Today, August 9th is a holiday for my people, it is #BookLoversDay. This holiday encourages everyone to pick up a book and read. These are some of my favorite books broken up by genres.
Fiction
I read a lot of books about slavery because those who do not know the past will repeat it. Also, it works as a reminder of how far Black people have come and it is part of the history of the United States. The stories remind us that Black people have been resilient throughout time.
- Someone Knows My Name by Lawrence Hill – This book follows Aminata Diallo, who was stolen from Africa as a child to be a slave in South Carolina. This book does not gloss over the horrors and atrocities of slavery. Aminata’s life is not just about being a slave, it also covers her journey to freedom.
- Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi – “You are not your mother’s first daughter. There was one before you. And in my village, we have a saying about separated sisters. They are like a woman and her reflection, doomed to stay on opposite sides of the pond.” This is book follows the story of two half-sisters, Effia and Esi born in 18th Century Ghana, and their descendants. Esi is abducted into slavery and her descendants live across the ocean in the United States while Effia and her descendants stay in West Africa.
Memoirs/Audiobiography
Memoirs is one of my favorite genres because fascinated people’s journies and the motivation behind their actions. It is also a less invasive way to people watch.
- Love Warrior by Glennon Doyle Melton – Melton’s memoir is about her struggles being a mom who is also a recovering bulimic and alcoholic and her husband’s infidelity but it is also about the familiarity of pain. She writes beautifully about pain and love, who these two emotions are intertwined.
- The Measure of a Man: A Spiritual Autobiography by Sidney Poitier – Mr. Poitier is the FIRST Black actor to win an Academy Award for Best Actor. This book is not only about his career as an actor but also his experiences with racism and activism. One of my favorite quotes from the book, “You don’t have to become something you’re not to be better than you were.”
Science Fiction/Horror
I cannot watch horror movies because I will have nightmares for days. But I cannot stop reading sci-fi and horror books. I started reading Dean Knootz books when I was a pre-teen and my love for the genre only increased when I discovered Black voices in literature. To have this representation in my favorite genre solidified my love for it.
- The Good House by Tananarive Due – This house is hunted and affecting the Toussaint’s family and the community. If you enjoy a good horror book with a Black family as the protagonist then this book is for you.
- Kindred by Octavia E. Butler – In 1976 California, Dana, a Black woman, is unexpectedly transported into Antebellum South. Bulter explores how Dana handles being a 20th Century Black woman being married to a white man and the terror of slavery.
Non-Fiction
Good non-fiction is a way for me to educate myself on topics that I want to learn more about.
- I’m Every Woman: Remixed Stories of Marriage, Motherhood, and Work by Lonnae O’Neal Parker – A Staff Writer for the Washington Post, Parker writes with humor about being a Black wife, mother and a journalist. Parker wrote, “Parker puts it, “It’s not that I believe that black women have all the answers—only that we have struggled with the questions longer and that sometimes that makes some of our toolsets more expansive.”
- Shifting: The Double Lives of Black Women in America by Charisse Jones, Kumea Shorter-Gooden – The book is the result of a research study by the authors on how racism and sexism affect the personal, professional, mental, physical and spiritual health of Black women.
If you are still stuck for ideas, here is a list of book reviews.
Share in the comments what books you are reading for #BookLoversDay
