Class

The titles in the Social Class Collection explore the historical and contemporary implications of social class and class division in cultures around the world. Representing a diverse range of perspectives, cultures, and societies, the selections in this Collection span a broad range of genres and forms, including essays, biographies, and fiction.

Publication year 1995

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Identity: Gender, Identity: Race, Society: Class, Society: Colonialism, Society: Politics & Government

Tags Race / Racism, Social Justice, Politics / Government, Gender / Feminism, Sociology, History: World, Philosophy, Philosophy


Publication year 1997

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Society: Class

Tags Social Justice, Race / Racism, Gender / Feminism, History: U.S., Health / Medicine, Women's Studies (Nonfiction), Sociology, History: World, Politics / Government


Publication year 2018

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Race, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Natural World: Flora/plants, Natural World: Place, Relationships: Teams, Society: Class, Society: War, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger

Tags Fantasy, Romance, Action / Adventure


Publication year 2023

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Relationships: Family, Self Discovery, Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Literature, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt

Tags Romance, New Adult, Fantasy


Publication year 2004

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Race, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Relationships: Siblings, Society: Class, Society: Economics, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed

Tags Historical Fiction, Grief / Death, Asian Literature, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Realistic Fiction, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, History: U.S., Parenting, Race / Racism, American Literature, Children's Literature, History: World

Cynthia Kadohata’s first novel, Kira-Kira (2004), is a historical coming-of-age novel for middle-grade readers. The novel tells the story of the Japanese American Takeshima family, who live in the Chesterfield, Georgia, in the 1950s. The protagonist and first-person narrator is the younger daughter, Katie. The narrative spans seven years, involving the family’s move from Iowa to the South, where Katie’s parents become workers in the poultry industry. The narrative follows Katie as she awakens to... Read Kira-Kira Summary


Publication year 1995

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Emotions/Behavior: Revenge, Identity: Gender, Identity: Masculinity, Identity: Mental Health, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Teams, Society: Class, Society: Community, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger

Tags Mystery / Crime Fiction, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Psychological Fiction


Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Society: Class

Tags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Allegory / Fable / Parable, Class, Parenting, Science / Nature, Relationships, Futurism, Modern Classic Fiction, Fantasy


Publication year 2023

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Identity: Femininity, Identity: Gender, Identity: Language, Identity: Race, Identity: Sexuality, Life/Time: The Future, Natural World: Animals, Natural World: Climate, Natural World: Environment, Natural World: Food, Natural World: Place, Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Science & Technology

Tags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Food, Love / Sexuality, Modern Classic Fiction, LGBTQ


Publication year 2017

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Equality, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies, Society: Class, Society: Economics, Values/Ideas: Art

Tags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Fantasy, Satire, Relationships, Agriculture, Arts / Culture, Business / Economics, Class, Finance / Money / Wealth, Food, Health / Medicine, History: U.S., Politics / Government, Poverty, Religion / Spirituality, Social Justice

Landscape with Invisible Hand is a satirical dystopian science fiction novel by M. T. Anderson, written for a young adult audience. A diverse author, Anderson writes both fiction and nonfiction for people of all ages. In 2023, Landscape with Invisible Hand was adapted for film, reflecting the novel’s popularity and relevance. The book depicts a future world in which an alien species, the vuvv, have sold their technology to humans, causing the collapse of the... Read Landscape with Invisible Hand Summary


Publication year 2022

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Values/Ideas: Order & Chaos

Tags Historical Fiction, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction, History: World, Magical Realism, Fantasy


Publication year 1964

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Identity: Sexuality, Identity: Gender, Society: Class, Society: Community

Tags Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Realism, Poverty, Psychological Fiction, American Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, Classic Fiction

Last Exit to Brooklyn is a 1958 novel by Hubert Selby Jr. Set in the Brooklyn borough of New York City in the 1950s, the novel portrays the interconnected lives of the residents. The loosely connected stories involve crime, violence, and poverty, as well as drug-use, sex work, and sexual assault. The novel was criticized for its graphic portrayal of controversial themes, resulting in several court cases in the United States and the United Kingdom... Read Last Exit to Brooklyn Summary


Publication year 2018

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Identity: Race, Society: Class, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Identity: Sexuality

Tags Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, LGBTQ, Relationships, Class, Realistic Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction


Publication year 1554

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Society: Class, Life/Time: Coming of Age

Tags Classic Fiction, Class, Religion / Spirituality

Lazarillo de Tormes (also known as The Life of Lazarillo de Tormes and of His Fortunes and Adversities) was published in three Spanish cities in 1554 and has been in publication ever since. It is a picaresque novel characterized mainly by its use of satire. A picaresque novel contains a first-person narrator who is a picaro, a young boy who might be considered a rogue or born of low class. In this early style novel... Read Lazarillo De Tormes Summary


Publication year 1835

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Family, Relationships: Fathers, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Relationships: Daughters & Sons, Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed

Tags Classic Fiction, French Literature

Père Goriot is a novel by French author Honoré de Balzac that was published in serial form between 1834 and 1835. The novel tells the story of three intertwined characters, Goriot, Vautrin, and Rastignac. The book is part of Balzac’s novel sequence, La Comédie humaine, and is one of the author’s most celebrated works, exploring themes of Wealth and Social Class in Restoration France, The Corruption of Parent-Child Relationships, and The Hypocrisy of 19th-Century French... Read Le Père Goriot Summary


Publication year 1968

Genre Play, Fiction

Themes Identity: Gender, Identity: Sexuality, Society: Class

Tags Play: Drama

Les Belles-Soeurs, or The Sisters-in-Law, was written in 1965 and premiered at the Théâtre du Rideau Vert in Montreal in 1968. Although it was Canadian playwright Michel Tremblay’s first major play, Les Belles-Soeurs revolutionized Canadian drama as the first professionally produced play written in joual, the vernacular dialect of the Québécois working class. During the 1960s, in an era known as the Quiet Revolution, joual became politicized as a symbol of the oppressed proletariat, while... Read Les Belles Soeurs Summary


Publication year 1985

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Apathy, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Society: Class

Tags Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Addiction / Substance Abuse, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, History: U.S., American Literature, Modern Classic Fiction, History: World, Classic Fiction

Less than Zero (1985) is the debut novel of Los Angeles-based writer Bret Easton Ellis. It was published when the writer was only 21 and grew out of a creative writing course that he took at Bennington College. The novel brought Ellis fame for his willingness to address controversial topics in contemporary Los Angeles society. Ellis has become known for his deliberately provocative subject matter. A sequel to Less Than Zero, Imperial Bedrooms, was published... Read Less Than Zero Summary


Publication year 2007

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Society: Education, Society: Class, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies

Tags Education, Social Justice, Race / Racism, Education, Psychology, Psychology

Jonathan Kozol’s Letters to a Young Teacher, originally published in 2007, is a collection of letters containing Kozol’s teaching advice for a new first grade schoolteacher named Francesca. The format of this book is inspired by Rainer Maria Rilke’s famous Letters to a Young Poet, which has become a model for advice books for young people in different professions and callings. Although some identifying elements have been changed, the book’s letters represent a real correspondence... Read Letters to a Young Teacher Summary


Publication year 1981

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Identity: Race, Relationships: Siblings, Society: Class, Society: Economics, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Equality

Tags Historical Fiction, Race / Racism, Great Depression, Children's Literature, History: World, Classic Fiction

Let the Circle Be Unbroken (1981) is part of the Logan Family Saga by author Mildred D. Taylor. The series follows the fortunes of a Black farming family, the Logans, through more than one generation as they experience the tribulations of life in the South before the Civil Rights era. The saga consists of 10 novels and novellas. The award-winning novels include The Land (2001), Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry (1976), and The Road... Read Let The Circle Be Unbroken Summary


Publication year 2014

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Identity: Race, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Art

Tags Sports, Biography, Arts / Culture


Publication year 1857

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Society: Class, Society: Politics & Government

Tags Classic Fiction, Victorian Period, Satire, Class, British Literature, History: World, Historical Fiction, Romance, Victorian Literature / Period

Charles Dickens’s novel Little Dorrit was originally published in serialized form between 1855 and 1857. In this novel, the author satirizes government and society at large, with a specific focus on debtors’ prisons that incarcerated those in debt. The prison in Little Dorrit is the Marshalsea, where at one time, Charles Dickens’s father was imprisoned for debt. Little Dorrit explores common Dickensian themes such as economic class, duty, and societal issues.Other works by this author... Read Little Dorrit Summary