Catch a Fire: The Life of Bob Marley by Timothy White — The authoritative biography of Marley, tracing his life from the Trenchtown ghetto to global icon. Essential reading before or after visiting Kingston.
The Harder They Come by Michael Thelwell — A novelisation of the 1972 Perry Henzell film, following a rural youth who becomes a reggae singer and outlaw in Kingston. Vivid portrait of Jamaican society and Patois culture.
A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James — A Booker Prize-winning novel centred on the 1976 assassination attempt on Bob Marley, told through a chorus of voices across decades of Jamaican history. Demanding but brilliant.
Reggae Explosion: The Story of Jamaican Music by Chris Salewicz and Adrian Boot — A well-illustrated cultural history of Jamaican music from mento through ska, rocksteady, reggae, and dancehall.
Rule of the Bone by Russell Banks — A novel partly set in Jamaica, following a teenage drifter who ends up living with a Rastafarian in the mountains. Less about Jamaica as travel than Jamaica as backdrop to a coming-of-age story.
How Stella Got Her Groove Back by Terry McMillan — A lighter read: a successful woman takes a Jamaican holiday and falls for a much younger man. The novel that did more than any other to position Jamaica as a romance destination for American readers.