Literature Writers and/or characters who aren't white and straight

[Mischief]

A few of us had a brief discussion not long ago about the fact that most of the books we read are written by white people, and most of the characters in those books are white, straight and cis.

This thread is for listing authors and books containing characters that may bring some more diversity to the reading habits of those interested in doing so.

 

[Mischief]

I'll start with Walter Mosley. He is a successful and well known African American author of mysteries and other fiction. I've been reading his books for decades.

Mosley's best known character is Easy Rawlins. Easy is an African American WWII vet who lives in the Watts area of Los Angeles. The series spans the 1940's - 1960's. Easy starts out as a school janitor what helps sort out people's problems, and then he becomes a private investigator.

The books are not light reading, because you really get a feel for what it was like to be a black person living in that place and time, and that's not easy reading.

Mosley has three other mystery series, each of which is much shorter than the Easy series. One is the Fearless Jones series (my personal favorite), another is the Leonid McGill series (my second favorite), and the Socrates Fortlow series. The protagonists and most characters in each are African American.

More info here: Walter Mosley (Author of Devil in a Blue Dress)

 

[Mischief]

The Leaphorn and Chee series by Tony Hillerman.

Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee are Navajo tribal policemen living and working in the Four Corners area of the American Southwest. The author wrote 18 books in the series. After his death, his daughter has continued the series, but her books are not as good.

The author was white, but from what I have been able to learn, he and his work were well regarded in the Native community.

This is one of my favorite series. Great characters, and a thoughtful immersion into a different culture and way of life, a different way of seeing the world around us. Highly recommend.

More info here: Leaphorn & Chee Series by Tony Hillerman

 

[Jamie in Chile]

I am currently reading Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. She is Nigerian, and the book is set in Nigeria, and most of the characters are Nigerian. If anyone is going to read this book, it would be helpful to spend a half hour before learning about the three main tribes in Nigeria, where each is geographically located, and read about the Nigerian civil war of the 60s. The book is set in the 60s.

 

[Andy_T]

I want to endorse Octavia Butler.

"Kindred" is a very strong book, fantasy/drama.

Am now on "The Parable of the Sower", which is a dystopian book. To be honest, I would possibly not have started it had I known before starting that it was planned as a trilogy, but she passed away before writing the third one.

 

[Mischief]

I want to endorse Octavia Butler.

"Kindred" is a very strong book, fantasy/drama.

Am now on "The Parable of the Sower", which is a dystopian book. To be honest, I would possibly not have started it had I known before starting that it was planned as a trilogy, but she passed away before writing the third one.

I've just put Kindred on my hold list at the library. The library has only three of her books in electronic format.