11 Powerful Social Justice Books

Elon Green, author of the Edgar Award–winning true crime narrative Last Call, returns with The Man Nobody Killed, the first comprehensive book about the life and killing of Michael Stewart. Stewart was a Black artist and model in New York City who died in 1983 at the age of 25 after being beaten and choked by Transit Authority police. Drawing on in-depth research, Green explores Stewart’s life and the impact of his killing, detailing the sustained demands for justice that arose in response to his wrongful death and shining a damning light on police brutality. Shrewd and fascinating, The Man Nobody Killed offers a stark examination of systemic abuses that have persisted for decades.

From social critic and journalist Dr. Steven W. Thrasher, The Viral Underclass examines the stark cultural inequalities behind viral outbreaks. Having dedicated his career to studying the criminalization and policing of HIV, Thrasher is well-equipped to lead this compelling discussion on how illnesses spread and the role that social hierarchies and wealth disparities play in insulating one community from harm while exposing others to the full brunt of suffering. Winner of the 2022 POZ Award for Best in Literature, The Viral Underclass offers a timely examination of the dire fault lines in our health care system and the resulting cracks in American society.

In The Sing Sing Files, investigative journalist and Dateline producer Dan Slepian details his dogged fight against a flawed criminal justice system and his pursuit of justice for six wrongfully incarcerated men. Over 20 years ago, Slepian learned about two men in prison, convicted of a murder they didn’t commit. This tip propelled the author on a years-long search for the truth that resulted not just in the exoneration of the original two but the freedom of four additional wrongfully imprisoned men. In its starred review, Kirkus hails The Sing Sing Files as a “gripping, highly effective true-crime synthesis… [and] an excellent addition to the body of work documenting a pervasive societal injustice.”

A Pulitzer Prize winner, Evicted by Matthew Desmond is a striking portrait of poverty in America. Desmond follows eight Milwaukee families struggling to make ends meet and stay in their homes. A gut-wrenching illustration of economic exploitation and a forward-gazing work that offers bold new strategies to combat systemic failures, “Evicted stands among the very best of the social justice books” (Ann Patchett, author of Bel Canto and Commonwealth).

Karla Cornejo Villavicencio sets off across America to tell the real-life stories of undocumented immigrants in this compelling social justice book. Deeply personal, complex, and human, The Undocumented Americans looks beyond the border and outrage media to introduce the people striving for a better life. Cornejo Villavicencio delivers both an unflinching critique of the American immigration system and a vibrant portrait of the daily lives of undocumented families in this country.

A New York Times bestseller, We Should All Be Feminists is a rallying cry against gender hierarchy. In this essay adapted from her acclaimed TEDx talk, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie offers a nuanced explanation of feminism in the modern era, bolstered by personal stories and a stripping-away of the layers that often obscure the truths of sexual politics. 

Pulitzer Prize winner Isabel Wilkerson delivers a riveting historical narrative in The Warmth of Other Suns, detailing the Great Migration in America and the millions of Black Americans who left the South for city centers in the North and West from World War I to 1970. Through the experiences of three compelling subjects, Wilkerson tells the story of the Great Migration, crafting a sweeping work of narrative nonfiction that illuminates an era of seismic cultural change rarely discussed in American history.

In this bestselling social justice book, American economy specialist Heather McGhee details the financial repercussions of racism, revealing how inequality and discrimination is costly for everyone, not just people of color. McGhee embarks on an odyssey across the country to prove her point, delivering a well-researched dismantling of the “zero-sum paradigm” and false claims that for some to gain, others must lose. Described by The Chicago Tribune as “required reading to move the country forward,” The Sum of Us calls attention to racism as the root cause of so many of our nation’s dysfunctions. 

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, His Name Is George Floyd by Robert Samuels and Toluse Olorunnipa profiles the man who in death became the face of a profound racial reckoning. On May 25, 2020, a Black man named George Floyd was murdered by white police officer Derek Chauvin. The tragic scene was caught on video and served as the catalyst for one of the biggest protest movements in modern American history, as outraged citizens across the country rallied against racial injustice and police brutality. Reporters Samuels and Olorunnipa movingly tell the story of Floyd’s life and tragic demise, and outline the fight for social justice that followed his death.

In Disability Visibility, activist Alice Wong curates an affecting collection of personal essays from disabled writers. With pieces that span blog posts and congressional testimonies to philosophical conversations and stirring eulogies, this collection offers insight into the complexities and realities of life for disabled people. Full of love, struggle, hope, and joy, Disability Visibility is a powerful document of the modern disability experience and the push for greater equality and accessibility.

Over 50 years ago, the Stonewall uprising galvanized the movement for LGBTQ+ rights. Recognized as a pivotal moment in the fight for queer liberation in America and beyond, Stonewall has garnered a wealth of coverage both in the wake of the uprising and in the decades since. The Stonewall Reader from the New York Public Library, edited by Jason Baumann, is an anthology of literature on the topic, including magazine articles, personal accounts, and more. Spotlighting the network of activists and individuals who were there, The Stonewall Reader “reflects how revolutionary moments rarely get portrayed accurately through single voices” (Lambda Literary