Popular North American Cultural Books

Find cultural books written by authors from North America for the next part of the Read Around The World Challenge. (48)

11.

East of Eden by John Steinbeck EN

Rating: 5 (1 vote)
Description:
The biblical account of Cain and Abel is echoed in the history of two generations of the Trask family in California.

12.

Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin EN

Rating: 4 (3 votes)
Description:
Fans of Exciting Times and Convenience Store Woman will devour this funny and original literary debut about the unintentional consequences of anxiety and the relentless pressures of modern life, starring the most unforgettable literary creation since Eleanor Oliphant and Fleabag.

13.

Faith Among Shadows by Malcolm Leal EN

0 Ratings
Country: North America / Cuba flag Cuba
Description:
Lying face down on the muddy jungle floor, with the taste of his own blood in his mouth, all Malcolm Leal could do was call upon the God of his great-grandmother. Florencia Martinez Hernandez raised Malcolm as her own son in a small fishing village on the northern coast of Cuba. Teaching Malcolm wisdom gleaned from the worn pages of her century-old Bible, Florencia spoke of a temple "promised to all people" and that there were men on earth who "walked with God." Most importantly, she taught him to rely on "her" God for everything. While on assignment for the Cuban Special Forces in the dense r... continue

14.

Home Home by Lisa Allen-Agostini EN

0 Ratings
Description:
Fans of Monday's Not Coming and Girl in Pieces will love this award-winning novel about a girl on the verge of losing herself and the unlikely journey to recovery after she is removed from anything and everyone she knows to be home. Moving from Trinidad to Canada wasn't her idea. But after being hospitalized for depression, her mother sees it as the only option. Now, living with an estranged aunt she barely remembers and dealing with her "troubles" in a foreign country, she feels more lost than ever. Everything in Canada is cold and confusing. No one says hello, no one walks anywhere, and bus ... continue

15.

How the Word Is Passed : A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America by Clint Smith, III EN

Rating: 5 (1 vote)
Description:
Poet and contributor to The Atlantic Clint Smith's revealing, contemporary portrait of America as a slave owning nation Beginning in his own hometown of New Orleans, Clint Smith leads the reader through an unforgettable tour of monuments and landmarks-those that are honest about the past and those that are not-that offer an intergenerational story of how slavery has been central in shaping our nation's collective history, and ourselves. It is the story of the Monticello Plantation in Virginia, the estate where Thomas Jefferson wrote letters espousing the urgent need for liberty while enslaving... continue

16.

Hungry Ghosts by Kevin Jared Hosein EN

Rating: 4 (2 votes)
Description:
_____________________________ * A BBC TWO BETWEEN THE COVERS BOOK CLUB PICK FOR 2023 * 'A shimmering slice of Trinidadian gothic . . . Sumptuous, brilliantly written' THE TIMES 'An astonishing novel – linguistically gorgeous, narratively propulsive and psychologically profound' BERNARDINE EVARISTO 'Deeply impressive . . . Energy and inventiveness distinguish every page' HILARY MANTEL 'The biggest, most frightening, beautiful and alive novel I've read in as long as I can remember' EVIE WYLD _____________________________ A 2023 highlight for: Financial Times * Guardian * Evening Standard * Daily... continue

17.

In Morocco by Wharton, Edith EN

Rating: 4 (1 vote)
Description:
First published in 1919, this detailed account of the author's journey through Morocco following World War I shares Wharton's observations on local customs and lifestyles, Moroccan history, cities, and more. Reprint.

18.

In the Castle of My Skin by George Lamming EN

Rating: 4 (1 vote)
Description:
In a sleepy fishing village in 1930s Barbados, nine-year-old G. leads a life of quiet mischief. While the village lies tranquil in the shadow of its English landlord, Mr Creighton, and his towering house on the hill, G. makes his own fun, crab catching, teasing preachers, and playing among the pumpkin vines. Yet from this world of boyish pursuits, the precocious G. finds himself slowly awakening to strange goings-on in adult society. All around him, sudden bursts of violence - a devastating flood on the morning of his birthday; the headmaster unduly flogging his schoolmates on Empire day - hin... continue

19.

Krik? Krak! by Edwidge Danticat EN

Rating: 5 (2 votes)
Description:
When Haitians tell a story, they say "Krik?" and the eager listeners answer "Krak!" In Krik? Krak! In her second novel, Edwidge Danticat establishes herself as the latest heir to that narrative tradition with nine stories that encompass both the cruelties and the high ideals of Haitian life. They tell of women who continue loving behind prison walls and in the face of unfathomable loss; of a people who resist the brutality of their rulers through the powers of imagination. The result is a collection that outrages, saddens, and transports the reader with its sheer beauty.

20.

Labyrinth of Solitude by Octavio Paz EN

Rating: 5 (2 votes)
Description:
First pub. 1950. Tale of the conquered of Mexico in 1521 and its aftermath.