“If there’s a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.”– Toni Morrison
Books When You Just Need to Escape & Chill or When You Need Some Motivation (Updated Monthly)
February/Black History 2022
- Already Knew You Were Coming ~Sarah Nnenna Loveth Nwafor
- Yesterday is History ~Kosoko Jackson
- Hurricane Summer ~Asha Bromfield
- Who Are Your People? ~Bakari Sellers
- Chlorine Sky ~Mahogany L. Browne
- The Violin Conspiracy ~Brendan Slocumb
- PET ~Akwaeke Emezi
- Nina: A Story of Nina Simone ~Traci N. Todd
- Hey You!: An Empowering Celebration of Growing Up Black ~Dapo Adeola
- Your Name is a Song ~Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow
- You’ll Never Believed What Happened to Lacey: Crazy Stories about Racism ~Amber Ruffin & Lacey Lamar
January 2022
- People Person ~Candice Carty-Williams
- Hope & Glory ~Jendella Benson
- Bad Girls: A Novel ~Camila Sosa Villada
- White Smoke ~Tiffany D. Jackson
- Sisters in Arms: A Novel of the Daring Black Women Who Served During World War II ~Kaia Alderson
December 2021
- I Got the Christmas Spirit ~Connie Schofield-Morrison
- The People Remember ~Ibi Zoboi
- The Nutcracker in Harlem ~T.E. McMorrow
- Butter Honey Pig Bread ~Frances Ekwuyasi
- Moon Witch, Spider King ~Marlon James
- Wahala ~Nikki May
November 2021
- Take Back the Block ~Chrystal D. Giles
- Feminist AF: A Guide to Crushing Girlhood ~Brittney Cooper, Chanel Craft Tanner, and Susana M. Morris
- Happily Ever After ~Elise Bryant
- Fast Pitch ~Nic Stone
- New York, My Village ~Uwem Akpan
October 2021
- The 1619 Project: Born on the Water ~Nikole Hannah-Jones and Renée Watson
- Until I Am Free: Fannie Lou Hamer’s Enduring Message to America ~Keisha N. Blain
- Harlem Shuffle ~Colson Whitehead
- Abolition for the People: The Movement for a Future Without Policing & Prisons ~Edited by Colin Kaepernick
- Becoming Abolitionists: Police, Protest, and The Pursuit of Freedom ~Dereck Purnell
September 2021
- The Age of Phillis ~Honorée Fanonne Jeffers
- In Every Mirror She’s Black: A Novel ~Lola Akinmade Åkerström
- Seven Days in June: A Novel ~Tia Williams
- Three Girls From Bronzeville: A Uniquely American Memoir of Race, Fate, and Sisterhood ~Dawn Turner
- Misfits: A Personal Manifesto ~Michaela Coel
August 2021
- Maya and the Robot ~Eve L. Ewing
- Island Queen: A Novel ~Vanessa Riley
- The Son of Mr. Suleman ~Eric Jerome Dickey
- Mexican Gothic ~Silvia Moreno-Garcia
- Black Buck ~Mateo Askaripour
July 2021
- Luster: A Novel ~Raven Leilani
- Carefree Black Girls: A Celebration of Black Women in Pop Culture ~Zeba Blay
- On Girlhood: 15 Stories from the Well-Read Black Girl Library ~Glory Edim
- Leaving Breezy Street: A Memoir ~Brenda Myers-Powell w/ April Reynolds
- The Poison Heart ~Kalynn Bayron
June 2021
- A Chorus Rises ~Bethany C. Morrow
- Ace of Spades: How Do You Stop An Unknown Enemy? ~Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
- When Life Gives You Mangoes ~Kereen Getten
- Bamboozled by Jesus: How God Tricked me into the Life of My Dreams ~Yvonne Orji
- Punch Me Up To The Gods: A Memoir ~ Brian Broome
May 2021
- Summer on the Bluffs ~Sunny Hostin
- Sure, I’ll Be Your Black Friend: Notes from the Other Side of the Fist Bump ~Ben Philipe
- Somebody’s Daughter: A Memoir ~Ashley C. Ford
- When Stars Rain Down ~Angela Jackson-Brown
- Black Leopard, Red Wolf ~Marlon James
April 2021
- Libertie: A Novel ~Kaitlyn Greenidge
- The Man Who Lived Underground ~Richard Wright
- Deacon King Kong: A Novel ~James McBride
- The Gilded Ones ~Namina Forna
- The Black Flamingo ~Dean Atta
March 2021
- Black Girl, Call Home ~Jasmine Mans
- The City We Became: A Novel ~N.K. Jemisin
- Surviving the White Gaze ~Rebecca Carroll
- When No One is Watching: A Thriller ~ Alyssa Cole
- Shame Proof Parenting: Find Your Unique Parenting Voice, Feel Empowered, And Raise Whole Healthy Children ~Mercedes Samudio, LCSW
February 2021
- Crosshairs ~Catherine Hernandez
- Raybearer ~Jordan Ifueko
- Purposeful Perspectives: Empowering Black Women Towards Spiritual Alignment, Self-Mastery & Joy ~Nichomi Higgins
- Chronicling Stankonia: The Rise of the Hip-Hop South ~Regina N. Bradley
- With the Fire on High ~Elizabeth Acevedo
January 2021
- How Long ‘Til Black Future Month? ~N.K. Jemisin
- Power & Magic: The Queer Witch Comics Anthology ~Edited by Joamette Gil
- Children of Blood and Bone ~Tomi Adeyemi
- Children of Virtue and Vengeance ~Tomi Adeyemi
- Pleasure Activism: The Politics of Feeling Good ~adrienne maree brown
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Dr. G’s Top Black Children’s Books
- Lullaby ~Langston Hughes (Illustrated by Sean Qualls)
- Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters ~John Steptoe
- Maya and the Robot ~Eve L. Ewing (Illustrated by Christine Almeda)
- Skin Like Mine ~Latashia M. Perry (Illustrated by Bea Jackson)
- Sulwe ~Lupita Nyong’o (Illustrated by Vashti Harrison)
- Don’t Touch My Hair ~Sharee Miller
- Happy to Be Nappy ~bell hooks (Illustrated by Chris Raschka)
- Hair Love ~Matthew A. Cherry (Illustrated by Vashti Harrison)
- Dream Big, Little One; Think Big, Little One; Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History; Little Legends: Exceptional Men in Black History ~Vashti Harrison
- Amazing Grace & Boundless Grace ~Mary Hoffman (Illustrated by Caroline Binch)
- Parker Looks Up: An Extraordinary Moment ~Parker Curry & Jessica Curry (Illustrated by Brittany Jackson)
If there’s a book that you think should be added to one of my lists, make sure to drop a note in the comments!!
Black Future Feminist 