A Pulitzer Prize-winning historical novel that deftly weaves important themes of social racism together with a captivating story, To Kill a Mockingbird tops many all-time favorites lists (including mine). Told from the perspective of a scout, a little girl coming of age in South Jim Crow, the book tells of her father, Atticus, who bravely defends a black man wrongly accused in a racist court. Even if she’s never read it, chances are she knows the story (or has seen the award-winning film with Gregory Peck). It’s a daunting task to find and suggest other works that even begin to compare, but here are 18 Books Like To Kill A Mockingbird that will transport you to a time, place, and feeling reminiscent of this incredible and iconic piece of American literature.
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a tree grows in brooklyn by betty smith
This true classic American coming-of-age story follows Francie Nolan as she battles poverty in 1910 Brooklyn. With an alcoholic father living in precarious conditions, her family can barely make ends meet. However, sensitive young Francie (her grandmother says she is destined to live a special life) is a book lover and can access books and words through her connection to the free public library. With timeless messages about hard work, determination, and hope in the midst of struggle, this sad yet simple story resonates with all who have struggled to find hope in difficult environments.
this tender land by william kent krueger
Four orphans escape the abuse and pain of a children’s home in rural depression era Minnesota, traveling down the river in search of a new future in this tender land. struggling with faith and facing events from their past, the journey they embark on while evading their cruel pursuers is full of adventure and interesting characters. From farmers to healers to families displaced by the economic stresses of the times, this epic story proves that sometimes it’s the people we meet along the way who help us become who we want and need to be.
the power of one by bryce courtenay
this is the story of peekay, who grew up in south africa amid the early stages of apartheid. Starting at an all-white boarding school when he was very young, he confronts cruelty and, through his experiences, begins to understand that he must be a voice of hope and love in his changing world. This story of Peekay’s life and his navigation through a society steeped in racism and discrimination shows us how one small person can have a huge impact.
brunette girl dreaming by jacqueline woodson
This middle grade novel, written entirely in verse, is the autobiographical account of Woodson’s time as a young African-American woman growing up in the 1960s and 1970s. with the still-running Jim Crow laws and the civil rights movement In full swing, she struggles to find her way growing up in different regions of the US. uu. (North and south). Straddling those worlds while also discovering her passion for writing, Woodson’s emotional prose reflects the friction of the times from these different geographical perspectives with the innocence and honesty of a child.
raging hours: murder, fraud and the last trial of harper lee by casey cep
A rural pastor accused of murdering five members of his family for insurance money in the 1970s is later shot to death at the funeral of his latest victim in Furious Hours. Despite numerous witnesses, his killer is acquitted with the help of the same smart attorney who helped the reverend escape justice in the years before. who was sitting in the audience at the vigilante trial, but harper reads. Lee, who years earlier had helped his friend Truman Capote work on his acclaimed book In Cold Blood, also hoped to write his own true crime book. This book chronicles Lee’s year-long adventure to report on the strange case along with notes he compiled, accounts of dramatic courtroom events, and depictions of the racial tensions of the time.
diane chamberlain necessary lies
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ivy hartis, a 15-year-old orphan who has grown up in extreme poverty on a southern tobacco farm, tries to take care of her family and make ends meet. When she calls in a local social worker, Jane Forrester, for her help, dark secrets about the farm are soon uncovered. Set in North Carolina during the last years of Jim Crow, when mandatory sterilization laws were still on the books and racial tension was in the air, Jane finds herself deeply involved in helping the Hartis family and dealing with the consequences that come to her. Sometimes it means doing what is right.
the book the woman from the troublesome creek by kim michele richardson
In the 1930s, Cussy Mary Carter, a “book lady” for the library’s packhorse project, travels through treacherous terrain on her trusty mule to bring books to the people of the mountains of the eastern kentucky. Afflicted by a medical condition called methemoglobinemia that causes her skin to turn blue, Cussy is considered a “person of color” by law and is forced to navigate all the discrimination and mistreatment that nickname had during those years. time. Bringing valuable books, medicine, and news, Cussy serves as a crucial source of information and a true lifeline of hope for his mountain patrons. A fierce woman determined to bring literacy and freedom to people who have so little, Cussy finds hope and love amid strife and racism in the small town of Troubled Creek and the mountains beyond.
kathleen grissom’s kitchen house
Set in the South during the days of slavery, this is the story of a young Irish girl, Lavinia, who arrives on a large tobacco plantation as an orphan. her becoming part of the plantation as one of the slaves (actually more like a hired servant) but being pushed away from her due to her white skin, lavinia straddles two worlds. She bonds with Belle, the plantation owner’s illegitimate daughter, and the rest of her foster family. But when she is moved into her big house, she is faced with decisions that will test her loyalty and her devotion to the only family she has ever known of hers.
if you want to make god laugh at bianca marais
This is the story of three women in post-apartheid South Africa surrounded by racial strife, the AIDS epidemic and a fast approaching civil war. the women come from different backgrounds, but their lives interconnect and the story unfolds when two of them are gifted a newborn baby. what follows is a heartfelt and emotional story mixed with difficult themes of racial discrimination, misunderstandings about homosexuality and AIDS, as well as messages of motherly love, second chances, and the power of healing.
the secret life of bees by sue monk kidd
Fourteen-year-old motherless Lily grew up on a peach farm in the South in the 1960s. Events at home eventually force her to flee to a small South Carolina town with Rosaleen, a woman strong African-American woman who helped raise her. Taken in by three black beekeeping sisters, Lily finds refuge in her wacky world and gains loving mother figures who also have a connection to her past. A coming-of-age story with strong messages about motherhood and religion, this is a dramatic and emotional story told in the context of the civil rights movement in the Deep South.
all the light we cannot see by anthony doerr
Marie-Laure lives in Paris and flees to the walled citadel of Saint-Malo once the Nazis arrive and take control, taking with them a precious piece of French history. German Werner Pfennig, an orphan, grows up listening to a crude radio that brings stories and news from the wider world. he soon becomes an expert at building and repairing radios and is enlisted to use this talent to help the Nazis hunt down the resistance. this is a really beautiful novel depicting parallel worlds as a blind french girl and a german young man fighting against the devastation of world war 2. is a story that shows that goodness and light can exist just below the surface of even life’s harshest events and atrocities.
angie kim miraculous creek
A group of people connected by treatments in a hyperbaric chamber (said to cure everything from autism to infertility) are swept up in a scandal when the chamber explodes, causing two deaths. There are many questions about who is responsible, but one thing is clear: it was no accident. This debut novel unfolds amid a tense courtroom drama with facts and truth slowly coming to light, uncovering hidden secrets and betrayals through shifting perspectives that keep the reader guessing until the very last page.
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heart is a lonely hunter by carson mccullers
In 1930s Georgia, a deaf and dumb man named John Singer connects with the people of the industrial city where he lives. Through riveting confessions, a factory worker, a doctor, a widowed cafe owner, and a young girl share the untold stories of their lives. mccullers gives a voice to the forgotten and outcast in this unforgettable story of human isolation and longing.
laura lane mcneal baby doll
After ibby bell’s father dies, she moves to new orleans to live with her eccentric grandmother in a mysterious mansion full of family secrets. Worried about her past, her grandmother is often taken to the local asylum and leaves Ibby at home with her grandmother’s cook, Queenie, and Queenie’s daughter, Dollbaby. ibby begins to unravel the mysteries of her family history. Meanwhile, Queenie, Dollbaby, and Abby begin to form a family of their own.
relatives by octavia butler
A modern black woman, Dana, is suddenly transported to the pre-war South. She has been brought back to save Rufus, the white son of a plantation owner. but she finds herself going back in time again and again, and with each visit from her her stay is longer and more dangerous. Can she free herself?
khaled hosseini’s kite runner
The son of a wealthy family and the son of the servant who works for them form an unforgettable friendship during a tumultuous time in Afghanistan’s history. the kite runner is a story of friendship, betrayal and the possibility of redemption.
a lesson before dying by ernest j. earnings
In 1940s Louisiana, a young man returns home to visit a wrongfully convicted black man on death row. This moving and unforgettable novel explores the power of resilience and compassion.
tell the wolves i’m home by carol rifka brunt
Fourteen-year-old June Elbus was only understood by her Uncle Finn. When Ella unexpectedly dies at a young age from a mysterious illness Ella June knows nothing about, Ella June Ella is heartbroken and her world is shattered. A mysterious stranger claiming to be a friend of her uncle shows up at her funeral and gives June a beautiful teapot that belonged to her uncle. Intrigued, she befriends the man who clearly shares her grief for her uncle, and an unexpected friendship begins to take shape. June realizes that she wasn’t the only one in her uncle’s life who cared about him.
(main image courtesy of @tlbookcorner)
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