Mbue, Imbolo. Behold the Dreamers ​ 2017 winner of the Pen/Faulkner Award, this novel details the experiences of two New York City families during the 2008 financial crisis, an immigrant family from Cameroon, the Jonga family, and their wealthy employers, the Edwards family. Call #: FIC Mbue

Morrison, Toni. Beloved (you may choose any of Morrison’s books for ​ ​ credit) Recommended: The Bluest Eye ​ The 1988 Pulitzer Prize for Fictions book is set after the American Civil War and it is inspired by the life of Margaret Garner, an African American who escaped slavery in Kentucky in late January 1856 by crossing the Ohio River to Ohio, a free state. Captured, she killed her child rather than have her taken back into slavery. Call #: FIC Morrison

Lalami, Laila. The Other Americans. ​ From the Pulitzer Prize finalist and author of The Moor’s Account, this is a novel about the suspicious death of a Moroccan immigrant–at once a family saga, a murder mystery, and a love story, informed by the treacherous fault lines of American culture. Call #: FIC Lalami

Noah, Trevor. Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood ​ The book details Trevor Noah growing up in his native South Africa during the apartheid era. As the mixed-race son of a white Swiss father and a black mother , Noah himself was classified as a "colored” in accordance to the apartheid system of racial classification. According to Noah, he stated that even under apartheid, he felt trouble fitting in because it was a crime "for [him] to be born as a mixed-race baby", hence the title of his book. Call #: B Noah N

Stevenson, Bryan. Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption ​ A powerful true story about the potential for mercy to redeem us, and a clarion call to fix our broken system of justice. Call #: 345.73 S

Vuong, Ocean. On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous. ​ This book is a letter from a son to a mother who cannot read. Written when the speaker, Little Dog, is in his late twenties, the letter unearths a family's history that began before he was born — a history whose epicenter is rooted in Vietnam — and serves as a doorway into parts of his life his mother has never known, all of it leading to an unforgettable revelation. This book is as much about the power of telling one's own story as it is about the obliterating silence of not being heard. Call #: FIC Vuong

Walker, Alice. The Color Purple ​ The 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Award for Fiction takes place mostly in rural Georgia, the story focuses on the life of African-American women in the Southern United States in the 1930s, addressing numerous issues including their exceedingly low position in American social culture.

Whitehead, Colson. Nickel Boys ​ The 2020 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction is based on the real story of the Dozier School, a reform school in Florida that operated for 111 years and had its history exposed by a university's investigation. It was named one of TIME'S best books of the decade. It is the follow-up to Whitehead's 2016 novel The Underground Railroad, which won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. Call #: FIC Whitehead

Wilson, August. Fences ​ Set in the 1950s, Fences explores the evolving African American experience and examines race relations, among other themes. The play won the 1987 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the 1987 Tony Award for Best Play. Call #: 812 WILSON

Woodson, Jacqueline. Red at the Bone ​ This is a tale of two urban black families — one headed by a prosperous, devoted couple, the other by a struggling single mother — whose lives become permanently intertwined when their only children conceive a child in their teens. The novel focuses on the decisions we make in life, often under duress, or before we can fully understand their consequences. Call #: FIC Woodson

Yousafzai, Malala. I Am Malala: The Story of the Girl Who Stood Up ​ for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban When the Taliban took control of the Swat Valley in Pakistan, one girl spoke out. Malala Yousafzai refused to be silenced and fought for her right to an education. Malala is the youngest Nobel Prize laureate and has won numerous awards for her work. Call #: YA B YOUSAFZAI Y