Happy Black History Month. A great way to educate ourselves about black history is to read. When it came to crafting this book recommendation list, I thought about it for days. There are so many great ones that if I were to place all the ones I had in mind, the list would surpass 200. Lucky for you, I narrowed it down to seven because it is my lucky number, and it seems like a reasonable amount.Â
These choices are great for starting with black literature. It is a variety of relevant genres both in the past and present. Below are short introductions to each book, and no worries, there are zero spoilers, so you can dive in with all the excitement and curiosity intact!Â
1. Black AF history
Michael Harriot narrates the story of the United States with a humorous approach, but he still manages to convey a serious message, followed by anger, sadness, and grief. The structure is impeccable; within a chapter, one can go from laughing to feeling infuriated to ending with tears. Often, history is taught through the lens of the Founding Fathers and how they influenced “American” culture. Harriot focuses on the black experience in America and the overlooked narratives.Â
His sarcastic tone throughout is what keeps readers gravitating to continue reading. Harriot made thorough examinations of white supremacy and its connection to everything in the United States ‘ history. He presents how it affected Black life throughout. With the story of the Virginia Company, he examines the totality when it came to surviving in a place that was not designed for them and the uprising by enslaved Africans and their descendants. If you’re seeking to learn about Black history, this is the start. History indeed is Black AF.
2. Women, Culture, Politics by Angela Davis
This book is a collection of Angela Yvonne Davis’s speeches. She is an American political activist, scholar, and author. A prominent radical activist in the 1960s, leader of the Communist Party USA, and had close ties with the Black Panther Party. She addresses the political and social changes of the past decade as they are concerned with the struggle for racial, sexual, and economic equality.
3. The Color Purple by Alice Walker
Winner of the Pulitzer and the National Book Award, Alice Walker depicts in this book the lives of African American women in early twentieth-century rural Georgia. The story follows two sisters, Celie and Nettie, through a series of letters spanning twenty years. The Color Purple brought awareness around domestic and sexual abuse, the narratives of women through their pain, struggle, companion and growth. Their resilience and bravery carry a journey of redemption and love.
4. Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler
Now, if you’re just a casual reader and not an annotator, this book will have you grabbing the pen and paper throughout. Every line in the book holds considerable meaning. Octavia E. Butler wrote this post-apocalyptic, sci-fi, dystopian book back in 1993. It is set in 2024, a future imagined scenario in rural California that is highly affected by social inequality and climate change. Every chapter is like a journal entry of the main character, Lauren, who is hyper-sensitive.
5. The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin
The Fire Next Time is a must-read. It’s a relatively short book formed from two letters, one being brief, the other long. The short one is a letter from James to his nephew; the long letter is towards the reader. James Baldwin addresses personal experiences related to race in America revolving around religion. The reference to “the fire next time” comes from Exodus, where God promises not to flood the Earth again and says that next time the judgement will come by fire.
6. Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
This novel follows a woman on a journey to redefine what love means to her, separate from the way her younger self once understood it. Set in 20th-century Florida, it’s a coming-of-age story about discovering one’s truth and learning to recognize what feels wrong before embracing what is right. The writing is rich with poetic, unforgettable passages that make the story feel both intimate and timeless.
7. Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together In The Cafeteria? by Beverly Daniel Tatum
In cafeterias throughout the United States, children often self-segregate into settings with their own race. Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum explains that this is a predictable response due to growing up in a racialized society. This is the core insight of this book.