About Toni Morrison
Toni Morrison (1931-2019) was an American novelist, essayist, editor, and teacher, as well as one of the most powerful and distinguished storytellers of our time. Throughout her career, she received some of the most prestigious literary awards, including the Pulitzer Prize, the American Book Award, and the Nobel Prize in Literature. She studied and taught English at several universities, and she also worked in publishing. From 1967 to 1983, she worked as an editor at Random House, becoming the first African-American woman to hold that role in the company’s history.
She wrote her first novel, The Bluest Eye (1970), while she was teaching at Howard University and raising her two sons on her own. Her 1987 novel, Beloved, was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. Her visionary force and poetic import were also recognized when she received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993.
Toni Morrison’s novels address African Americans' experiences, presenting deep and complex characters who often struggle to find themselves and their cultural identity. Her works are celebrated for her unique narrative style and poetic prose. Taken together, these elements make Toni Morrison's work remain captivating for generations of readers.
How many books did Toni Morrison write?
Toni Morrison published a total of eleven novels, seven children’s books, nine nonfiction books, two short stories, and three plays. She also edited several fiction and nonfiction works, and some of her writings were compiled into collections.
Toni Morrison’s books in order
The Bluest Eye (1970)
Sula (1973)
Song of Solomon (1977)
Tar Baby (1981)
Beloved (1987)
Jazz (1992)
Paradise (1997)
Love (2003)
A Mercy (2008)
Home (2012)
God Help the Child (2015)
Toni Morrison's nonfiction books in order
The Black Book (1974)
Playing in the Dark: Whiteness and the Literary Imagination (1992)
Race-ing Justice, En-gendering Power: Essays on Anita Hill, Clarence Thomas, and the Construction of Social Reality (1992)
The Nobel Lecture in Literature (1993)
Conversations with Toni Morrison (1994)
The Dancing Mind (1996)
Birth of a Nation’hood: Gaze, Script and Spectacle in the O.J. Simpson Case (1997)
Burn this Book: PEN Writers Speak out on the Power of the Word (2009)
Remember: The Journey to School Integration (2004)
What Moves at the Margin: Selected Non-Fiction (2008)
The Origin of Others (2017)
The Source of Self-Regard: Essays, Speeches, and Meditations (2019)
Toni and Slade Morrison's children's books in order
The Big Box (1999)
The Book of Mean People (2002)
Who’s Got Game? The Ant or the Grasshopper? (2003)
Who’s Got Game? The Lion or the Mouse? (2003)
Who’s Got Game? Poppy or the Snake? (2003)
Peeny Butter Fudge (2009)
The Tortoise or the Hare (2010)
Little Cloud and Lady Wind (2010)
Please, Louise (2014)
Do you want to learn more about Toni Morrison? Visit this article on our blog.
