Read Black: Books by Black Authors
by The ProInspire Team
February 17, 2023
In honor of Black History Month, the ProInspire team shares their favorite books by Black authors. We encourage you to add these books to your collection to commemorate the achievements of Black Americans throughout history, spark conversation, challenge your thinking, and celebrate Black life, expression, scholarship, and thought leadership.
Book for fiction fans
- Alyssa Cole: When No One is Watching
- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: Americanah
- Robert Jones, Jr: The Prophets
Books around Black History, Present, and Future
- Charisse Jones and Kumea Shorter-Gooden, Ph.D: Shifting: The Double Lives of Black Women in America
- Dawn Marie Down: Mothering While Black: Boundaries and Burdens of Middle-Class Parenthood
- Malcolm X and Alex Haley: The Autobiography of Malcolm X
Books around reimagining systems
- Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò: Elite Capture: How the Powerful Took Over Identity Politics (And Everything Else)
- Mariame Kaba: We Do This ‘Til We Free Us
Books centering reflection and transformation
- Octavia Raheem: Pause, Rest, Be: Stillness Practices for Courage in Times of Change
- Rhonda V. Magee: The Inner Work of Racial Justice: Healing Ourselves and Transforming Our Communities Through Mindfulness
- Shawn A. Ginwright, Ph.D: The Four Pivots: Reimagining Justice and Reimagining Ourselves
- Tricia Hershey: Rest is Resistance: A Manifesto
Books for young readers and emerging leaders
- Amanda Gorman: Change Sings
- Linda Williams Jackson: The Lucky Ones
- Meena Harris: Kamala and Maya’s Big Idea
- Nikki Grimes: One Last Word: Wisdom from the Harlem Renaissance