Morrison's Beloved (1987), written in an episodic, experimental style, examines the heritage of slavery.

Morrison's first novel, The Bluest Eye (1970), stars Pecola, who prays each night for blue eyes, hoping that if she gets them she will finally be noticed and loved.

Morrison's Jazz (1992) tells the story of a triangle of passion, jealousy, murder, and redemption.

In Song of Solomon (1977), Morrison tells the story of Macon Dead, an upper-middle-class African-American entrepreneur who tries to isolate his family from other African Americans in the neighborhood, and how this affects his son.

Tar Baby (1981), by Morrison, describes a love affair between an African-American model and a white man.

In Playing in the Dark: Whiteness and the Literary Imagination (1992), Morrison discusses the significance of African Americans in American literature.

Alice Walker's The Temple of My Familiar (1989) intertwines the lives of many people from the United States, England, and Africa, and provides perspectives on the colonial African experience as well as the experiences of African Americans.

In The Color Purple (1982), Alice Walker describes an abused woman's struggle for empowerment.