Books like born a crime

Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood is an autobiographical comedy book written by the South African comedian Trevor Noah, published in 2016. A film adaptation is being produced by Paramount Players.

The book details Trevor Noah growing up in apartheid and post-apartheid South Africa. As the light-skinned son of a white father and a black mother, Noah was classified as a "colored" in accordance to the apartheid system of racial classification. Noah stated that even under apartheid, he felt trouble fitting in because it was a crime "for [him] to be born as a mixed-race baby", hence the title of his book.

In large part, the book is a paean to Noah's mother, Patricia Nombuyiselo, who grew up in a hut with 14 occupants. She was a fiercely religious woman who took her son to three churches every Sunday, a prayer meeting on Tuesday, Bible study on Wednesday and youth church on Thursday, even when black South Africans were rioting in the streets and most people were cowering in their homes.