Natives: Race and Class in the Ruins of Empire - The Sunday Times Bestseller

In his book "Natives", Akala examines the social, historical, and political factors that have shaped his life and outlook, and speaks directly to British denial and squeamishness when it comes to confronting issues of race and class.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 352 pages
Publication date: 21 March 2019
Publisher: John Murray Press

RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK
SHORTLISTED FOR THE JAMES TAIT BLACK PRIZE
THE JHALAK PRIZE
THE BREAD AND ROSES AWARD
LONGLISTED FOR THE ORWELL PRIZE FOR POLITICAL WRITING

This is the book I have been eagerly anticipating for years. It encompasses a personal, historical, political, and profoundly relevant perspective on our current reality. Benjamin Zephaniah expresses his high recommendation for Natives, stating, "I recommend this book to everyone." Candice Carty-Williams further emphasizes the significance of Natives, stating, "From the first time he was stopped and searched as a child, to the day he realized his mum was white, to his first encounters with racist teachers - race and class have shaped Akala's life and outlook." In this unique and thought-provoking book, Akala expands his personal experiences to examine the social, historical, and political factors that have led us to our present position. He delves into a wide range of topics, including the police, education, identity, politics, sexual objectification, and the far right. Natives directly addresses the British tendency to deny and evade confronting issues of race and class, which are integral to the legacy of Britain's racialized empire.

Natives is a searing modern polemic and a Sunday Times bestseller from the BAFTA and MOBO award-winning musician and political commentator, Akala. This book showcases the kind of disruptive, aggressive intellect that a new generation is closely observing. Afua Hirsch, in the Observer, describes Akala as possessing "the kind of disruptive, aggressive intellect that a new generation is closely watching." David Olusoga, in the Guardian, praises Natives as a "powerful, wide-ranging study that picks apart the British myth of meritocracy." Madani Younis, in the Guardian, finds inspiration in Akala's work, describing it as "inspiring." John Kerrigan, in the TLS, praises Natives as "lucid, wide-ranging," while Stylist labels it as "a history lesson of the kind you should get in school but don't."

Weight: 246g
Dimension: 198 x 129 x 22 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781473661233