Houston, Julian: *1944

New Boy, 2005 - Thematic Parallels: Segregation

Houston, Julian: New Boy, 2005
The novel's the main topics are: racism and segregation in mid-20th century America, the struggle for identity and belonging, coming of age during the early Civil Rights era, and the complexities of friendship and acceptance across racial lines.
The following books are thematically similar. They lend themselves well to being read in groups, compared with one another, or used to teach a similar topic over an extended period with a class:
- Hansberry, Lorraine: A Raisin in the Sun, 1959, ~150pp
  This play confronts racial discrimination and housing segregation faced by African Americans in 1950s Chicago.
  - Both novels expose how patriarchal systems (reinforced by culture, religion, or law) silence women and children. They use intimate family dramas to explore larger issues of patriarchy, silence, resilience, and the search for freedom. Despite their different settings, they echo each other in their portrayal of women resisting oppression and finding solidarity.
- Walker, Alice: The Color Purple, 1982, ~300pp
  This work explores racism, racial discrimination, and oppression of black women in the early 20th century South.
  - Both novels depict how women are caged — by racism, sexism, culture, or politics — but strive to survive and find freedom. Central to both texts is the journey from silence to self-expression. So, while one is memoir (Angelou) and the other is fiction (Adichie), they converge on themes of oppression, resilience, female solidarity, and the fight to reclaim voice and freedom.
- Wright, Richard: Black Boy, 1945, ~410pp
  This is an autobiography about Wright’s early life in the Jim Crow South, exploring segregation, racism, poverty, and his intellectual and emotional growth amid oppression..
  - In both novels, women’s suffering is portrayed not as personal failure but as systemic oppression. They are concerned with how oppressive systems—patriarchy, poverty, colonialism/war—restrict women’s lives. They mirror each other in themes of forced marriage, domestic violence, and women’s suffering, but differ in tone: Lessing emphasizes despair and entrapment, while Hosseini leaves room for resilience, love, and hope.
List of general discussion questions on Segregation (pdf)
List of essay prompts on Segregation (pdf)