Content Warning: mentions of police officer violence, physical abuse, sexual abuse, verbal abuse, sexual assault, murder, kidnapping, and death of a parent.
For Black History Month, it is important to empower Black voices to celebrate and honor the achievements of Black Americans throughout the history of the United States.
The origins of Black History Month were first established by Dr. Carter G. Woodsen in 1926. He was the founder of the Association for Negro Life and History, and he noticed that few people taught and studied Black history, so he wanted to bring awareness to overlooked historical events and important figures from the Black community.
If you want to learn more about the history of the Black community, here are five books to add to your TBR list that highlight Black authors and important messages to the Black community. From timeless classics to modern stories, there’s bound to be something for everyone on this list.
1. “The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas
Content Warning: Police officer violence
Angie Thomas’s “The Hate U Give” follows the the double-life of an African American sixteen-year-old, Starr Carter, as she navigates between her two worlds: living in a neighborhood ridden with poverty while simultaneously attending a posh prep school. However, after an altercation with a police officer that left her childhood best friend Khalil dead, Starr must speak out against the broken criminal justice system and stand alongside her community to defend Khalil’s honor.
This book explores themes of systematic racism and a broken justice system where marginalized communities, especially Black people, are at a disadvantage because of the prejudice of police officers. Starr witnessed the traumatic death of her friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer for doing absolutely nothing wrong, and the story follows her as she confronts a system that is working against her.
2. “The Color Purple” by Alice Walker
Content Warning: Sexual abuse, verbal abuse, physical abuse
“The Color Purple” by Alice Walker illustrates the life of African-American sisters Celie and Nettie in early twentieth-century rural Georgia, who were separated as children. From letters back and forth to each other spanning twenty years, the sisters sustain their love and loyalty to each other.
Celie is the main protagonist of the book, and Walker focuses on her relationship with other characters, such as Nettie, Shrug Avery, Sophia, and Mary Agnes. As a survivor of sexual assault, Celie finds her voice through the letters that she initially wrote to God about her experiences and now writes to her long-lost sister, Nettie.
The book explores themes of the domestic and sexual abuse inflicted on Black women and amplifies their voices as they navigate their experiences through their resiliency and unbreakable bond. Walker sheds light with great sensitivity on problems around misogyny. Repressed sexuality, domestic violence, racism, and poverty that disproportionately affect the Black community, even today.
However, Walker’s main message in the book was that it’s never too late to gain a fresh perspective on the communities around us and to work to ensure that they are empowered.
3. “Children of Blood and Bone” by Tomi Adeyemi
In the Young Adult Fantasy “Children of Blood and Bone” by Tomi Adeyemi, the story follows a young girl named Zélie Adebola, who is on a mission to restore magic to her kingdom, Orïsha. After the ruthless king declares to get rid of magic, Zélie teams up with a rogue princess, Amari, to bring back magic and work to outwit the crown prince, Inan, who is set on destroying magic for good.
Along the way, she must learn to control her own powers and face the dangers in Orisha, from snow leopanaires to vengeful spirits. However, she may be the greatest danger to herself as she struggles to master her powers and face her growing feelings for her enemy.
“Children of Blood and Bone” by Tomi Adeyemi is the first book in her trilogy Legacy of Orïsha. The book has themes of the power of empathy and the importance of teamwork and friendship as Zélie navigates her journey with the help of other characters.
4. “Legendborn” by Tracy Deonn
Content Warning: Death of a parent
After the loss of her mother, sixteen-year-old Bree Matthews attempts to escape her grief by enrolling in a residential program for bright high school students at UNC-Chapel Hill. However, on her first night there, she witnesses a magical attack.
After the attack, a teenage mage, who calls himself “Merlin,” attempts to unsuccessfully wipe her memory of the attack, but the failure only triggers the discovery of her own magic and unlocks a memory that could explain the circumstances surrounding her mother’s death.
Soon, she discovers a secret society of so-called “Legendborn” students that hunt creatures and demons feeding on human energy.
By infiltrating the Legendborn society as one of their initiates, Bree is determined to find out the truth about her mother’s death, no matter what the cost. Through her personal mission to bring down the secret society of the Legendborns, she meets Nick, a self-exiled Legendborn with a grudge against the group, and they work together to bring down the society from the inside.
5. “The Fifth Season” by N.K Jemisin
Content Warning: Murder, kidnapping
“The Fifth Season” is the first book in N.K Jemisin’s trilogy series, Broken Earth, and is a Science Fiction Fantasy set in a post-apocalyptic world, where an ordinary woman, Essun, comes home to find that her husband has brutally murdered their son and kidnapped their daughter.
Around her, the Sanze—the world-spanning empire that served as civilization’s bedrock for thousands of years—begins collapsing as citizens are murdered as a pawn in a vengeful scheme.
Across the heart of a vast continent known as the Stillness, a rift had been torn into the heart of the earth, spewing ash into the sky. As Essun sets out on a mission to save her daughter, she must also face a harsh, unforgiving landscape.
Without basic resources, nations across the continent of Stillness are gearing up for war as they fight against one another to gain basic resources to live.
As we settle into Black History Month this February, it is important to remember to educate ourselves and our communities with books by Black authors that support ideologies important to their community.
However, that does not mean that the work is done once the month ends; this process of learning and supporting Black communities should be practiced all year round, and the more we learn from each other, the better we can stand in solidarity with marginalized communities.
Do you have any books by Black authors that you love? Let us know @HerCampusSJSU!