Best Books by Black and POC Authors – A Roundup

Finding Freedom: Becki's Essential Reading List on Racism and Justice

Hello dear readers –

As you may have noticed, I’ve taken an extended break from blogging. Between the COVID-19 crisis, the indefinite closure of #tctheater, the shutdown of travel and now the sacking of Minneapolis, it’s just not been a great time for the more lighthearted content I usually share. It’s also given me time to focus on some family and personal projects that need long-term tending.

That said, if you visit Compendium even modestly you will notice that I do a lot of reading. In light of the current movement to provide justice for George Floyd and other victims of racist violence, several people have reached out asking for recommendations of books for themselves and others.

Lucky for you, I’ve been rounding up just such information on my Goodreads page for years now. I don’t like the lack of sophistication in their listing capabilities, so instead I’m compiling a master list here broken by category.

All of these books are ones I have read and found informative about the experience of people of color, especially black Americans, and all are authored by people of color (with a few rare exceptions at the end). I have also included a list of books that I have seen recommended by several sources I trust – I have noted where I haven’t read them, but I wanted to provide them as additional great resources, understanding that different people connect to different writing styles.

I plan to maintain this list for the future, so please save the link and let me know if you have additional books to share! I also highly recommend visiting this Google file(and bookmarking it) for an enormous treasure trove of online articles about the history of racism in the United States and ways to un-learn racist bias and become an anti-racist. I’ve had it bookmarked for years and regularly revisit and share this database. Do not discount this – although these are shorter articles or long-form journalism, they by no means are less valuable than an actual book.

Please stay safe, stay active, and stay strong my friends. While it’s hard to see the city burn, it’s harder to know of the centuries of injustice that have been visited on our friends and family of color. As Lizzo said, we ain’t free ‘til we ALL free – so keep fighting the good fight, educating yourself, and keeping the pressure on. We can win this!

With love and power,  

Becki

Great Books by Wider POC Authors

The Best We Could Do by Thi Bui:

A perspective on the Vietnam War (and its aftermath) on people who had to flee

Dear America: Notes of an Undocumented Citizen

Another first hand account of growing up in America undocumented

In the Country We Love: My Family Divided

Lost in the COVID pandemic and police protests is the fact

The Leavers by Lisa Ko

This is a rich, complex novel that provides a really nuanced dive into immigration policy in China and the U.S.

They Called Us Enemy by George Takei

Takei is famous for his time on Star Trek, but his story starts in the concentration

Never Caught: The Washington’s Relentless

Why should we reframe the way we teach about our founding fathers?

Barracoon The Story of the Last “Black Cargo” by Zara Neale Hurston

One of the most exciting developments in publishing is

The Harlem Hellfighters by Max Brooks

True story of the experiences of the Harlem Hellfighters, an all-black WWI unit.

The Silence of Our Friends by Mark Long, Jim Demonakos

Powerful graphic novel of a Civil Rights era case

March Graphic Novel Series by John Lewis

Vital graphic novel series straight from the mouth of one of the last people alive

So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo

This is singlehandledly the best book I have read about having conversations about racism

A People’s History of the United States by Howard Zinn

This iconic text is a cornerstone of educating yourself about the invisible parties of American

Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson

A lot of fuss has been made about Caste and it lives up

The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration In The Age of Colorblindness

This was the first book that really radicalized

Suggest The Last Interview and Other Conversations

Any step towards understanding the black experience in America

Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI

Gripping true story of how the FBI was founded to investigate

A Fistful of Shells: West Africa from the Rise of the Slave

It can be easy to forget that Africa was full of diverse

White Trash: The 400-Year Untold History of Class in America

This is the history of poor white people in America

Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City

Evicted is an especially relevant read right now as millions face homelessness

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

Although written by a white author, this is a vital book to

Any Books by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie:

Adichie is a wonderful writer about the American African experience.

I Am Not Sidney Poitier by Percival Everett:

Percival Everett is IMHO criminallyunderrated. This novel, describing

Kindred by Octavia E. Butler

You know all those movies where people time travel between modern and slavery times?

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

Another book that needs to become a pillar of the literary canon.

Beloved by Toni Morrison:

There is a reason Toni Morrison was the first (and, to-date, and tragically, only) black woma

Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Bake

Fun story for little kids about one of history’s criminally underrated provocateurs

Firebird by Misty Copeland:

Vibrant illustrations telling the story of the first black prima ballerina of the New York Ballet.

Layla’s Happiness by Mariahadessa Ekere Tallie, Ashleigh Corrin

Book about a black girl that is just about her being happy

Sulwe by Lupita Nyong’o, Vashti Harrison:

Stunning illustrations and a story that centers and celebrates

Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History by Vashti

Little Leaders is an entire series worth looking into, but this one focusing