February is known as Black History Month, but it’s important to remember that black history is American history. Our culture is based on Black culture and customs, and recognizing these influences and learning from these stories needs to happen every month, not just February.
If you’re looking for a new book to add to your collection that deals with black history and includes black protagonists, here are five suggestions.
If you’re looking for more books and texts dealing with racism and black history, check out our previous list of books and movies that discuss racism. Includes links to and resources for Latinos who want to learn more.
jazz Toni Morrison
about (From goodreads.com): In the winter of 1926, when everyone was thinking only about the future, Joe Trace, a middle-aged door-to-door salesman of Cleopatra’s beauty products, shot and killed his teenage lover. did. At the funeral, Joe’s wife, Violet, attacks the girl’s corpse. This passionate and profound tale of love and obsession takes us back and forth in time as the story is constructed from the emotions, hopes, fears and deep realities of black city life.
their eyes were on god zora neale hurston
about (From zoranealehurston.com): With haunting sympathy and piercing immediacy, their eyes were on god It is a work depicting the process of Janie Crawford growing into herself after being married three times. Fair-skinned, long-haired, and dreamy as a child, Janie grew up expecting to be treated better than she was, and until she met Teacake, treated her heart and mind as equals. It gave her the chance to enjoy life. Male mules or ornaments. Jae-in’s story does not end happily, but it does have a satisfying ending. Janie is one of those black women who don’t have to get lost in sadness, bitterness, fear, or stupid romantic dreams. They could rely on God to know about their lives.
Salvage the Bones Jesmine Ward
about (From bloomsbury.com): Aesch’s father grows concerned as a hurricane makes landfall in the Gulf of Mexico and threatens the coastal town of Bois-Sauvage, Mississippi. He is a heavy drinker, mostly absent, and doesn’t show much interest in other things. Esch and her three brothers stockpile food, but don’t have much to save. These days, Esch can’t control the food he eats. She is 14 and pregnant. Her brother Skeeter is secretly collecting scraps for his precious Pitbull’s new litter, and in the dirt she dies one by one. Meanwhile, brothers Randall and Jr. try to make their case for a family with long child-play and poor parenting. When the 12 days that make up the framework of the novel come to a dramatic conclusion, this unforgettable family – motherless children sacrifice all they can for each other, protecting and nurturing where love is scarce. is a heartfelt novel about familial love and a community willing to face all odds, and the lonely, brutal and limiting of rural poverty. staring at the real reality. Salvage the Bones Poetic, revelatory and realistic.
harem shuffle colson whitehead
about (From penguinrandomhouse.com): Harem Shuffle”‘s seminal story takes place in a beautifully recreated early 1960s New York City. It’s a family story disguised as a crime novel, a hilarious morality drama, a social novel about race and power, and ultimately a love letter to Harlem.
don’t call us dead danes smith
about (From greywolfpress.org): Award-winning poet Danez Smith is a groundbreaking force, celebrated for his deft lyrics, urgent themes, and execution. Don’t Call Us Dead opens with a heartbreaking sequence imagining the afterlife of a black man shot by police. Where doubt, violence and sorrow are forgotten and replaced with the security, love and longevity they deserve here on Earth. Smith then looks at greed, mortality (the dangers experienced in the skin, body, and blood), and HIV-positive diagnosis. “Some of us were killed in pieces,” Smith wrote. Don’t Call Us Dead is an amazing collection, one that confronts America where every day is a funeral and often not a miracle.