Our recommended reads for Black History Month and beyond
For Black History Month this year we wanted to share with you a selection of incredible reads by Black authors. From addictive romance novels to informative non-fiction, these books are so important and should be read all year around. Discover our recommendations below!
Honey & Spice by Bolu Babalola
Honey & Spice is the first novel from Sunday Times bestselling author of Love In Colour, Bolu Babalola. It is the story Kiki Banjo, an expert in relationship-evasion who has made it her mission to protect the women of Whitewell University from the dangers of players and heartbreak by supplying relationship advice on her student radio show, Brown Sugar.
Until Kiki meets distressingly handsome newcomer Malakai Korede, who threatens to tear apart the community of women she’s fought so hard to protect. After publicly declaring him ‘the Wasteman of Whitewell,’ Kiki and Malakai end up embroiled in a fake relationship to save their respective reputations and academic futures. But is she in danger of falling for the very wasteman she warned her sisters against?
Seven Days in June by Tia Williams
A REESE WITHERSPOON BOOK CLUB PICK
THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
‘A sexy, modern love story’ Reese Witherspoon
‘I absolutely loved it’ Jodi Picoult
Seven days to fall in love, fifteen years to forget, and seven days to get it all back again…
When Eva Mercy, a single mother and bestselling erotica writer, and the enigmatic, award-winning novelist Shane Hall meet at a literary event in New York, sparks fly. But what no one knows is that fifteen years earlier, teenage Eva and Shane spent one week together, madly in love. While they may pretend to be strangers, they can’t deny their chemistry.
Over the next seven days, amidst a steamy Brooklyn summer, Eva and Shane reconnect. But Eva is wary of the man who broke her heart and wants Shane out of the city so her life can return to normal. Before he disappears, though, she needs a few questions answered . . .
With its keen observations of creative life in America today, as well as the joys and complications of being a mother and a daughter, Seven Days in June is a hilarious, romantic, and sexy-as-hell story of two writers discovering their second chance at love.
Finding Me by Viola Davis
‘A breathtaking memoir…I was so moved by this book.’ Oprah
‘It is startlingly honest and, at times, a jaw-dropping read, charting her rise from poverty and abuse to becoming the first African-American to win the triple crown of an Oscar, Emmy and Tony for acting.’ BBC News
THE DEEPLY PERSONAL, BRUTALLY HONEST ACCOUNT OF VIOLA’S INSPIRING LIFE
In my book, you will meet a little girl named Viola who ran from her past until she made a life changing decision to stop running forever.
This is my story, from a crumbling apartment in Central Falls, Rhode Island, to the stage in New York City, and beyond. This is the path I took to finding my purpose and my strength, but also to finding my voice in a world that didn’t always see me.
As I wrote Finding Me, my eyes were open to the truth of how our stories are often not given close examination. They are bogarted, reinvented to fit into a crazy, competitive, judgmental world. So I wrote this for anyone who is searching for a way to understand and overcome a complicated past, let go of shame, and find acceptance. For anyone who needs reminding that a life worth living can only be born from radical honesty and the courage to shed facades and be…you.
Finding Me is a deep reflection on my past and a promise for my future. My hope is that my story will inspire you to light up your own life with creative expression and rediscover who you were before the world put a label on you.
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev by Dawnie Walton
ONE OF BARACK OBAMA’S FAVOURITE BOOKS OF 2021
LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN’S PRIZE 2022
‘A thrilling work’ Ta-Nehisi Coates
‘Lovely and lyrical . . . warm and wonderful’ Kiley Reid
A queen of punk before her time. A duo on the brink of stardom. A night that will define their story for ever.
Opal is a fiercely independent young woman pushing against the grain in her style and attitude, a Black punk artist before her time. Despite her unconventional looks, Opal believes she can be a star. So when the aspiring British singer/songwriter Neville Charles discovers her one night, she takes him up on his offer to make rock music together.
In early seventies New York City, just as she’s finding her niche as part of a flamboyant and funky creative scene, a rival band signed to her label brandishes a Confederate flag at a promotional concert. Opal’s bold protest and the violence that ensues set off a chain of events that will not only change the lives of those she loves, but also be a deadly reminder that repercussions are always harsher for women, especially Black women, who dare to speak their truth.
Decades later, as Opal considers a 2016 reunion with Nev, music journalist S. Sunny Shelton seizes the chance to curate an oral history about her idols. Sunny thought she knew most of the stories leading up to the cult duo’s most politicized chapter, but as her interviews dig deeper, a nasty new allegation from an unexpected source threatens everything.
Provocative and haunting, The Final Revival of Opal & Nev introduces a bold new name in contemporary fiction and a heroine the likes of which we’ve not seen in storytelling.
It’s a Continent by Astrid Madimba and Chinny Ukata
Why is Africa still perceived as a single country?
How did African soldiers contribute to World War II?
Who else led the charge against Apartheid in South Africa?
How did an African man become one of the wealthiest people in history?
There are (hi)stories you were never taught in school.
IT’S A CONTINENT delves into these stories and reveals an Africa as you’ve never read it before. Breaking down this vast, beautiful, and complex continent and exploring each nations’ unique history and culture, IT’S A CONTINENT highlights the key historical moments that have shaped each nation and contributed to its modern global position.
Each chapter focuses on a different country and uncovers stories that mainstream education doesn’t address at its peril.
This book aims to highlight the consequences of colonialism and how this legacy reverberates today, as well as how many African countries continue to re-build in its wake.
This is Why I Resist by Dr Shola Mos-Shogbamimu
This book is the hard conversation we must have.
In 2020 we have seen clearer than ever that Black people are still fighting for the right to be judged by the content of their character and not the colour of their skin. In the words of the author, ‘there is no freedom without rights and no rights without the freedom to exercise those rights.’
This book demands change, because Black people are done waiting.
In This Is Why I Resist activist and political commentator, Dr Shola Mos-Shogbamimu digs down into the deep roots of racism and anti-blackness in the UK and the US. Using real life examples from the modern day, Dr Shola shows us the different forms racism takes in our day-to-day lives and asks us to raise our voice to end the oppression.
