Black Voices & Culture: Non-Fiction Books for Adults

Explore our curated list of non-fiction books by Black and African American voices in celebration of Black History Month.

Updated December 22, 2024
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American wings : Chicago's pioneering Black aviators and the race for equality in the sky
Smith, Sherri L.
Paper Book
From the acclaimed author of Flygirl andthe bestselling author of Code Name Verity comes the thrilling and inspiring true story of the desegregation of the skies. "This beautiful and brilliant history of not only what it means to be Black and dream of flying but...
The Black box : writing the race
Gates, Henry Louis, Jr.
Paper Book
A New York Times Notable Book "Henry Louis Gates is a national treasure. Here, he returns with an intellectual and at times deeply personal meditation on the hard-fought evolution and the very meaning of African American identity, calling upon our country to transcend its...
The Black utopians : searching for paradise and the Promised Land in America
Robertson, Aaron
Paper Book
One of The New York Times's 100 Notable Books of 2024 One of the Washington Post's 50 Best Nonfiction Books of 2024 A New York Public Library Top Ten Book of 2024 | A Boston Globe Best Book of 2024 A New Republic Best Book of...
The Black family's guide to college admissions : a conversation about education, parenting, and race
Fields, Timothy L.
Paper Book
The ultimate guide to help Black families navigate the college admissions process. Finding the right college is a challenge for all students. But Black families face additional challenges and questions while navigating the admissions process. In The Black Family's Guide to...
My black country : a journey through country music's black past, present, and future
Randall, Alice
Paper Book
Alice Randall, award-winning professor, songwriter, and author presents "a celebration of all things country music" (Ken Burns) as she reflects on her search for the first family of Black country music. Country music had brought Alice Randall and her activist mother together and...
Madness : race and insanity in a Jim Crow asylum
Hylton, Antonia
Paper Book
A New York Times 100 Notable Books of 2024 * A New Yorker Best Book of 2024 New York Times Bestseller * USA Today Bestseller Kirkus Reviews Best Nonfiction Books of the Year *...
Our hidden conversations : what Americans really think about race and identity
Norris, Michele
Paper Book
Peabody Award-winning journalist Michele Norris offers a transformative dialogue on race and identity in America, unearthed through her decade-long work at The Race Card Project. The prompt seemed simple: Race. Your Thoughts. Six Words. Please Send. The answers,...
The barn : the secret history of a murder in Mississippi
Thompson, Wright
Paper Book
The instant New York Times bestseller * Named a Best Book of the Year by The Washington Post, Slate, Vanity Fair, TIME, Buzzfeed, Smithsonian, BookPage, KCUR, and Kirkus "It literally changed my outlook on the...
Medgar & Myrlie : Medgar Evers and the love story that awakened America
Reid, Joy-Ann
Paper Book
#1 New York Times Bestseller "Medgar Evers deserves a place alongside Malcolm X and Dr. King in our historical memory. Evers, with Myrlie as his partner in activism and in life, was doing civil rights work in the single most hostile and dangerous environment in America."--from Medgar...
Late admissions : confessions of a Black conservative
Loury, Glenn C.
Paper Book
Economist Glenn C. Loury is one of the most prominent public intellectuals of our time: he's often radically opposed to the political mainstream, and delights in upending what's expected of a Black public figure. But more so than the arguments themselves-on affirmative action, institutional...
The message
Coates, Ta-Nehisi
Paper Book
#1 NATIONAL BESTSELLER * NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * The renowned author of Between the World and Me journeys to three resonant sites of conflict to explore how the stories we tell--and the ones we don't--shape our realities. "Ta-Nehisi Coates always writes with a...

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