We created a booklist to celebrate Black History Month! Below, you’ll find a list of books by Black Authors that inspire us to get active, to reflect on history and participate in our democracy! We also want to highlight, support and celebrate local Black-owned bookstores across the country. Buying from smaller stores is a great way to support your local community and be exposed to a whole new set of recommendations. Browse the state-by-state list below and try to find a store close to you as you work through our booklist reads!
BOOKLIST:
- The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
- One Person, No Vote - Carol Anderson
- What the Music Said - Mark Anthony Neal, Ph.D
- We Can't Breathe: On Black Lives, White Lies, and the Art of Survival - Jabari Asim
- SOS-Calling All Black People - John H. Bracy, et al.
- Democracy Remixed - Cathy Cohen
- Sisters in the Struggle: African American Women in the Civil Rights-Black Power Movement - Bettye Collier-Thomas
- Are Prisons Obsolete by Angela Davis
- Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
- The Purpose of Power: How we come together when we fall apart - Alicia Garza
- VANGUARD: How Black Women Broke Barriers, Won the Vote, and Inspired Equality for All - Martha S. Jones
- The Sword and The Shield by Peniel Joseph
- Race Rebels: Culture, Politics, and the Black Working Class - Robin Kelley
- March Trilogy - John Lewis
- Sister Outsider Audre Lorde
- The Source of Self-Regard : Selected Essays, Speeches, and Meditations - Toni Morrison
- Black Power: Radical Politics and African American Identity - Jeffrey Ogbar
- Blackballed: The Black Vote and US Democracy - Darryl Pinckney
- Civil Rights Music: The Soundtracks of the Civil Rights Movement - Reiland rabaka
- The Hip Hop Movement: From R&B and the Civil Rights Movement to rap and the hip hop generation - Reiland Rabaka
- The Biography of Assata Shakur - Assata Shakur
- To Shape a New World: Essays on the Political Philosophy of Martin Luther King, Jr. - Tommie Shelby
- Just Mercy - Bryan Stevenson
If you’re looking for more good reads, we also love this Booklist in the NYT from Ibram X Kendi!
STATE BY STATE BOOKSTORE LIST:
- Alabama
- Melanated Books (Birmingham, AL)
- Arizona
- Grassrootz Bookstore (Phoenix, AZ) @grassrootzbookstore
- Arkansas
- Pyramid Art Books and Framing (Little Rock, AR) @pyramidbookslr
- California
- The Collective Oakland (Oakland, CA) @thecollectiveoakland
- Shades of Afrika (Long Beach. CA) @shadesofafrika
- Eso Won Bookstore (Los Angeles, CA) @esowonbooks
- Reparations Club (Los Angeles, CA) @reparations.club
- Malik Books (Los Angeles, CA) @malikbooks
- Ashay by the Bay (Vallejo, CA) @ashaybythebay
- Marcus Books (Oakland, CA) @marcus.books
- Old Capitol Books (Monterey, CA) @oldcapitolbooks
- Carol’s Books (Sacramento, CA) @carolsbooksstore
- Underground Books (Sacramento, CA) @undergroundbooks
- Colorado
- Shop at Matter (Denver, CO) @shopatmatter
- Connecticut
- Burgundy Books (Old Saybrook, CT)
- People Get Ready (New Haven, CT) @peoplegetreadybooks
- Key Bookstore (Hartford, CT) @keybookstore
- Delaware
- MeJah Books, Inc (Claymont, DE) @mejahbooks
- Florida
- African Bookstore (Plantation, FL) @africanbookstore
- Cultured Books (St. Petersburg, FL) @culturedbooks
- Pyramid Books (Boynton Beach, FL) @pyramidbooks
- Dare Books (Longwood, FL) @darebooks
- Kizzy Books and More (Winter Garden, FL)
- Best Richardson African Diaspora Literature & Culture Museum (Tampa, FL)
- Georgia
- Brave + Kind (Decatur, GA) @braveandkindbooks
- The Listening Tree (Decatur, GA) @thelisteningtree
- Medu Bookstore (Atlanta, GA) @medubookstoreatl
- For Keeps Bookstore (Atlanta, GA)
- Good Books (Atlanta, GA) @goodbooksatl
- Onyx Bookstore Cafe (Covington, GA) @onyxxbookstorecafe
- The Listening Tree (Decatur, GA) @thelisteningtree
- Black Dot Cultural Center (Lithonia, GA) @blackdotculturalcenter
- Moore Books (Rincon, GA)
- All Things Inspiration Giftique (Mableton, GA) @allthingsinspirationgift
- NuBian Books (Morrow, GA) @nubian_bookstore
- Illinois
- Frontline Bookstore (Chicago, IL) @frontlinebooks
- Semicolon Bookstore & Gallery (Chicago, IL) @semicolinchi
- The Underground Bookstore (Chicago, IL) @undergroundbooks
- Rose Café (Chicago, IL)
- Afriware Books, Co (Maywood, IL) @afriwarebooks
- Indiana
- The Brain Lair Bookstore (South Bend, IN) @brainlairbooks
- Beyond Barcodes Bookstore (Kokomo, IN) @beyondbarcodesbooks
- Akoma Novelties & Books (Evansville, IN) @akomabooks
- Iowa
- The Soul Book Nook (Waterloo, IA) @soulbooknook
- Kansas
- Wild Fig Coffee & Books (Lexington, KY) @wildfigbooksandcoffee
- Kentucky
- Wild Fig Coffee & Books (Lexington, KY) @wildfigbooksandcoffee
- Louisiana
- Community Book Center (New Orleans, LA) @readcbc
- Maryland
- Everyone’s Place (Baltimore, MD) @everyonesplacestore
- Wisdom Book Center (Gwynn Oak, MD) @wisdombookcenter
- Loyalty Bookstore (Silver Spring, MD) @loyaltybooks
- Vision Christian Store (Clinton, MD) @visionchristian_store
- Massachusetts
- Frugal Bookstore (Boston, MA) @frugalbooks
- Susie’s Stories (Rockport, MA) @susiesstories
- Olive Tree Books N Voices (Springfield, MA) @zeejohnson5
- Michigan
- Source Booksellers (Detroit, MI) @sourcebooksellers
- Detroit Book City (Detroit, MI) @detroit_book_city
- Nandi’s Knowledge Cafe (Highland Park, MI) @nandisknowledgecafe
- Black Stone Bookstore & Cultural Center (Ypsilanti, MI) @blackstonebookstore
- Minnesota
- Black Garnet Books (Minneapolis, MN) @blackgarnetbooks
- Mississippi
- Marshall’s Music & Bookstore (Jackson, MS)
- Missouri
- Bliss Books & Wine (Kansas City, MO) @bliss_books_wine_kc
- EyeSeeMe (University City, MO) @eyeseeme_bookstore
- Willa’s Books and Vinyl (Kansas City, MO) @willa.robinson.10
- Progressive Emporium & Education Center (St. Louis, MO)
- Nebraska
- Aframerican Book Store (Omaha, NE)
- New Jersey
- La Unique African American Books & Cultural Center (Camden, NJ)
- Source of Knowledge Bookstore (Newark, NJ)
- The Little Boho Bookshop (Bayonne, NJ)
- New York
- Sisters Uptown Bookstore (New York, NY) @sistersuptown
- The Lit. Bar (Bronx, NY) @thelitbar
- Cafe con Libros (New York, NY) @cafeconlibros_bk
- Grandma’s Place (New York, NY)
- Official Connections Books (Brooklyn, NY)
- Revolution Books (New York, NY) @revbooksnyc
- Zawadi Books (Buffalo, NY) @zawadibooks
- The Secondhand Librarian (Rochester, NY) @thesecondhandlibrarian
- North Carolina
- Shelves (Charlotte, NC) @shelvesbookstore
- Liberation Station Bookstore (Raleigh-Durham, NC) @liberationstationbookstore
- Ohio
- A Cultural Exchange (Cleveland, OH)
- Elizabeth’s Bookshop & Writing Centre (Akron, OH) @elizabethsofakron
- Alkebulan Ujaama Book Store (Columbus, OH)
- Black Art Plus (Columbus, OH)
- Oklahoma
- Fulton St. Books & Coffee (Tulsa, OK) @fultonstreet918
- Nappy Roots Books (Oklahoma City, OK)
- Oregon
- Third Eye Books Accessories and Gifts (Portland, OR)
- Pennsylvania
- Uncle Bobbie’s Books (Philadelphia, PA) @unclebobbies
- Books & Stuff (Philadelphia, PA) @booksandstuff.philly
- Harriett’s Bookshop (Philadelphia, PA) @harrietts_bookshop
- Kareemah’s Urban Books (Philadelphia, PA) @kareemahsurbanbooks
- The Tiny Bookstore (Ross Township, PA) @tinybookspgh
- The Black Reserve (Lansdale, PA) @theblackreservebookstore
- South Carolina
- Turning Page Bookshop (Goose Creek, SC) @turningpagebookshop
- Tennessee
- Alkebu-Lan Images Book Store (Nashville, TN) @alkebulanimages
- The African Place (Memphis, TN)
- Cafe Noir (Memphis, TN) @901cafenoir
- Texas
- The Dock Bookshop (Fort Worth, TX) @the_dock_bookshop
- Black Pearl Books (Austin, TX) @blackpearlbooks
- Pan-African Connection (Dallas, TX) @pac_dallas
- Enda’s Booktique (Duncanville, TX) @ednasbooktique
- Black World Books (Killeen, TX) @blackworldbooks
- Virginia
- Harambee Books & Artworks (Alexandria, VA) @harambeebooks_artworks
- Urban Moon Books (Chesapeake, VA) @author_urbanmoon
- House of Consciousness (Norfolk, VA) @hocbookstore
- Books and Crannies (Martinsville, VA) @booksncrannies_
- Positive Vibes (Virginia Beach, VA) @positivevibesva
- Riches in Reading (Virginia Beach, VA) @richesinreading
- Washington
- Estelita’s Library (Seattle, WA) @estelitaslib
- L.E.M.S. Bookstore (Seattle, WA) @lemsbookstore
- West Virginia
- Paradox Bookstore (Wheeling, WV) @the_paradox_bookstore
- Wisconsin
- Niche Book Bar (Milwaukee, WI) @nichebookbarllc
- Washington DC
- Mahogany Books (Washington, DC) @mahoganybooks
- Sankofa Video Books & Cafe (Washington, DC) @sankofadc
- Loyalty Bookstore (Washington, DC) @loyaltybooks
- Solid State Books (Washington, DC) @solidstatedc
- Children of the Sun (Washington, DC)