Black History Month - Adults

1) African samurai: the true story of Yasuke, a legendary black warrior in feudal Japan

Author

Lockley, Thomas

Description

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A biography of the black samurai Yasuke who arrived in Japan in the late 1500s.

2) Africanthology: perspectives of Black Canadian poets

Description

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The personal journeys of Black Canadian poets told through poetry, essays, conversation, and short fiction.

3) Ain't I a Woman: Black Women and Feminism

Author

hooks, bell

Formats:

eAudiobook, eBook

Description

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A classic work of feminist scholarship, Ain't I a Woman has become a must-read for all those interested in the nature of black womanhood. Examining the impact of sexism on black women during slavery, the devaluation of black womanhood, black male sexism, racism among feminists, and the black woman's involvement with feminism, hooks attempts to move us beyond racist and sexist assumptions. The result is nothing short of groundbreaking, giving

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4) An American marriage

Author

Jones, Tayari

Series

Thorndike Press large print African-American

Formats:

Book, eAudiobook, eBook, Large Print

Description

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"Newlyweds Celestial and Roy, the living embodiment of the New South, are settling into the routine of their life together when Roy is sent to prison for a crime he didn't commit. An insightful look into the lives of people who are bound and separated by forces beyond their control"--Provided by publisher.

5) Beloved

Author

Morrison, Toni

Formats:

Book, Audiobook, eBook

Description

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PULITZER PRIZE WINNER • NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A spellbinding novel that transforms history into a story as powerful as Exodus and as intimate as a lullaby. With a new afterword by the author.
This "brutally powerful, mesmerizing story” (People) is an unflinchingly look into the abyss of slavery, from the acclaimed Nobel Prize winner.
Sethe was born a slave and escaped...

6) Between the world and me

Author

Coates, Ta-Nehisi

Formats:

Book, eAudiobook, eBook

Description

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#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • NATIONAL BOOK AWARD WINNER • NAMED ONE OF TIME’S TEN BEST NONFICTION BOOKS OF THE DECADE • PULITZER PRIZE FINALIST • NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD FINALIST • ONE OF OPRAH’S “BOOKS THAT HELP ME THROUGH” • NOW AN HBO ORIGINAL SPECIAL EVENT

Hailed by Toni Morrison as “required...

7) Black birds in the sky: the story and legacy of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre

Author

Colbert, Brandy

Formats:

Book, eAudiobook, eBook

Description

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A searing new work of nonfiction from award-winning author Brandy Colbert about the history and legacy of one of the most deadly and destructive acts of racial violence in American history: the Tulsa Race Massacre. Winner, Boston Globe-Horn Book Award.

In the early morning of June 1, 1921, a white mob marched across the train tracks in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and into its predominantly Black Greenwood District—a thriving,

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8) Black boy out of time: a memoir

Author

Ziyad, Hari

Formats:

Book, Audiobook

9) The Black church: this is our story, this is our song

Author

Gates, Henry Louis

Series

Thorndike Press large print Black voices

10) The book of Negroes

Author

Hill, Lawrence

Formats:

Book, eAudiobook, eBook

Description

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Kidnapped at the age of 11 by British slavers, Aminata survives the Middle Passage and is reunited in South Carolina with Chekura, a boy from a village near hers. Her story gets entwined with his, and with those of her owners: nasty indigo producer Robinson Appleby and, later, Jewish duty inspector Solomon Lindo. During her long life of struggle, she does what she can to free herself and others from slavery, including learning to read and teaching...

11) Book of wings: a novel

Author

Evanson, Tawhida Tanya

Formats:

Book, eAudiobook

Description

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Traces a global journey that leads the narrator onto a path toward personal discovery and spiritual fulfillment.

12) The color purple

Author

Series

Formats:

Description

The color purple depicts the lives of African American women in early twentieth-century rural Georgia. Separated as girls, sisters Celie and Nettie sustain their loyalty to and hope in each other across time, distance, and silence. Through a series of letters spanning twenty years, first from Celie to God, then from the sisters to each other, the novel draws readers into the experiences of Celie, Nettie, Shug Avery, and Sofia.

13) Colorization: One Hundred Years of Black Films in a White World

Author

Haygood, Wil

Description

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A NEW YORK TIMES CRITICS' TOP BOOK OF THE YEAR • BOOKLISTS' EDITOR'S CHOICE • ONE OF NPR'S BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
“At once a film book, a history book, and a civil rights book.… Without a doubt, not only the very best film book [but] also one of the best books of the year in any genre. An absolutely essential read.” —Shondaland
This unprecedented...

14) The dead are arising: the life of Malcolm X

Author

Payne, Les

Series

Thorndike Press large print biographies and memoirs

Formats:

Book, eAudiobook, Large Print

Description

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Les Payne, the renowned Pulitzer Prize–winning investigative journalist, embarked in 1990 on a nearly thirty-year-long quest to interview anyone he could find who had actually known Malcolm X—all living siblings of the Malcolm Little family, classmates, street friends, cellmates, Nation of Islam figures, FBI moles and cops, and political leaders around the world. His goal was ambitious: to transform what would become dozens of interviews into...

15) Death of a King: the real story of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s final year

Author

Smiley, Tavis

16) Emancipation Day: celebrating freedom in Canada

Author

Henry, Natasha L

Formats:

Book, eBook

Description

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When the passage of the Abolition of Slavery Act, effective August 1, 1834, ushered in the end of slavery throughout the British Empire, people of the African descent celebrated their newfound freedom. Now African-American fugitive slaves, free black immigrants, and the few remaining enslaved Africans could live unfettered live in Canada – a reality worthy of celebration. This new, well-researched book provides insight into the creation, development,...

17) From scratch: a memoir of love, Sicily, and finding home

Author

Locke, Tembi

Series

Reese's book club

Formats:

Book, eAudiobook, eBook

Description

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"A poignant and transporting cross-cultural love story set against the lush backdrop of the Sicilian countryside, where one woman discovers the healing powers of food, family, and unexpected grace in her darkest hour"--Provided by publisher.

18) Get a life, Chloe Brown: a novel

Author

Hibbert, Talia

Series

The Brown sisters volume 1

Formats:

Book, eAudiobook, eBook

Description

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"Absolutely charming... a flawless balance of humor, heat, sweetness, and depth, and I loved every page." – Helen Hoang, USA Today bestselling author of The Bride Test

USA TODAY BESTSELLER

A witty, hilarious romantic comedy about a woman who's tired of being "boring" and recruits her mysterious, sexy neighbor to help her experience new things—perfect for fans of Sally Thorne,

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19) Girl, woman, other

Author

Evaristo, Bernardine

Formats:

Book, eAudiobook, eBook

Description

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"Girl, Woman, Other is a celebration of the diversity of Black British experience. Moving, hopeful, and inventive, this extraordinary novel is a vivid portrait of the state of contemporary Britain and the legacy of Britain's colonial history in Africa and the Caribbean. The twelve central characters of this multi-voiced novel lead vastly different lives: Amma is a newly acclaimed playwright whose work often explores her black lesbian identity; her...

20) Hallelujah! the welcome table: a lifetime of memories with recipes

Author

Angelou, Maya

Formats:

Book, eAudiobook

Description

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Throughout Maya Angelou’s life, from her childhood in Stamps, Arkansas, to her world travels as a bestselling writer, good food has played a central role. Preparing and enjoying homemade meals provides a sense of purpose and calm, accomplishment and connection. Now in Hallelujah! The Welcome Table, Angelou shares memories pithy and poignant—and the recipes that helped to make them both indelible and irreplaceable.
Angelou...