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We have created The (incomplete) Lit in Colour book lists in response to one of the key findings in the research commissioned with their partner The Runnymede Trust, which found that teachers often struggle finding books by writers of colour.

We are calling the book lists incomplete, because we know they will never manage to be exhaustive or definitive, and we plan to update them annually bringing even more new and classic titles to the list.

There are currently four book lists each for primary and secondary schools each with over 100 titles from Penguin and our fellow publishers. An additional list has been created for Early Years, ensuring that a broad range of literature are discoverable for all young people of all ages. The first list was created in 2021, and a new list of titles was created in 2024.

The lists also contain handy indexes grouping books together, for educators who want to assign or recommend a number of books on a particular topic, or for pupils who want to read further in a particular area, subject matter or genre. This year’s edition includes author recommendation pages with illustrator Dapo Adeola and authors Rashmi Sirdeshpande and Nathan Bryon.