Fans pick 91 books like Missionaries

Vonnegut’s book is a unique combination of satire, science fiction, and raw war critique. Billy Pilgrim, the protagonist, lives out the trauma of surviving the Dresden bombing by becoming "unstuck in time," drifting through different moments of his life, from past to future. This strange, nonlinear structure mirrors how we process trauma in fragments and waves, never in a neat, chronological order. The randomness of death, the meaninglessness of war—all these themes come together in a way that’s both absurd and deeply moving. As we witness terror and violence continually unfold across the globe, the echoes of Slaughterhouse-Five feel ever-present.

The phrase “So it goes” serves as a refrain throughout the novel, after every death—reminding us of the inevitability of loss in wartime, no matter the scale. This book hit me hard with its dark humor and cynical commentary on the glorification of war. Vonnegut forces you to laugh in… show more.

This book is one of the most haunting accounts of war I've ever read. Through the eyes of Paul Bäumer, a young German soldier, Remarque immerses you in the horrific realities of World War I. The sheer brutality of trench warfare, the disillusionment with nationalism, and the emotional devastation of losing comrades all play out in a way that feels as immediate now as it must have been when the book was first published. My grandfather fought in the First World War, and though he never spoke about it, I believe the emotional scars he carried shaped who he became. All Quiet makes me think about how those invisible wounds persist today—worldwide. War may evolve regarding weapons and strategies, but the psychological impact is chillingly consistent.

This novel isn’t just about the battlefield. It’s about the inner lives of soldiers and the way war corrupts not just bodies but minds,… show more.

I had the pleasure of studying with Susan Muaddi Darraj during my master’s program, and her latest work is an incredible exploration of the immigrant experience, especially for Palestinian Americans. This book centers on the personal experience of families living in Baltimore, spanning generations, as they confront the dislocation and identity crises that come from living between two worlds. Darraj’s portrayal of exile and the trauma of displacement feels especially poignant given our current global crises, where the concept of “home” is increasingly complicated for so many.

What resonates with me most is the way Darraj explores both the personal dimensions of power. Whether through the lens of nation-states, family dynamics, or cultural expectations, there is a delicate balance that individuals must navigate to survive. This is a deeply personal meditation on how identity is shaped in the aftermath of conflict and how, even when geographically distant, the weight of… show more.

This book spans generations and continents, from Grenada to North America, exploring the intergenerational legacies of colonialism, revolution, and survival. Collins writes–using fiction and poetry–about the immigration journey of Louise Langdon Norton Little, mother of the activist Malcolm X, a Grenadian woman born in a small rural village in a deeply colonial society that offered little to no education for working-class children.

She emigrated to the US through Canada and became involved in the black civil rights movement led by activist Marcus Garvey. She embraced the black civil rights and the women’s revolutions while struggling with the realities of home life and inequality within the sexes. With minimal facts to go on, Collins, a distinguished Canadian novelist, creates a profoundly moving work that reveals the heroism and tragedy of a life spent battling sexism, racism, and colonialism while finding her voice and purpose.

Collins illustrates how the violence of the… show more.

If you want to have an informed conversation about the effectiveness of international criminal justice, it is vital to understand two things. One, that whether or not it’s effective entirely depends on how you measure ‘effectiveness’. And two, that the local context in which an international court operates is going to have a major effect on how effective it can be at anything.

I enjoyed Wierda’s book because she clearly works out these important starting points and studies the ICC’s impact in four very different countries: Afghanistan, Colombia, Libya and Uganda. She also is careful to distinguish between different kinds of effectiveness (systemic, transformative, reparative and demonstrative), enabling us to have much more sophisticated conversations about the results of ICC interventions. 

So much of this book is filled with folklore and magic, but the provocative and devastating ending, which raises important questions about motherhood and the fine line between animal and human consciousness, guts the reader as any honest book should. I’ve always been fascinated by the wide range of strong opinions people feel in response to a simple question: Are pets equal to children in the hierarchy of living things? I was fully transported into this surprising exploration of violence and motherhood.

Virus Tropical is a Latin American Book, a Colombian book, an Argentinian Book, an Ecuadorian Book. Virus tropical talks about the nineties, if you are from Colombia you recognize the towns, the T-shirts, the music, the buses. So many peripheries mixed up and telling you about the coming of age of the main character. So many important things touched while touching on the most vapid-everyday things. The accents, the way the characters interact, I was able to identify with all of this while reading this graphic novel. Virus Tropical is a great book, I’m glad it was translated into English.

What I loved most about this was the story within the story. A famous author is travelling back from a convention in Brazil when his plane goes down. The only other survivor is a young boy, not quite in his teens. In order to reach safety, they must battle not only Colombian drug runners and other nefarious characters, but the jungle itself.

The tropical atmosphere of contemporary Medellin, Colombia is the setting for the first book in the Nikki Garcia corporate espionage thriller series. Still reeling from her young son’s tragic death, savvy international auditor Nikki Garcia accepts an assignment to investigate fraud allegations at the Colombian affiliate of a multinational corporation. I loved Nikki’s sharp-edged inner voice and canny observations.

The impeccable cultural details really caught my attention. For example, right in the first scene, Nikki watches a wealthy businessman light a cigar. From the Churchill brand to the way he lights it with a strip of cedarwood to the way he makes her wait, not only could I see the scene in my mind’s eye, but I could smell the tang of burning wood and tobacco and resent his snobby attitude. So. Well. Done.

Infamous drug kingpin Pablo Escobar is long gone from Medellin, but his dangerous legacy is not… show more.

This is a cute children’s story great for bedtime, or anytime! It follows the story of little Lisbon as she is hunting for a snack. All her animal friends have suggestions that work great for them, but Lisbon is a human! She doesn’t want to eat bugs or any of their animal food!

This is a great read-aloud book for parents with children, but the font was specifically chosen to make it easier for children to read as well.