2026 Black History Month

Celebrate Black History Month's 2026 theme, "A Century of Black History Commemorations," marking 100 years of national observances dedicated to honoring the lives, struggles, and achievements of African Americans.

Updated January 8, 2026
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Fearless and free : a memoir
Baker, Josephine
A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF THE YEAR: The TODAY Show, Vanity Fair, W Magazine, Oprah Daily, LibraryReads Praised as "funny and witty" by Kwame Alexander on the TODAY show, now published in the US for the first time, Fearless and Free is the memoir of the...
Baldwin : a love story
Boggs, Nicholas
Paper Book
AN ATLANTIC TOP 10 BOOK OF 2025 A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF 2025 AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER AN AMAZON BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR A TIME MUST-READ BOOK OF 2025 Drawing on new archival material, original research, and...
Twice as hard : the stories of Black women who fought to become physicians, from the Civil War to the 21st Century
Brown, Jasmine
Paper Book
Black women physicians' stories have gone untold for far too long, leaving gaping holes in American medical history, in women's history, and in black history. It's time to set the record straight No real account of black women physicians in the US exists, and what little mention...
Gather me : a memoir in praise of the books that saved me
Edim, Glory
Paper Book
A "dramatic [and] ingeniously crafted" (Los Angeles Times) memoir of family, community, and resilience, and an ode to the power of books to help us understand ourselves, from the renowned founder of Well-Read Black Girl. "A beautiful portrait of a full life that...
We refuse : a forceful history of Black resistance
Jackson, Kellie Carter
Paper Book
An "unsparing, erudite, and incisive" (Jelani Cobb, staff writer, The New Yorker) reframing of the past and present of Black resistance--both nonviolent and violent--to white supremacy Named a Best Book of 2024 by Smithsonian * Kirkus *...
Walk through fire
Johnson, Sheila C.
Paper Book
The cofounder of BET and first African American woman billionaire shares her deeply personal journey through love and loss, tragedy and triumph--an inspiring story of overcoming toxic influences, discovering her true self, and at last finding happiness in her work and life. From...
Sweet Home Cafe cookbook : a celebration of African American cooking
Lukas, Albert
Paper Book
A celebration of African American cooking with 109 recipes from the National Museum of African American History and Culture's Sweet Home Cafe. A James Beard Foundation Book Award nominee for best American cookbook; a Food & Wine best cookbook; a Booklist top 10 food book; an...
American soul : the Black history of food in the United States
Malik, Anela
Delve into foodways of the United States, including testimonies from more than 30 Black chefs, restaurateurs, historians and luminaries, as well as 40 historically-rooted recipes. Equal parts historical exploration and cookbook, this rich narrative reveals the rich and indelible...
Illustrated Black history : honoring the iconic and the unseen
McCalman, George
Paper Book
*AWARD WINNER* of the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work - Debut Author / and the NCBR Recognition Award A gorgeous collection of 145 original portraits that celebrates Black pioneers--famous and little-known--in politics, science, literature, music, and more-...
Positive obsession : the life and times of Octavia E. Butler
Morris, Susana M.
Paper Book
A magnificent cultural biography that charts the life of one of our greatest writers, situating her alongside the key historical and social moments that shaped her work.  As the first Black woman to consistently write and publish in the field of science fiction, Octavia...
The Look
Obama, Michelle
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * Beautifully illustrated with more than 200 photographs, including never-before-seen images, The Look is a stunning journey through Michelle Obama's style evolution, in her own words for the first time. In this celebration of style,...
My America : recipes from a young black chef
Onwuachi, Kwame
Paper Book
A BON APPETIT BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR * What is American food? In his first cookbook, the acclaimed author of Notes from a Young Black Chef shares the dishes of his America; dishes that show the true diversity of American food. Onwauachi is "the most important chef in...
Notes from a young Black chef : a memoir
Onwuachi, Kwame
Paper Book
"Kwame Onwuachi's story shines a light on food and culture not just in American restaurants or African American communities but around the world." --Questlove   By the time he was twenty-seven years old, Kwame Onwuachi (winner of the 2019 James Beard Foundation Award for ...
Black in blues : how a color tells the story of my people
Perry, Imani
Paper Book
A "vast, multifaceted and enchanting" (Minneapolis Star-Tribune) meditation on the color blue and its fascinating role in Black history and culture, from National Book Award winner Imani Perry, "the most important interpreter of Black life in our time" (Eddie S. Glaude, Jr.) Throughout...
Truly
Richie, Lionel
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * USA TODAY BESTSELLER  * LOS ANGELES TIMES BESTSELLER "Richie is refreshingly open in the book, which functions as both a fun memoir and a love letter to music and his beloved Tuskegee... There's an abundance of love and gratitude in this wildly...
The rise : Black cooks and the soul of American food
Samuelsson, Marcus
Paper Book
An Eater Best Cookbook of Fall 2020 * This groundbreaking new cookbook from chef, bestselling author, and TV star Marcus Samuelsson celebrates contemporary Black cooking in 150 extraordinarily delicious recipes. It is long past time to...
Magic in the air : the myth, the mystery, and the soul of the slam dunk
Sielski, Mike
Paper Book
"Who doesn't wanna read an entire book about the slam dunk? I love basketball." - Ann Patchett "The definitive dunking dissertation." - Jack McCallum, Wall Street Journal From the author of the bestselling Kobe Bryant biography The Rise comes the legend...
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...
Watermelon & red birds : a cookbook for Juneteenth and black celebrations
Taylor, Nicole A.
Paper Book
The very first cookbook to celebrate Juneteenth, from food writer and cookbook author Nicole A. Taylor--who draws on her decade of experiences observing the holiday. On June 19, 1865, more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, Major...

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