Brooks became the first African American to receive the Pulitzer Prize for this book. “Annie Allen” is a collection of poems that follows the life of the author from childhood to womanhood surrounded by poverty, racial discrimination, parental expectations, and unhappiness.
2. “Up From Slavery” by Booker T. Washington
“Up From Slavery” is an autobiography the shares Booker T. Washington’s experience of being a child slave during the Civil war to the obstacles he faced while trying to education as a young man.
This autobiography explains what happened during the shooting and killing of a White police trooper on the New Jersey Turnpike in May of 1973. Officers questioned Shakur about the incident while she was handcuffed to a hospital bed after being seriously wounded in the incident.
This book is about John Grimes an intelligent teenager living in Harlem during the 1930’s finding his identity living under the shadow of his step father who is the pastor of the church he’s grown up in.
5. “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
In this book, the former President shares the story of his father and mother and how he defined himself as an American while learning all about his father’s past.
7. “Breath, Eyes, Memory” by Edwidge Danticat
Featured on Oprah’s Book Club this book is about 12-year-old Sophie Caco who leaves Haiti to go live with her mother whom she barely remembers. .While there she becomes exposed to things that no child should ever experience. All the while this book explores tradition, suffering, and wisdom of the people of Haiti.
8. “Hidden Figures” by Margot Lee Shetterly
This is the amazing true story about three intelligent African American women who worked at NASA and were responsible for helping put a man on the moon. Although the movie was amazing, the book is where you can find the full story of these women.
This is the story of an African American woman who escapes slavery in Kentucky to be free in Ohio. Even though she obtains her physical freedom emotionally she is not free.
10. “Half Of A Yellow Sun” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
It explores the life of a 13-year-old house boy and University professor with zeal and his mistress who abandons her life with him and runs off with er lover. Taking place in Nigeria the novel explores the promise, hope, and disappointment of the Biafran war.
The narrator of this book describes growing up in a black community in the south while attending an all Black University where he is expelled from. He then moved to New York where he became the leader of “the Brotherhood”.
12. “I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings” by Maya Angelou
Continuing on the poetry kick, “I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings” was written by Maya Angelou. Published in 1969, it is an autobiography of her life and career.
13. “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass” by Fredrick Douglas
This story is about a man named Milkman Dead who was born right after the crazy neighborhood man throws himself off of a roof killing himself while trying to fly. For the rest of his life, Milkman Dead choose to achieve that too.
This is a classic but definitely worth reading and rereading again. It’s about a family’s struggle to maintain their integrity, pride, and independence in the face of racism and social injustice. But it’s also about Cassie Logan, a girl who finds over the course of a year why having land of their own is important to her family.
17. “The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man” by James Weldon Johnson
James Weldon Johnson was a lawyer, educator, social reformer, songwriter, and critic. However, when he became a poet and novelist that is where he found his nitch.
18. “Kindred” by Octavia E. Butler
“Kindred” is about a woman named Dana who is kidnapped from her husband’s birthday party in the present in California in the present and taken to the antebellum south in the past. In this, she navigates the racially tensioned world of the South.
Written by Kathryn Stockett the book is about the perspective of African American housekeepers working in white homes.
20. “The Secret Life Of Bees” By Sue Monk Kidd
This book beautifully depicts the journey of a little girl, healing and the power of love that cuts through all hate and racism to bring an amazing story. Lily Owens mother dies and is raised by Roasleen who serves as her stand in mother who happens to be black. Lily Owens learns so much about herself and the people she’s come to love.
21. “The Bluest Eye” by Toni Morrison
“The Bluest Eye”, by author Toni Morrison, is about a young African American girl who prays for blue eyes so that she can look like the blond hair and blue eyed kids in America. When tragedy strikes she learns to love herself through the all the pain.
22. “The Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr. ” by Martin Luther King Jr. Edited by Clayborne Carson
Clayborne Carson using published material, Standford University’s of archives, recordings, and interviews has put together a first person account of the life of Martin Luther King Jr.
This is a story about Emma Lou Morgan isn’t a shamed of being Black but is ashamed of the darkness of her skin. None of her friends and family members could offer her any words of advice, consolation, or hope. Looking for hope else were Emma Lou leaves her home in Idaho and finds herself in the middle of the Harlem Renaissance that leads her on a soul finding journey to accepting herself as she is.
This book challenges that the election of former President Barack Obama brought in a new era of colored blindness. Alexander argues that, “we have not ended racial caste in America; we have merely redesigned it.”
This is a comic novel about a man named Not Sidney Poitier who struggles to live in the social hierarchy while trying to balance his skin color and wealth.
