First published 2017
In this powerful letter to his teenage son, Ta-Nehisi Coates reckons with the nation's history of racist violence and the daily dangers of inhabiting a Black body. Drawing from his own experiences growing up in Baltimore, Coates illuminates the traumas and challenges that have been woven into the fabric of American life. With a clear-eyed analysis of systemic oppression, he lays bare the urgent need to confront this fraught legacy and fight for a more just future. At its core, Between the World and Me is a profound meditation on parental love, the meaning of freedom, and the struggle to survive.
Genres: african-american, non-fiction, biography-memoir, 21st-century
Vibes: intimate, lyrical, thought-provoking
Tropes: personal-narrative, social-justice
Setting: Baltimore, Howard University, Paris, United States
176 pages · Paperback · One World
Content warnings: racism, violence