Ten legal books by Black authors to entertain, educate and inspire you

Reading time: seven minutes

As autumn draws in and the weather gets colder, there’s nothing quite like a good book. From court room dramas to crime thrillers, legal fiction has always been a well-liked genre. Since 1960, To Kill a Mockingbird has been a popular book to read and teach in schools. Although it’s a brilliant work of legal fiction, it’s also a novel written by a white author about the Black experience of the justice system in America. To use the words of author Tanya Landman in the Guardian, “Harper Lee’s focus is purely white”. So, in this LCN Says, we want to draw attention to the wealth of legal and political writing produced by Black authors. By highlighting these voices, we hope to not only expand your legal knowledge, but hope that you’ll also be entertained, educated and inspired.

For more information on what firms, chambers and legal education providers are doing to improve diversity and inclusion within the profession, head to LCN’s Diversity hub, sponsored by Gowling WLG (UK) LLP.

The Witness by Alexandra Wilson, 2024

In 2020, Alexandra Wilson received acclaim for her non-fiction book In Black and White which explored her experiences as a junior criminal and family law barrister. In June 2024, Wilson delved into the world of fiction with the release of her debut novel, The Witness. The protagonist, Rosa, is a talented and determined barrister and, when a young Black man is arrested for murder, Rosa finds herself defending him against a seemingly strong case. However, Rosa's intuition tells her that there’s more to the story than meets the eye. Wilson’s The Witness has been described as a “gripping insight into the intricacies of the British legal system and the assumptions that are made” and “an important corrective to the cliché that all barristers are posh, white and loaded”. Wilson has also been praised for her portrayal of what it’s really like to be a criminal barrister.

Until Proven Innocent by Nicola Williams, 2023

Nicola Williams is a British barrister specialising in criminal law and has been a part-time Crown Court judge in London since 2009. In 1997, Williams published Without Prejudice, which followed 30-year-old Barrister Lee Mitchell. In 2023, she published a much-anticipated sequel Until Proven Innocent which begins with the tragic death of a 15-year-old boy in South London. Lee is coerced into defending the suspect Lambert, despite the overwhelming evidence against him, and finds herself entangled in a web of lies, anger and mistrust. The book, which was described by journalist Erin Kelly as a “legal thriller with heart and soul”, was longlisted for the Diverse Book awards 2024. This book offers a great insight into life as a barrister working in the British legal system. If you were a fan of Without Prejudice or if you enjoy a fast-paced, thrilling novel, this one might be for you.

Surge by Jay Bernard, 2019

Jay Bernard’s award-winning collection Surge explores significant developments of Black British History in London in the 1980s and present day through a series of moving poems. The poet used archival materials from the George Padmore Institute to research the New Cross Massacre during a 2016 residency. When the Grenfell fire happened in 2017, Bernard noticed the similarities between the two events. Therefore, the idea of history repeating itself is a prominent theme in the collection. Bernard questions the way governments and systems of power respond to tragedy and the lack of social progress between the two events, in terms of both legislation and attitudes. The text shines a much-needed light on an unacknowledged chapter in British history, using an archival basis to inform and discuss political issues. In 2019, celebrated author Bernardine Evaristo chose Surge as one of her books of the year in The New Statesman, describing the book as “haunting, historical, archival and imaginative, it’s a stunning debut”.

Killing the Black Body by Dorothy Roberts, 1997

Dorothy Roberts’ groundbreaking 1997 book Killing the Black Body explores concerns about reproductive rights for Black women in America. Significantly, following the publication of the book, President Bill Clinton made major changes to the welfare system by signing the personal responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act. This allowed states to restructure policies that previously regulated the reproductive decisions of women receiving benefits. Writer Michelle Alexander commented that the book is a “must-read for all those who claim to care about racial and gender justice in America”.

The Emperor of Ocean Park by Stephen L Carter, 2002

Stephen L Carter’s debut fiction novel The Emperor of Ocean Park was an immediate international best seller when it was published in 2002. The story revolves around the suspicious death of Judge Oliver Garland, a controversial figure who’d once been nominated for the Supreme Court. Years after the humiliating withdrawal of his nomination, Garland's death raises questions and hints at a potential scandal. He leaves behind a cryptic message for his son, Talcott, a professor at an elite law school, entrusting him with a mysterious puzzle that holds the key to unravelling his father's troubled past. As more deaths occur, Talcott must risk everything to follow the clues left by his father. The Emperor of Ocean Park is a must-read for fans of court room drama, novelist John Grisham described the book as “a rich, complex family saga, one deftly woven through a fine legal thriller”. 

One of Them by Musa Okwonga, 2021

The next book we’ve chosen explores race and class in modern Britain and addresses the gaps in the British education system. Musa Okwonga was born in Britain to parents who’d fled war-torn Uganda in the mid-1970s. He grew up in a working-class town on the outskirts of London and always dreamt of attending Eton. Aged 13, Okwonga won a half-scholarship to the school and found himself plunged into one of the top single-sex educational establishments in Britain.

Okwonga’s story is one of covert prejudice, as he struggles to understand the “great silence” that existed in his education. From a lack of acknowledgment of the role of empire in building the school and no mention of slavery in history lessons, Okwonga questions the insidious presence of racism in his schooling. He writes that, as it was “unlikely… many of my contemporaries [had] a close Black friend”, he resolved to avoid any stereotypes they might have about Black people with “a military level of self-restraint”. In adulthood, he went on to study jurisprudence, sometimes known as legal theory, at Oxford before later becoming a writer.

Black and British: A Forgotten History by David Olusoga, 2021

Much like how Okwonga’s text addresses the gaps in the British education system, this book provides a foundation of the history of Black Britain, including the legal elements. In the written version of his popular BBC TV series, Black and British takes the reader through the deep rich history that is Black Britain. Drawing on new genetic and genealogical material, original records, oral testimony, and contemporary interviews Olusoga takes the reader from Roman to Contemporary Britain.

History and law become intertwined throughout Olusoga’s analysis of Black Britain. From the court cases of writer and abolitionist Olaudah Equiano − which led to him purchasing his freedom from slavery in 1766 − to the impact of post-war immigration laws on the Windrush generation, the law is integral to every part of British history. The most recently revised version also features a new chapter focusing on the Black Lives Matter protests.

Rice & Peas and Fish & Chips by Pauline Campbell, 2021

Pauline Campbell was born in East London to Jamaican parents and qualified as a lawyer at 41, in the London Borough of Waltham Forest. Her story is an incredible one, taking the reader through her childhood, teenage and adult years. The book is part memoir, part commentary, as she explores her life and journey into a career as a senior lawyer, after being told at 15 she “wasn’t A-level material”. It tells not just a personal story, but one entwined with the political setting and status of her parents’ Windrush generation.

Campbell weaves together humorous experiences of childhood with the reality that racism not only exists, but that it’s also part of your everyday lived experience. In conversation with The Waltham Forest Echo, Campbell said the book  “uncovers modern Britain’s structural racist past” while also narrating her journey to “discovering her own identity [and] sense of belonging”. The book reflects on race and racism, identity and belonging set against the context of modern-day Britain.

Pauline Campbell has previously been interviewed by LawCareers.Net for Black History Month.

Tribes by David Lammy, 2020

Former-barrister and MP for Tottenham, shares his experiences of qualifying and practising law. After becoming the first Black Briton to attend Harvard Law School, he was called to the Bar of England and Wales in 1994. Tribes asks questions about identity politics and is part memoir, part cultural and political analysis with a historical focus. From his own experience of being “jumped” by police officers at 12-years-old, to his time practising as a barrister in the 1990s, Lammy offers a genuine insight into the significance a legal career may have on your life, even if you enter politics afterwards.

Black Klansman: Race, Hate, and the Undercover Investigation of a Lifetime by Ron Stallworth, 2014

Ron Stallworth was the first Black detective working in the Police Department at Colorado Springs. His book tells the true story of how he infiltrated the Klu Klux Klan in a month-long undercover investigation. The book reads like a crime thriller, telling the story of the divisions in America in the 1970s, and was adapted into an Academy Award Winning film in 2018 by Spike Lee.

For more books to add to your reading list, check out this list titled ‘39 Black Authors On Their Favourite Books by Black Authors’.

Ellie Nicholl (she/her) is a content and engagement coordinator at LawCareersNet.