik Lee 1990 Korean American English
12250 Sister Citizen Melissa Harris-Perry 2011 American English
12457 A Very Large Expanse Of Sea Tahereh Mafi 2018 American English
12506 Distributed Blackness André Brock Jr. 2020 Unknown English
12589 Sunday You Learn How To Box Bil Wright 2000 American English
12589 Counting Coup Larry Colton 2000 American English
12835 Killing Color Charlotte W. Sherman 1992 American English
12835 Taste Of Power Elaine Brown 1992 American English
12942 Slaves In The Family Edward Ball 1998 American English
13055 Old School Indian Aaron John Curtis 2025 Unknown English
13250 Stamped Ibram X. Kendi, Jason Reynolds 2020 American English
13250 The Henna Wars Adiba Jaigirdar 2020 Irish English
13294 My Life Of Absurdity Chester Himes 1990 American English
13340 Home Toni Morrison 2012 American English
13514 Jesus Land Julia Scheeres 2005 American English
13565 Betty Tiffany McDaniel 2020 American English
13568 Sammy And Juliana In Hollywood Benjamin Alire Sáenz 2006 American English
13579 One With Others C. D. Wright 2010 American English
13601 En France Marius-Ary Leblond 1909 French French
13601 Momo Émile Ajar French French
13773 The Flowers Dagoberto Gilb 2008 American English
13886 Underground Airlines Ben H. Winters 2016 American English
13886 Elmer Gerry Alanguilan 2009 Unknown English
13924 An Image Of Africa Chinua Achebe 1975 Nigerian English
13930 The White Lioness Henning Mankell 1993 Swedish Swedish
13941 Saga Vol. 1 Brian K. Vaughan 2012 American English
13941 Master Harold...And The Boys Athol Fugard 1982 South African English
13968 In The Matter Of Nat Turner Christopher Tomlins 2020 Unknown English
13971 The Fated Sky Mary Robinette Kowal 2018 American English
14078 Riot Baby Tochi Onyebuchi 2020 American English
14132 Brown Girl, Brownstones Paule Marshall 1959 American English
14232 Freedom Is A Constant Struggle Angela Davis 2016 American English
14348 Middle Passage Charles R. Johnson 1990 American English
14390 Early Novels and Stories James Baldwin 1984 American English
14548 Queenie Candice Carty-Williams 2019 British English
14899 The Third Life Of Grange Copeland Alice Walker 1970 American English
14952 The Dutchman Amiri Baraka 1964 American English
14986 War Without Mercy John W. Dower 1986 American English
14986 The Hemingses of Monticello Annette Gordon-Reed 2008 American English
14986 A Nation under Our Feet Steven Hahn 2003 American English
14986 The Fiery Trial Eric Foner 2010 American English
14986 Stamped from the Beginning Ibram X. Kendi 2016 American English
14986 The Freedom Maze Delia Sherman 2011 American English
14986 Lovecraft Country Matt Ruff 2016 American English
14986 Native Guard Natasha Trethewey 2006 American English
14986 Age Of Iron J. M. Coetzee 1990 South African English
14986 The Sweetness Of Water Nathan Harris 2021 American English
14986 The 1619 Project Nikole Hannah-Jones 2020 American English
14986 Arthur And George Julian Barnes 2005 British English
14986 Clybourne Park Bruce Norris 2010 American English
14986 Hood Feminism Mikki Kendall 2020 American English
14986 The Devil Finds Work James Baldwin 1976 American English
14986 The Autobiography Of Miss Jane Pittman Ernest J. Gaines 1971 American English
14986 The Lone Ranger And Tonto Fistfight In Heaven Sherman Alexie 1993 American English
14986 Razorblade Tears S. A. Cosby 2021 American English
14986 Maniac Magee Jerry Spinelli 1990 American English
15570 A Private Cathedral James Lee Burke 2020 American English
15670 Born In Blackness Howard W. French 2021 American English
15829 Sapphira And The Slave Girl Willa Cather 1940 American English
15884 Tom Sawyer & Huckleberry Finn Mark Twain 1876 American English
16519 Journey Without Maps Graham Greene 1936 British English
15922 Iola Leroy Frances Harper 1892 American English
15922 Show Boat Edna Ferber 1926 American English
15922 Blues Fell This Morning Paul Oliver 1960 British English
15922 Discourse On Colonialism Aimé Césaire 1950 French French
15922 America Is In The Heart Carlos Bulosan 1946 Filipino English
15922 Montage Of A Dream Deferred Langston Hughes 1951 American English
15922 Cimarron Edna Ferber 1929 American English
15922 Wallace Marshall Frady 1968 English
16647 Sounder William H. Armstrong 1969 American English
17175 Sons of Mississippi Paul Hendrickson 2003 American English
17175 Rough Crossings Simon Schama 2005 British English
17175 Medical Apartheid Harriet A. Washington 2007 American English
17175 Fleshmarket Close Ian Rankin 2004 Scottish English
17175 English Passengers Matthew Kneale 2000 British English
17175 Neither Black Nor White Carl N. Degler 1971 American English
17175 The Dred Scott Case Don E. Fehrenbacher 1978 American English
17175 Been in the Storm So Long Leon F. Litwack 1979 American English
17175 The Water Is Wide Pat Conroy 1972 American English
17175 The Indian Lawyer James Welch 1990 Native American English