We’re sharing a list here of some—not nearly all—recently published titles that highlight Black history and are available on Spokane Public Library shelves. This list is wide-ranging, from picture books for kids to poetry for teens to novels and memoirs for adults. The subjects of the books, too, are as diverse as their genres: these are stories about musicians, writers, nurses, mothers, children, comedians, political icons, physicists, and more.
If you’re looking for additional great reading material, the Spokane chapter of the NAACP just this week shared news about their having started a book club. With permission we’re sharing a photograph of the newly anointed president, Lisa Gardner, reading the book club’s first selection, Mónica Guzmán’s I Never Thought of It that Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times. Books and activism have always fueled and informed one another. For more news about the book club and about the Spokane NAACP, follow their social media accounts on Instagram and Facebook and become a member here, NAACP Spokane | Membership.
And in celebration of Black voices, how wonderful is it that The Black Lens News, shuttered following the untimely death of its beloved steward, Sandy Williams, is now again in print? Celebrated Spokane lawyer Natasha Hill is the new editor. Learn more about the release of The Black Lens News over at the Spokesman Review, and kudos to all for ensuring that Sandy Williams’s vision and legacy stays alive and well in Spokane.
For Kids
An American Story by Kwame Alexander
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Susie King Taylor: Nurse, Teacher & Freedom Fighter by Erica Armstrong Dunbar & Candace Buford
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There Was a Party for Langston by Jason Reynolds
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For Teens
Poemhood, Our Black Revival: History, Folklore, & the Black Experience, A Young Adult Poetry Anthology
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I’m Still Here: Loving Myself in a World Not Made for Me by Austin Channing Brown
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A Quantum Life: My Unlikely Journey from the Street to the Stars by Hakeem Oluseyi and Joshua Horwitz
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For Adults
Black Women Taught Us: An Intimate History of Black Feminism by Jenn M. Jackson, PhD
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Black AF History: The Un-Whitewashed Story of America by Michael Harriot
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The Heaven and Earth Grocery Story: A Novel by James McBride
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Beyond The Shores: A History of African Americans Abroad by Tamara J. Walker
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For The Culture: Phenomenal Black Women And Femmes In Food, Interviews, Inspiration, And Recipes by Klancy Miller, photography by Kelly Marshall, illustrations by Sarah Madden
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Leslie F*cking Jones: A Memoir by Leslie Jones
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Symphony of Secrets: A Novel by Brendan Slocumb
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Black TV: Five Decades of Groundbreaking Television from Soul Train to Black-Ish and Beyond by Bethonie Butler
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Black Chameleon: Memory, Womanhood, and Myth by Deborah D.E.E.P. Mouton
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Did You Hear About Kitty Karr?: A Novel by Crystal Paul Smith
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Shirley Chisholm: Champion Of Black Feminist Power Politics by Anastasia Carol Curwood
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