a book

Caste

Name: Caste
Rating: 5 (21 reviews)
Author: Isabel Wilkerson
ISBN: 9780593230251

Isabel Wilkerson · 2020 · 496 pages

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • NEW YORK TIMES READERS PICK: 100 BEST BOOKS OF THE 21st CENTURY • OPRAH’S BOOK CLUB PICK • “An instant American classic and almost certainly the keynote nonfiction book of the American century thus far.”—Dwight Garner, The New York Times The Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Warmth of Other Suns examines the unspoken caste system that has shaped America and shows how our lives today are still defined by a hierarchy of human divisions. #1 NONFICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR: Time ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The Washington Post, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Boston Globe, O: The Oprah Magazine, NPR, Bloomberg, The Christian Science Monitor, New York Post, The New York Public Library, Fortune, Smithsonian Magazine, Marie Claire, Slate, Library Journal, Kirkus Reviews Winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize • National Book Critics Circle Award Finalist • Winner of the Carl Sandburg Literary Award • Dayton Literary Prize Finalist • PEN/John Kenneth Galbraith Award for Nonfiction Finalist • PEN/Jean Stein Book Award Finalist • Kirkus Prize Finalist “As we go about our daily lives, caste is the wordless usher in a darkened theater, flashlight cast down in the aisles, guiding us to our assigned seats for a performance. The hierarchy of caste is not about feelings or morality. It is about power—which groups have it and which do not.” Beyond race, class, or other factors, there is a powerful caste system that influences people’s lives and behavior and the nation’s fate. Linking the caste systems of America, India, and Nazi Germany, Isabel Wilkerson explores eight pillars that underlie caste systems across civilizations, including divine will, bloodlines, stigma, and more. Using riveting stories about people—including Martin Luther King, Jr., baseball’s Satchel Paige, a single father and his toddler son, Wilkerson herself, and many others—she shows the ways that the insidious undertow of caste is experienced every day. Finally, she points forward to ways America can move beyond the artificial and destructive separations of human divisions, toward hope in our common humanity.

recommended by 21 people

sourced from public statements

Barack Obama
“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.”↗
Oprah Winfrey
“"My next @oprahsbookclub pick, “Caste” by @Isabelwilkerson, should be required reading for humanity. It eloquently examines the unspoken caste system that has shaped America. Download a copy on @AppleBooks here: https://t.co/cAkzEPCFL3 #ReadWithUs"”↗
Anthony Scaramucci
“It was the best book I read in 2020.”↗
Tom Peters
“@LouisGudema An extraordinary book.”↗
Chip Conley
“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.”↗
Preet Bharara
“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.”↗
Roger Bennett
“6 Best Books I’ve read in lockdown so far. Would love to hear yours 🙌”↗
Diane von Furstenberg
““What I love the most about her is the way her writing is so brilliant, but there’s a certain detachment that is so powerful. She’s never emotional. And I guess that, now that I’m thinking about it, the common thread, of all of the books and all of these women that I’ve told you about, is all about being strong.” -DvF”↗
Jennifer Preston
“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:”↗
Victor Asemota
“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.”↗
Bradley Whitford
“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.”↗
Steve Schale
“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.”↗
Elizabeth C. McLaughlin
“Seriously, you must read this book. It cuts through every American mythology you’ve ever been taught, as well it should.”↗
Lisa Bloom
“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”↗
Ron Fournier
“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.”↗
Tim Wise
“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...”↗
Seth Godin
Ramit Sethi
Trevor Ncube
Chris Fralic
Christine Caine