Race Equality Week 2024

“When I met my husband, I was very excited to share my culture with him. But I very quickly realised that a culture isn’t something you just tell someone.

I’m British-Pakistani and it’s very hard to split what makes me Pakistani and what makes me British. Focusing on this too much makes me quite anxious. So, my husband and I began to watch Pakistani Dramas and Indian films. These sparked a lot of conversations and it felt like I was sharing my identity more authentically.

So, I thought I would share some Indian movies that we enjoyed. If you’re interested in learning more about South Asian, specifically Indian, culture. 

I hope you find something to enjoy.” 

I am an avid reader. I read at night to get to sleep, in the middle of the night to get back to sleep, and first thing in the morning in bed with a cup of lemon and ginger tea. I would read all day, every day if I could, wrapped up in a blanket on my sofa (preferably with some chocolate!) 

I love all kinds of books; health & wellbeing, positive psychology, business psychology, leadership and true crime non-fiction can all my found on my Kindle and my bookshelf. But if I am going to read fiction, I adore reading historical fiction. I love immersing myself in different cultures and contexts, within time periods I’ve never known. I didn’t study much History at school and in some respects, I think I am making up for that with my reading habits now. Exposing myself to new things and experiences through reading about the lives of people different to myself, has made me so much more knowledgeable and compassionate to the people around me. I can better understand the barriers and challenges people naturally face because of their identity.  

In the UK, only 1% of candidates for GCSE English Literature in 2019 answered a question on a novel by an author of colour (Penguin Random House, 2020). This statistic alone shows that even in our early education we are not exposed to different cultures, therefore it is no surprise that we carry this on in our adult life. However, when we expose ourselves to books, music, and movies etc, that represent different views and cultures, it helps us become familiar with people’s differences and experiences and that can replace judgement with understanding. 

So I thought I would share with you my favourite books by culturally diverse authors, that have helped me to understand more about their cultures and identities and to celebrate their experiences. These books have had the greatest impact on me, and I would love to share them with you.  

Compiling this list has helped me to understand I do need to read more books by men of colour, so it’s been helpful for me to target my future reads. My sister also loves to read, and she said she has tried to go through the alphabet and read a different book by an author of each country: Austria, Brazil, China etc. That sounds like an interesting challenge I might take up with her.  

A memoir by Japan’s foremost geisha. After reading Memoirs of a Geisha I read a lot of books about geishas, but I think this is the only true story, autobiography. 

Beautifully written fiction about living under Taliban regime in Afghanistan. Check out A Thousand Splendid Suns, also.  

A story of twins growing up in the Southern USA in the 1950s, and what happens when one sister decides to pass for white. It’s a beautiful take that shows how identity and race impact on personality, experience and relationships.  

A non-fictional exploration of 21st century Black identity and Black British culture. 

A novel about a first-generation Indian-American immigrant who falls in love with a white Christian but then returns to India and learns more about her culture, the class battle and traditions. 

A story of four Chinese women who emigrated to San Francisco in 1950 and their stories of what they left behind in China. In contrast to the lives of their daughters in modern America. 

A memoir from a Black and queer author, who was raised by a Hindu Hare Krishna mother and Muslim father in the USA. A brilliant exploration of gender and race, social norms and narratives. 

A memoir of a young mixed-heritage barrister in the UK, navigating a world designed by a privileged few. It looks at the uncomfortable truths about race and class in our justice system. 

Gorgeous novel about a young teenager exiled from Korea in 1911 who makes her way to Japan. A wonderful way to learn about Japan’s colonisation of Korea and World War II in East Asia and the impact on Korean immigrants in Japan across different generations. 

A story of a young woman from the Dominican Republic who emigrates to New York City in 1965, and how she navigates life as a young woman as an immigrant. 

A really funny ‘modern’ novel about life as a young British-Jamaican woman in South London, and her relationship with her white, middle-class peers and boyfriend.  

A story about a teenage girl in a rural Nigerian village, who is sold to become the third wife of an old man.  

A story about life as a teenager in Lagos, Nigeria under military dictatorship, and trying to get to the ‘American Dream’ in post-9/11 USA. 

A wonderful book that follows the lives of 12 different characters, mostly black British woman, and celebrates those lives. 

A popular book that follows the stories of three generations of women in the authors family, her grandmother as a warlord’s concubine, her Communist mother and the author herself. 

A funny, easy to read romantic novel about modern life and class as a rich Singaporean. 

A big thank you to Sophia and Eloise for sharing their experiences and recommendations with us for this blog. 

Find more Race Equality Week content on our Instagram.