100 books like Once a King, Always a King

By Reymundo Sanchez,

Here are 100 books that Once a King, Always a King fans have personally recommended if you like Once a King, Always a King. Shepherd is a community of 9,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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A Brief History of Seven Killings

By Marlon James,

Book cover of A Brief History of Seven Killings

Tim Pritchard Author Of Street Boys: 7 Kids. 1 Estate. No Way Out. The True Story of a Lost Childhood

From the list on how street gangs develop and why they fall apart.

By Tim Pritchard Author

Who am I?

I’m a filmmaker and writer who made a TV series about street gangs around the world with actor and presenter Ross Kemp. But it was one London street gang, the PDC, that particularly caught my attention. The newspaper reports were full of overblown headlines, terrifying statistics, and quotes from police forces. That’s when I decided to head down to the PDC’s “turf” in a small corner of south London because if you are going to try and tackle this crimewave it’s best to find out who is doing it and why. Right? I spoke to PDC gang members, their friends and families and the surprising truth behind the headlines is revealed in my book.

Tim's book list on how street gangs develop and why they fall apart

Book cover of Gangs: A Journey into the Heart of the British Underworld Book cover of True History of the Kelly Gang Book cover of Oliver Twist Book cover of Once a King, Always a King: The Unmaking of a Latin King Book cover of A Brief History of Seven Killings

Why did Tim love this book?

This book opened up a whole new universe for me, not just because its dazzling portrayal of Jamaican street life is so far removed from my own world but because the writing is so free and expressive. Its eye-opening use of Jamaican street slang and lack of traditional grammar makes this a thrilling read and taught me that even hard-to-decipher prose can be powerful and expressive as long as the voice is authentic.

A Brief History of Seven Killings

By Marlon James,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked A Brief History of Seven Killings as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

*WINNER OF THE MAN BOOKER PRIZE 2015* JAMAICA, 1976 Seven gunmen storm Bob Marley's house, machine guns blazing. The reggae superstar survives, but the gunmen are never caught. From the acclaimed author of The Book of Night Women comes a dazzling display of masterful storytelling exploring this near-mythic event. Spanning three decades and crossing continents, A Brief History of Seven Killings chronicles the lives of a host of unforgettable characters - slum kids, drug lords, journalists, prostitutes, gunmen, and even the CIA. Gripping and inventive, ambitious and mesmerising, A Brief History of Seven Killings is one of the most remarkable…

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Oliver Twist

By Charles Dickens,

Book cover of Oliver Twist

Tim Pritchard Author Of Street Boys: 7 Kids. 1 Estate. No Way Out. The True Story of a Lost Childhood

From the list on how street gangs develop and why they fall apart.

By Tim Pritchard Author

Who am I?

I’m a filmmaker and writer who made a TV series about street gangs around the world with actor and presenter Ross Kemp. But it was one London street gang, the PDC, that particularly caught my attention. The newspaper reports were full of overblown headlines, terrifying statistics, and quotes from police forces. That’s when I decided to head down to the PDC’s “turf” in a small corner of south London because if you are going to try and tackle this crimewave it’s best to find out who is doing it and why. Right? I spoke to PDC gang members, their friends and families and the surprising truth behind the headlines is revealed in my book.

Tim's book list on how street gangs develop and why they fall apart

Book cover of Gangs: A Journey into the Heart of the British Underworld Book cover of True History of the Kelly Gang Book cover of Oliver Twist Book cover of Once a King, Always a King: The Unmaking of a Latin King Book cover of A Brief History of Seven Killings

Why did Tim love this book?

As a young kid reading Dickens for the first time I was mesmerised by this journey into the underworld of Victorian London. I would go on my own imaginary adventures with the Artful Dodger and his gang of thieving street urchins. Years later, when writing my own book about modern street gang members I had the same sense of going on a thrilling journey of discovery and escapades.

Oliver Twist

By Charles Dickens,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Oliver Twist as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

'The power of Dickens is so amazing, that the reader at once becomes his captive' WILLIAM MAKEPEACE THACKERAY

The story of the orphan Oliver, who runs away from the workhouse to be taken in by a den of thieves, shocked readers with its depiction of a dark criminal underworld peopled by vivid and memorable characters - the arch-villain Fagin, the artful Dodger, the menacing Bill Sikes and the prostitute Nancy. Combining elements of Gothic romance, the Newgate novel and popular melodrama, Oliver Twist created an entirely new kind of fiction, scathing in its indictment of a cruel society and pervaded…

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True History of the Kelly Gang

By Peter Carey,

Book cover of True History of the Kelly Gang

Aidan Phelan Author Of Glenrowan

From the list on Ned Kelly for beginners.

By Aidan Phelan Author

Who am I?

I fell in love with Australian history on a school camp to Beechworth, which was also my first introduction to Ned Kelly. As I got older, after having already tried to establish a career trajectory as an English teacher, I realised my passion for writing and history could help me create the books and media that I wished I could access, as well as be a place to store all those decades of research sitting in my head. My fascination with psychology, true crime, and Australian colonial history naturally reached a meeting point with the Australian bushrangers: the bandits that terrorised Australia for over a hundred years, the most infamous of whom was Ned Kelly.

Aidan's book list on Ned Kelly for beginners

Book cover of The Kelly Hunters Book cover of True History of the Kelly Gang Book cover of Ned Kelly's Last Days: Setting the Record Straight on the Death of an Outlaw Book cover of Ned Kelly Book cover of Ned Kelly: A Short Life

Why did Aidan love this book?

 A controversial pick, but I believe this is the finest fictionalised version of Ned's life story written so far. Carey captures a very authentic sense of Ned’s voice and character by basing the book heavily on Ian Jones’ work and the Jerilderie Letter that Ned wrote with gang member Joe Byrne. It retains enough of the truth to craft a realistic world for his creations to exist in, and blends so well with his inventions, that someone unaware that the book is fiction will have a hard time working out some of the fact from the fiction. It is lyrical, powerful, and helped turbo-boost interest in the Kelly legend at a time when it had begun to taper off somewhat.

True History of the Kelly Gang

By Peter Carey,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked True History of the Kelly Gang as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

THE BOOK THAT INSPIRED THE MAJOR MOTION PICTURE, TO BE RELEASED IN CINEMAS 28TH FEBRUARY 2020

'Extraordinary . . . So mesmerising and moving.' Mail on Sunday

'Vastly entertaining.' New York Times

To the authorities in pursuit of him, Ned Kelly is a horse thief, bank robber and police-killer. But to his fellow Australians, Kelly is their own Robin Hood. In a dazzling act of ventriloquism, Peter Carey's Booker Prize-winning novel of adventure and heroism brings the famous bushranger wildly and passionately to life.

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Gangs

By Tony Thompson,

Book cover of Gangs: A Journey into the Heart of the British Underworld

Tim Pritchard Author Of Street Boys: 7 Kids. 1 Estate. No Way Out. The True Story of a Lost Childhood

From the list on how street gangs develop and why they fall apart.

By Tim Pritchard Author

Who am I?

I’m a filmmaker and writer who made a TV series about street gangs around the world with actor and presenter Ross Kemp. But it was one London street gang, the PDC, that particularly caught my attention. The newspaper reports were full of overblown headlines, terrifying statistics, and quotes from police forces. That’s when I decided to head down to the PDC’s “turf” in a small corner of south London because if you are going to try and tackle this crimewave it’s best to find out who is doing it and why. Right? I spoke to PDC gang members, their friends and families and the surprising truth behind the headlines is revealed in my book.

Tim's book list on how street gangs develop and why they fall apart

Book cover of Gangs: A Journey into the Heart of the British Underworld Book cover of True History of the Kelly Gang Book cover of Oliver Twist Book cover of Once a King, Always a King: The Unmaking of a Latin King Book cover of A Brief History of Seven Killings

Why did Tim love this book?

I live in London, one of the most developed and “civilised” cities in the world but I’ve always been fascinated by what lies beneath its respectable surface and what currents are agitating it from below. This is a startling and eye-opening tour of the UK’s rich criminal underbelly and the surprising and surreptitious ways crime groups can cheat the system. It’s also a shocking insight into the lengths to which criminal gangs are prepared to go to avoid being caught. I’ve not been able to look at my home city in the same way ever since.

Gangs

By Tony Thompson,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Gangs as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

From the bestselling author of GANGLAND BRITAIN and REEFER MEN.

Organised crime is one of Britain's biggest industries. The number of gangland murders, shootings and kidnappings, along with the levels of drug trafficking, people smuggling and money laundering, have all experienced phenomenal growth. Multi-million pound drug deals and vicious turf wars have spread out from the inner cities and now affect even the most rural communities. The day-to-day impact of organised crime on our lives has never been greater.

In GANGS, award-winning author Tony Thompson takes us on a gripping journey into the criminal underworld. From Triad human traffickers in…

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South Side Girls

By Marcia Chatelain, Marcia Chatelain,

Book cover of South Side Girls: Growing Up in the Great Migration

Mark Whitaker Author Of Smoketown: The Untold Story of the Other Great Black Renaissance

From the list on the great Black migration.

By Mark Whitaker Author

Who am I?

For more than thirty years, I worked as journalist covering the biggest news stories of the day—at Newsweek magazine (where I became the publication’s first African-American top editor), then as a news executive at NBC News and CNN. Now, I keep a hand in that world as a judge of several prestigious journalism awards while taking a longer view in my own work as a contributor for CBS Sunday Morning, Washington Post book reviewer, and author of narrative non-fiction books with a focus on key personalities and turning points in Black History.

Mark's book list on the great Black migration

Book cover of South Side Girls: Growing Up in the Great Migration Book cover of Black Detroit: A People's History of Self-Determination Book cover of Invisible Man Book cover of The Promised Land: The Great Black Migration and How It Changed America Book cover of The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration

Why did Mark love this book?

Mining contemporaneous news accounts, personal letters and diaries, and dozens of in-depth interviews, scholar Marcia Chatelain explores the impact that the Great Migration had on a generation of young Black Chicago women, who coped with coming of age in the urban North while shouldering the expectations and aspirations of their uprooted parents. Anyone new to Chatelain’s work should also check out her next and equally original book, Franchise: The Golden Arches in Black America, a study of the deeply mixed legacy of McDonald’s restaurants in Black neighborhoods that won the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for History.

South Side Girls

By Marcia Chatelain, Marcia Chatelain,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked South Side Girls as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In South Side Girls Marcia Chatelain recasts Chicago's Great Migration through the lens of black girls. Focusing on the years between 1910 and 1940, when Chicago's black population quintupled, Chatelain describes how Chicago's black social scientists, urban reformers, journalists and activists formulated a vulnerable image of urban black girlhood that needed protecting. She argues that the construction and meaning of black girlhood shifted in response to major economic, social, and cultural changes and crises, and that it reflected parents' and community leaders' anxieties about urbanization and its meaning for racial progress. Girls shouldered much of the burden of black aspiration,…

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Occupied Territory

By Simon Balto,

Book cover of Occupied Territory: Policing Black Chicago from Red Summer to Black Power

Clarence Taylor Author Of Fight the Power: African Americans and the Long History of Police Brutality in New York City

From the list on race and policing.

By Clarence Taylor Author

Who am I?

I am Professor Emeritus of History at Baruch College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York.  I grew up in Brooklyn, New York during the turbulent decades of the 1950s and 1960s where there were numerous social protest movements against the War in Vietnam, school segregation, and police brutality.  My books explore the men and women who battled institutional racism.

Clarence's book list on race and policing

Book cover of To Stand and Fight: The Struggle for Civil Rights in Postwar New York City Book cover of Policing Los Angeles: Race, Resistance, and the Rise of the LAPD Book cover of Occupied Territory: Policing Black Chicago from Red Summer to Black Power Book cover of Chokehold: Policing Black Men Book cover of The End of Policing

Why did Clarence love this book?

Balto explores how the Chicago police, from 1910 to the 1970s “built an intricate, powerful carceral machinery whose most constitutive feature was an extreme racial selectivity.” Black people are over-policed and under-protected. Balto focuses on policing and anti-blackness. Black Chicagoans’ complaints of torture and “aggressive prevention patrol” by the police went on for decades and was essentially ignored by those in power. Balto tells the story of a racially repressive police force. In two decades, from 1945 to 1965 the Chicago police grew more punitive as the department doubled in size. Black communities were targeted by the CPD, in large part, because black was equated with criminality.

Occupied Territory

By Simon Balto,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Occupied Territory as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In July 1919, an explosive race riot forever changed Chicago. For years, black southerners had been leaving the South as part of the Great Migration. Their arrival in Chicago drew the ire and scorn of many local whites, including members of the city's political leadership and police department, who generally sympathized with white Chicagoans and viewed black migrants as a problem population. During Chicago's Red Summer riot, patterns of extraordinary brutality, negligence, and discriminatory policing emerged to shocking effect. Those patterns shifted in subsequent decades, but the overall realities of a racially discriminatory police system persisted.

In this history of…

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Dollface

By Renee Rosen,

Book cover of Dollface: A Novel of the Roaring Twenties

Susan Sage Author Of Dancing in the Ring

From the list on the ‘herstory’ of women of the 1920s.

By Susan Sage Author

Who am I?

I have always been intrigued by the Roaring 20s, and specifically in how the lives of women truly began to change during this time. My grandmother loved to boast about how she had been a flapper as a young woman. Her sister-in-law was one of the first female attorneys in Detroit in the mid-20s. The era brought about opportunities and freedoms previously unknown to women. Many women suddenly had options, both in terms of careers and lifestyles. Goals of first wave feminists were beginning to be reached. The research I did for my book furthered my understanding of society at the time, particularly in America. 

Susan's book list on the ‘herstory’ of women of the 1920s

Book cover of Dollface: A Novel of the Roaring Twenties Book cover of Wild Women and the Blues Book cover of Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald Book cover of The Aviator's Wife Book cover of The Paris Wife

Why did Susan love this book?

Vera Abramowitz, ‘Dollface,’ was a flapper who got caught up with the mob.

Her two mobster lovers cause her life to take a downward spiral. Read how she puts the broken pieces of her life back together. Realistic and gritty, we see the flip side of the frivolous life of flappers seen in the movies.

Dollface

By Renee Rosen,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Dollface as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

America in the 1920s was a country alive with the wild fun of jazz, speakeasies, and a new kind of woman—the flapper.

Vera Abramowitz is determined to leave her gritty childhood behind and live a more exciting life, one that her mother never dreamed of. Bobbing her hair and showing her knees, the lipsticked beauty dazzles, doing the Charleston in nightclubs and earning the nickname “Dollface.” 

As the ultimate flapper, Vera captures the attention of two high rollers, a handsome nightclub owner and a sexy gambler. On their arms, she gains entrée into a world filled with bootleg bourbon, wailing…

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He Had It Coming

By Kori Rumore, Marianne Mather,

Book cover of He Had It Coming: Four Murderous Women and the Reporter Who Immortalized Their Stories

Silvia Pettem Author Of In Search of the Blonde Tigress: The Untold Story of Eleanor Jarman

From the list on mysterious and intriguing women in history.

By Silvia Pettem Author

Who am I?

I've been writing for decades, as one genre evolved into another. Local Colorado history led to the identification of "Boulder Jane Doe," a murder victim. During that journey I learned a lot about criminal investigations and forensics. I devoured old movies (especially film noir), and I focused on social history including mysterious and intriguing women. Midwest Book Review (see author book links) credits In Search of the Blonde Tigress as "rescuing" Eleanor Jarman "from obscurity." So true! Despite Eleanor's notoriety as "the most dangerous woman alive," she actually was a very ordinary woman. I've now found my niche pulling mysterious and intriguing women out of the shadows.

Silvia's book list on mysterious and intriguing women in history

Book cover of Mollie: The Journal of Mollie Dorsey Sanford in Nebraska and Colorado Territories, 1857-1866 Book cover of He Had It Coming: Four Murderous Women and the Reporter Who Immortalized Their Stories Book cover of Brilliant Bylines: a Biographical Anthology of Notable Newspaperwomen in America Book cover of Sunk Without a Sound: The Tragic Colorado River Honeymoon of Glen and Bessie Hyde Book cover of A Lady's Life in the Rocky Mountains

Why did Silvia love this book?

Using photo and newspaper archives from the Chicago Tribune, the authors of He Had It Coming tell the stories of four Chicago female murderers from the 1920s.

The documentation (both primary and secondary sources) and, especially, the newspaper's original high-quality historical photographs inspired me to dig deeply into similar archives when researching and writing my book.

He Had It Coming

By Kori Rumore, Marianne Mather,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked He Had It Coming as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Beulah Annan. Belva Gaertner. Kitty Malm. Sabella Nitti. These are the real women of Chicago.

You probably know Roxie and Velma, the good-time gals of the 1926 satirical play Chicago and its wildly successful musical and movie adaptations. You might not know that Roxie, Velma, and the rest of the colorful characters of the play were inspired by real prisoners held in "Murderess Row" in 1920s Chicago-or that the reporter who covered their trials for the Chicago Tribune went on to write the play Chicago.

Now, more than 90 years later, the Chicago Tribune has uncovered photographs and newspaper clippings…

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Leopold and Loeb

By Hal Higdon,

Book cover of Leopold and Loeb: The Crime of the Century

Erik Rebain Author Of Arrested Adolescence: The Secret Life of Nathan Leopold

From the list on the Leopold-Loeb case.

By Erik Rebain Author

Who am I?

I’ve been researching the Leopold-Loeb case for around a decade, ever since a documentary sparked my interest back in high school. That sent me on a quest for knowledge: devouring all the books I could find on the subject, before turning to archival collections to look at the primary source material. Flash forward to today and I’ve read thousands of newspaper stories, hundreds of scholarly articles and books on the subject and travelled around the country searching in over 50 archives, trying to understand this case as much as I possibly can. Here’s a list of books I found particularly helpful or inspiring on my journey.

Erik's book list on the Leopold-Loeb case

Book cover of The Amazing Crime and Trial of Leopold and Loeb Book cover of The Hunting Accident: A True Story of Crime and Poetry Book cover of Life Plus 99 Years Book cover of Never the Sinner: The Leopold and Loeb Story Book cover of Leopold and Loeb: The Crime of the Century

Why did Erik love this book?

Despite being published in 1975, Hal Higdon’s book about the Leopold and Loeb case remains the definitive account, at least to me.

If you’re looking for a factual, in-depth look at the crime, investigation, and sentencing hearing, look no further. Higdon was able to interview and correspond with dozens of people who were close to the case and who personally knew the killers and victim. He weaved those recollections into the narrative along with newspaper reports and quotes from the court documents in addition to the rest of his vast research, which gives his book a wonderful richness and depth. 

Leopold and Loeb

By Hal Higdon,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Leopold and Loeb as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Among the criminal celebrities of Prohibition-era Chicago, not even Al Capone was more notorious than two well-educated and highly intelligent Jewish boys from wealthy South Side families. In a meticulously planned murder scheme disguised as a kidnapping, Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb chose fourteen-year-old Bobby Franks at random as their victim, abandoning his crumpled body in a culvert before his parents had a chance to respond to the ransom demand. Revealing secret testimony and raising questions that have gone unanswered for decades, Hal Higdon separates fact from myth as he unravels the crime, the investigation, and the trial, in which…

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This Heart of Mine

By Susan Elizabeth Phillips,

Book cover of This Heart of Mine

Amiee Smith Author Of Love Sounds

From the list on steamy romance to make you stay up all night.

By Amiee Smith Author

Who am I?

I love the art of writing romance fiction. I’m a character-driven author. My stories are contemporary romance with steam, humor, and diversity. I run my business from my living room. When I'm not writing and telling people about my books, I run another online business. Read lots. Watch tons of series. Drink coffee and wine. Listen to music. Cook comforting vegetarian meals. Say prayers, meditate, and light candles. Text with my girlfriends. And try to squeeze in a walk and a shower. My sexy little stories are my attempt at keeping someone up all night. May you always feel loved, seen, and heard. The Smart Girl Mafia Series books 1-4 are currently available. 

Amiee's book list on steamy romance to make you stay up all night

Book cover of The Prodigal Son Book cover of The Hook Up Book cover of The Space Between Book cover of This Heart of Mine Book cover of Untamed

Why did Amiee love this book?

A funny contemporary romance that I skipped worked because I stay up all night reading it. The heroine is a smart and quirky children’s book author and the hero is the hottest of a hot football star. They find themselves having to work at a summer camp after a potentially scandalous hookup. This is one of my favorite authors and a true master of happily-ever-after storytelling. 

This Heart of Mine

By Susan Elizabeth Phillips,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked This Heart of Mine as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Susan Elizabeth Phillips is the gold standard for women's fiction - an award-winning, bestselling phenomenon whose talent for blending laughs and tears with heartfelt, passionate, ingeniously conceived romance has made her one of America's most loved authors. The Phillips magic is vibrantly alive and on display in her long-awaited e-book debut.

Molly Somerville knows she has a reputation for trouble. She did give away her fifteen-million-dollar inheritance, but, hey, nobody's perfect.

Still, if anyone has an almost perfect life, it's Molly. While her Daphne the Bunny children's books could be selling better, she loves her cramped loft, her French poodle,…

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5 book lists we think you will like!

The best books about street gangs, how they develop and why they fall apart
The best books that capture the magic of Chicago cuisine and food lore (beyond deep dish pizza)
The best books about the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair
The best books about the Leopold-Loeb case
The best variety of quest for knowledge books

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