Caste
The Origins of Our Discontents
Isabel Wilkerson
Explore the hidden caste system that has shaped America through this immersive and deeply researched narrative by the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Warmth of Other Suns. In Caste, Isabel Wilkerson examines the power hierarchy that defines our lives today, beyond race, class, or other factors. Through real stories about people like Martin Luther King Jr. and baseball's Satchel Paige, she uncovers the eight pillars that underlie caste systems across civilizations. Wilkerson also links the caste systems of America, India, and Nazi Germany, showcasing how the cruel logic of caste requires a bottom rung to measure against. This eye-opening read offers hope in moving beyond these artificial and destructive separations in pursuit of our common humanity.
Publish Date
2020-08-04T00:00:00.000Z
2020-08-04T00:00:00.000Z
Goodreads rating
4.54
ISBN
9780593230251
Recommendations
17
Recommendations
2020-12-20T00:00:00.000Z
As 2020 comes to a close, I wanted to share my annual lists of favorites. I’ll start by sharing my favorite books this year. I hope you enjoy reading these as much as I did. – source2020-11-05T20:33:38.000Z
If you haven’t yet, do your brain and heart a favor by reading this important book by @Isabelwilkerson. I’ve been thinking about it a lot these last couple days. – source2020-08-12T17:58:31.000Z
I’ve been sharing some of the books that I’ve found to be insightful and helpful in my learning journey over the past few years. This is one I will revisit again and again. Thank you @Isabelwilkerson for writing this powerful book. – source2020-10-05T05:38:57.000Z
Tap and read this from @Isabelwilkerson’s brilliant “Caste”. Buy the book. Also, tomorrow is the last day to register to vote in many states. Go to if you haven’t already. Make a plan to vote as early as you can. – source2020-08-11T16:39:04.000Z
6 Best Books I’ve read in lockdown so far. Would love to hear yours 🙌 – source2021-07-29T18:34:45.000Z
@MunemoCossam @ChadMhako I can not recommend this enough. One of the most powerful books l have read in a long time👇🏿 – source2020-11-05T21:04:46.000Z
Indeed, I think it's the best book on the thing we call race and racism -- but which, as she notes, is really something else -- I've ever read... – source2021-04-06T18:39:16.000Z
Of the 17 books I’ve read in 2021, Caste is by far the best. 5 stars from me!
Be prepared to be sickened, moved to tears, inspired.
Didn’t think she could top one of my lifetime favs, her book, Warmth of Other Suns.
Both are MUST READS.
Thank you @Isabelwilkerson – source2020-12-01T09:44:56.000Z
The book "Caste" is one of the best books that I've read. I have read each chapter so far more than once to let it sink in. I think of the way we use language to describe each other in Nigeria and understand why the civil war happened. Genocide doesn't happen at once. It is slow. – source2021-03-04T21:04:46.000Z
Thank you @isabelwilkerson for joining us at the 14th annual @knightfdn Media Forum. Your magnificent book, Caste: The Origins of our Discontents, is a must read for everyone. I hope that the unique #kmf21 audience will read it and use it. https: – source2020-12-08T04:44:28.000Z
Seriously, you must read this book. It cuts through every American mythology you’ve ever been taught, as well it should. – source2020-12-28T01:10:09.000Z
On page 352 of her extraordinary book, “Caste,” Isabel Wilkerson quotes Taylor Branch: “If people were given a choice between democracy and whiteness, how many would choose whiteness?”
And then, more than ever, the Trump presidency made sense to me. – source2022-12-22T05:03:07.000Z
Book 23 - I finally picked up Isabel Wilkerson’s Caste after having several friends recommend it. It’s not an easy read, but it’s remarkably written, albeit often unsettling book. – source2020-08-26T12:35:15.000Z
Books I’ve read in 2020 that have stopped me in my tracks, changed the way I look at the subject, stayed with me. – source2021-01-08T00:00:00.000Z
Isabel Wilkerson’s book, with the subtitle “The Origins of our Discontents,” was my most insightful, jaw-dropping read of last year as it helped me understand race relations in the U.S. with a whole new lens. And, she’s a poignant storyteller. – source