Illustration by Janani Murugesan
by MELANIE CHAPMAN
Staff Writer
What better way to celebrate Black History Month than to support Black authors. The following list includes books of many different genres, some lighthearted and bubbly, others educational, and some where readers may feel too upset to turn to the next page. Please keep in mind to always look up trigger warnings before picking up any book, including the ones on this list.
Penguin Young Readers Group, Penguin Random House, 2021
The Hill We Climb: An Inaugural Poem for the Country
Amanda Gorman
Poetry
On Jan. 20, 2021 Amanda Gorman delivered her poem that ended with a standing ovation from attendees at the presidential inauguration and a shocked nation. Amanda Gorman (22), became the youngest poet to read an original piece at President Joe Biden’s Inauguration. It’s no longer a video that can only be viewed on YouTube; Gorman’s poem, The Hill We Climb, is now a book.
G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books, Penguin Random House, 2021
The Taking of Jake Livingston
Ryan Douglass
Thriller, Horror, LGBT
This young adult horror follows the main character, Jake Livingston. Jake is one of the only black students at his school, other than his brother, who is considered more popular than Jake. Not only does Jake have to deal with the struggles of his identity, but he also sees dead people who are stuck in their own death loop. Most of these ghosts keep to themselves and leave Jake alone until he meets Sawyer, a dangerous teen who killed six other students at his local school. After killing himself he returns as a vengeful ghost who begins to haunt Jake.
Riverhead Books, Penguin Random House, 2020
The Vanishing Half
Brit Bennett
Historical Fiction
This award-winning novel is about two identical sisters who grew up together and lived in a small southern black community until they ran away at sixteen. The Vignes sisters were the same in every way until they chose two different paths in life. As they grew into adults, one sister raised her black daughter in the same southern town she ran from, and the other passed herself off as white while living with her husband who doesn’t know her true identity.
Quill Tree Books, HarperCollins, 2020
Clap When You Land
Elizabeth Acevedo
Young Adult, Contemporary, Poetry
A novel-in-verse (form of poetry) tells the story of two sisters, Camino, who lives in the Dominican Republic, and Yahaira, who lives in New York City. Camino and Yahaira share the same father but know nothing of the other’s existence. When the plane their father was on crashes, the unexpected tragedy brings them together to learn about each other and the father they shared.
Penguin Random House, 2020
Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women That a Movement Forgot
Mikki Kendall
Non-Fiction, Feminism, Social Justice
Hood Feminism touches on the flaws of modern feminist movements and how they cater to a specific group of women and only their needs. Also, it touches on how certain topics in the feminist community commonly neglect the privilege of some women when it comes to race, poverty and politics. Mikki Kendall challenges readers to question, “How can we stand in solidarity as a movement when there is the distinct likelihood that some women are oppressing others?”
Little, Brown Book Group, HarperCollins, 2021
Act Your Age, Eve Brown
Talia Hibbert
Romance Comedy, Coming of Age
Act Your Age, Eve Brown is a comical, enemies to lovers tale that follows Eve Brown on her journey to “officially” becoming an adult after coming to an agreement with her parents to hold a steady job for a year. What she didn’t expect was to get stuck being a chef at a bed and breakfast with a boss who she despises, or so she thought.
Katherine Tegen Books, HarperCollins, 2020
Grown
Tiffany D. Jackson
Young Adult, Mystery, Realistic Fiction
Grown follows Enchanted Jones, an aspiring musician, who auditions and catches the eye of famous R&B musician Korey Fields. Fields finds her to be promising and skilled, so he wants to help her build a successful career. But when Enchanted wakes up with blood on her hands, lack of memory of the night before, and Korey dead, she becomes the main suspect.
