“Born a Crime” by Trevor Noah describes his experience growing up in South Africa during apartheid as a colored child born from a white father and black mother. Apartheid was a racist government meant to turn South Africa into a white-ruled area by keeping other races under total control using methods such as segregating races and providing minimal education to non-whites. The book provides engaging short stories from Trevor Noah’s childhood with information about apartheid mixed in, detailing Trevor Noah’s experiences along with his mother’s daring attempts to defy apartheid and raise Trevor freely and well educated.

Theme: Never give up in the face of adversity.

These are all examples of Trevor Noah and his mom overcoming various forms of adversity, like discrimination, extreme poverty, and even apartheid itself. Trevor’s mom is even willing to jump off a moving vehicle to protect herself and her sons from danger.

Central Idea: Identity

Trevor Noah explores his identity throughout the book, mostly out of necessity to not get bullied and to fit in. Trevor’s identity is complex, being a colored child born from a white father and black father with elements of both black and white culture.

Central Idea: Apartheid

Apartheid greatly effects all main characters, causing Trevor Noah to be discriminated against, his mother to grow up in extreme poverty and have to risk legal punishments and defy apartheid to raise Trevor freely, and his father to have to move out and be very secretive to not get caught as a black and white couple.