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From 20th century classics that crystallized pivotal moments in the fight for civil rights, to hilarious novels, gripping fantasy, and 2020 bestsellers that continue to navigate complex social tensions — we’ve gathered together seventy of the best books by Black authors that belong on your ‘TBR’.
- Lynnette Nicholas
- The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride. There has long been an unspoken connection between the Black and Jewish communities, both of which take center stage in The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store.
- The Queen of Sugar Hill by ReShonda Tate. Hattie McDaniel is known for her roles in films like Gone with the Wind, Alice Adams and Song of the South, and she was the first Black woman to win an Oscar.
- Purple Rising: Celebrating 40 Years of the Magic, Power and Artistry of The Color Purple by Lise Funderburg and Scott Sanders. Named one of Oprah’s favorite things of 2023, Purple Rising pays homage to Alice Walker’s Pulitzer Prize–winning book The Color Purple.
- This Is the Honey: An Anthology of Contemporary Black Poets edited by Kwame Alexander. Kwame Alexander is a literary force: He’s won the Newbery Medal, Caldecott Medal, Coretta Scott King Award and countless other accolades.
Jan 25, 2024 · From wise artists like Maya Angelou to newer voices like Oprah's Book Club pick Leila Mottley and trailblazer Ann Petry, we’ve gathered some of the all-time best books by Black authors to add to your reading list.
In this post, we’ll take you through 30 essential African American literary works from the past hundred years, from classic novels ripe for rediscovery to contemporary collections on the cutting edge of literary fiction..
- Reedsy
- Overview
- Image Awards 2020 literature winners
- What are the Image Awards
- Image Awards 2020 fiction winners and nominees
- Image Awards 2020 nonfiction nominees
- Image Awards 2020 debut author nominees
- Image Awards 2020 biography/ autobiography nominees
- Image Awards 2020 instructional nominees
- Image Awards 2020 poetry nominees
- Image Awards 2020 children's nominees
On Saturday night, the NAACP celebrated the winners of its annual Image Awards event, spanning music, film and literature. We had shared all 40 nominees in the latter category last week and are back with an update on the winners below (you can also scroll through winners of all Image Awards categories). Anthony Anderson hosted the event and some big names won some significant honors: Rihanna was awarded the 2020 President's Award, Lizzo was awarded the Entertainer of the Year Award, Michael B. Jordan won Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture and Just Mercy won Outstanding Motion Picture, Tracee Ellis Ross won the Actress in a Comedy — to name a few highlights.
Even before the awards were announced, there was plenty to celebrate: The majority of the NAACP’s annual Image Awards nominees this year were black women telling stories about black women, from Oscar winner Lupita N’yongo to Grammy winner Erica Campbell. And this year’s Black History Month is likewise celebrating other substantial moments, including the launch of the first-ever 24-hour news channel “by and for” African Americans, the largest propotion of African American members in the Super Bowl’s officiating crew than any NFL game ever, and Howard University’s largest ever donation for its STEM program.
In this article
1.Image Awards 2020 literature winners
2.What are the Image Awards
3.Fiction winner and nominees
Over in the literature pool, eight winners celebrated top awards from their respective categories:
1.Fiction: "The Revisioners: A Novel" by Margaret Wilkerson Sexton
2.Nonfiction: "The Source of Self-Regard: Selected Essays, Speeches, and Meditations" by Toni Morrison
3.Debut author: “I Am Dance: Words and Images of the Black Dancer" by Hal Banfield and Javier Vasquez
4.Biography / autobiography: "More Than Enough: Claiming Space for Who You Are (No Matter What They Say)" by Elaine Welteroth
5.Instructional: "Your Next Level Life: 7 Rules of Power, Confidence, And Opportunity For Black Women In America" by Karen Arrington
Within those Image Awards — which originally covered just two categories, motion picture and television — are now 60 categories comprising people of color in the arts, as well as people and groups who creatively pursue social justice and public service.
This year, 40 books were nominated in the literature category, its genres running the gamut from fiction and YA to poetry and biography. Common themes among the nominees include police brutality, black identity in America, privilege, colorism, inherited generational trauma and the impact slavery carries still for today’s black population. A nominating committee numbering about 250 decide whom to award from the pool of candidates, much like the Oscars.
"The critical and awe-inspiring works of Black literature serve as the narration of and an outlet to share the achievements, trials, and victories of our community,” says Marc Banks, the NAACP’s national press secretary. “As early as 1915's “Birth of A Nation”, Banks explained, the NAACP had been recognizing the "power and sway of media."
"With that, the organization created partnerships with major studios and elected officials to monitor the image and portrayal of African Americans on the screen," Banks told NBC News. "The Image Awards has also been at the forefront of ensuring inclusion of all Americans, regardless of race, is a mainstay in the entertainment industry.”
1. "New Daughters of Africa" by Margaret Busby
A companion to Busby’s 1992 anthology “Daughters of Africa,” this compilation of literature comprises writing from 200 women of African descent including Andrea Levy, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Ayòbámi Adébáyò, Warsan Shire and Zadie Smith. New Daughters of Africa $25.00 $21.41 $32.99 $20.99 $32.99
2. "Out of Darkness, Shining Light: A Novel" by Petina Gappah
The story of how David Livingstone’s body was carried across Africa by those who accompanied him on his journey, sharing the stories of his travels and his death. Out of Darkness, Shining Light: A Novel $14.29 $27.00 $12.99 $10.75
3. "Red at the Bone: A Novel" by Jacqueline Woodson
Woodson, a celebrated black writer, follows three generations in Brooklyn and how their lives are impacted by a teenage pregnancy. Red at the Bone $17.13 $26.00 $15.69 $26.00 $19.77
6. "Breathe: A Letter to My Sons" by Imani Perry
Scholar Imani Perry writes a letter to her children, a call for society to see black children as what they are: deserving of humane treatment. Breathe $13.69 $13.69 $18.00 $13.69 $18.00
7. "Stony the Road: Reconstruction, White Supremacy, and the Rise of Jim Crow" by Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
Gates won last year in the fiction category for “The Annotated African American Folktales.” In this year’s entry, he tells a history of black Americans fighting for equality in post-Civil War America while also fighting the onslaught of White supremacy and supremacist propaganda through the 19th and 20th centuries. Stony the Road $19.39 $30.00 $14.99 $19.44 $30.00
8. "The Source of Self-Regard: Selected Essays, Speeches, and Meditations" by Toni Morrison (winner)
The late writer, Nobel Prize, Pulitzer Prize and Presidential Medal of Freedom winner presents a new nonfiction collection of essays, speeches, and nonfiction writing on society, culture, and art from throughout her extensive 40-year career. The Source of Self-Regard $19.18 $28.95 $19.18 $28.95 $19.19 $31.00
11. "American Spy: A Novel" by Lauren Wilkinson
Wilkinson’s novel follows an undervalued black American FBI agent who is recruited by the CIA to help overthrow a charismatic dictator in Burkina Faso. American Spy $19.00 $27.00 $19.00 $17.00
12. “I Am Dance: Words and Images of the Black Dancer" by Hal Banfield and Javier Vasquez (winner)
The authors present the stories of black dancers and what being a dancer of color means to them. I Am Dance $44.31 $60.00 $44.31 $60.00
13. "More Than Pretty: Doing The Soul Work To Uncover Your True Beauty" by Erica Campbell
Grammy-winning gospel singer Erica Campbell of singing group Mary Mary wants people to embrace their inner beauty and build confidence through the power of God. More Than Pretty $13.34 $26.00 $13.99 $18.86 $26.00
16. "Finding My Voice: My Journey to the West Wing and the Path Forward" by Valerie Jarrett
Jarrett was the longest serving senior adviser to President Barack Obama, and this biography touched on her life as a public servant, government leader, wife, lawyer and mother. Finding My Voice $13.39 $30.00 $13.99 $32.00 $18.89
17. "Free Cyntoia: My Search for Redemption in the American Prison System" by Cyntoia Brown-Long
Cyntoia Brown-Long was sentenced to life in prison for a murder she committed at the age of sixteen, becoming national news when activists worked to make the hashtag #FreeCyntoia go viral, leading to her eventual freedom. This is the story of her road to redemption. Free Cyntoia $15.38 $26.00 $19.93 $18.99 $32.00
18. "More Than Enough: Claiming Space for Who You Are (No Matter What They Say)" by Elaine Welteroth (winner)
Welteroth’s memoir follows her life as she shattered glass ceilings on the road to becoming one of the most powerful black women in media. More Than Enough $18.42 $26.00 $14.29 $26.00 $14.99
21. "Inspire Your Home: Easy, Affordable Ideas to Make Every Room Glamorous" by Farah Merhi
Instagram star and founder of Inspire Me! Home Décor, Merhi shares her tips and tricks to making your house a fabulous home without breaking the bank. Inspire Your Home $22.43 $35.00 $22.49 $22.49 $35.00
22. "Letters to the Finishers (who struggle to finish)" by Candace E. Wilkins
Not quite a self-help book, Wilkins doesn’t claim to be perfect — she’s a work in progress, and this book is a love letter to all of the people who start projects but struggle to get them done. Letters to the Finishers $12.59 $12.52 $10.59 $13.99
23. "More Than Pretty: Doing The Soul Work To Uncover Your True Beauty" by Erica Campbell
In her second nomination on this list, Grammy-winning gospel singer Erica Campbell of singing group Mary Mary wants people to embrace their inner beauty and build confidence through the power of God. More Than Pretty $13.34 $26.00 $13.99 $18.86 $26.00
26. "A Bound Woman Is a Dangerous Thing: The Incarceration of African American Women from Harriet Tubman to Sandra Bland" by DaMaris B. Hill
Hill presents a collection of poems about black women who have struggled for the pursuit of protest, and honors them while unflinchingly discussing the American shame that accompanies their treatment. A Bound Woman Is a Dangerous Thing $17.99 $10.18 $13.60 $7.49 $25.00
27. "Felon: Poems" by Reginald Dwayne Betts (winner)
Betts’ third collection of poems touches on the world of incarceration and what comes afterward. Betts was just 16 when he was charged with carjacking in Virginia, and was in prison for more than eight years before his release in 2005. Felon $17.39 $26.95 $17.39 $26.95 $17.39 $26.95
28. "Honeyfish" by Lauren K. Alleyne
Alleyne’s collection of poetry memorializes and mourns black men and women who have been the victims of police brutality. Honeyfish $12.26 $16.00 $12.29 $12.26
31. "A Place to Land: Martin Luther King Jr. and the Speech That Inspired a Nation" by Barry Wittenstein and Jerry Pinkney
A children’s biography of activist Martin Luther King Jr. and how he wrote his famous speech for the 1963 March on Washington. A Place to Land $14.36 $18.99 $10.34 $18.99 $13.00
32. "Hair Love" by Matthew A. Cherry and Vashti Harrison
Based on the Academy Award-winning short of the same name, “Hair Love” is an ode to loving natural hair and to black daddies and daughters everywhere. Hair Love $10.95 $10.96 $10.96 $17.99
33. "Parker Looks Up: An Extraordinary Moment" by Parker Curry, Jessica Curry and Brittany Jackson
The photo of the two-year-old admiring Kehinde Wiley’s portrait of Michelle Obama at the National Portrait Gallery that went viral gets the novel treatment. Parker Looks Up $12.89 $17.99 $13.79 $17.99 $12.89 $17.99
895 books based on 1131 votes: The Color Purple by Alice Walker, Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, Beloved by Toni Morrison, The Autobi...
May 15, 2024 · From literary icons to fresh, buzzworthy talent, here are 25 great books by African American authors you should add to your reading list today.
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