WLT Book Buzz Episode #5 - Black Voices: 41 Books for Everyone of Any Age from Black Joy to History to Empowerment

Laura and Bunmi celebrate 41 books by Black authors. From Black joy to history to empowerment, the books on this list provide affirming messages for children and young adults with a special shout-out to NSK Neustadt Prize finalist Jason Reynolds. Which book “affirms Blackness like no other”? Which kept Bunmi and Laura on the edge of their seats? Find out in this episode.

Black Joy 

• Emile and the Field, by Kevin Young; ill. Chioma Ebinama  

• The King of Kindergarten, by Derrick Barnes; ill. Vanessa Brantley-Newton 

• Instructions for Dancing, by Nicola Yoon 

• Happy Hair, by Mechal Renee Roe 

• Baby Goes to Market / B Is for Baby, by Atinuke; ill. Angela Brooksbank 

• Saturday, by Oge Mora  

• Thank You, Omu!, by Oge Mora  

• Imani’s Moon, by JaNay Brown-Wood; ill. Hazel Mitchell 

• The Last Last-Day-of-Summer, by Lamar Giles; ill. Dapo Adeola 

Exploring Issues  

• The Voice in My Head, by Dana L. Davis 

• From the Desk of Zoe Washington, by Janae Marks 

• Blended, by Sharon M. Draper 

• Isaiah Dunn Is My Hero, by Kelly J. Baptist  

• Playing the Cards You’re Dealt, by Varian Johnson 

• Rocket Says Clean Up!, by Nathan Bryon; ill. Dapo Adeola 

• This Is My America, by Kim Johnson  

• Dear Martin, by Nic Stone 

• On the Come Up, by Angie Thomas 

History 

• The 1619 Project: Born on the Water, by Nikole Hannah-Jones and Renée Watson; ill. Nikkolas Smith  

• Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom, by Carole Boston Weatherford; ill. Kadir Nelson 

• The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963, by Christopher Paul Curtis 

• One Crazy Summer, by Rita Williams-Garcia  

• What Do You Do with a Voice Like That?: The Story of Extraordinary Congresswoman Barbara Jordan, by Chris Barton; ill. Ekua Holmes 

• Stella by Starlight, by Sharon M. Draper 

• Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, by Midlred D. Taylor 

• The ABCs of Black History, by Rico Cortez; ill. Lauren Semmer 

Empowerment / Confidence 

• Black Is a Rainbow Color, by Angela Joy; ill. Ekua Holmes 

• Your Name Is a Song, by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow; ill. Luisa Uribe 

• When We Say Black Lives Matter, by Maxine Beneba Clarke 

• Who Will You Be?, by Andrea Pippins 

• Sulwe, by Lupita Nyong’o; ill. Vashti Harrison  

• I Am Every Good Thing, by Derrick Barnes; ill. Gordon C. James 

• Piecing Me Together, by Renée Watson 

NSK Finalist Jason Reynolds: 

• The TRACK series: Ghost, Patina, Sunny, Lu  

• As Brave as You Are  

• Look Both Ways 

• Long Way Down 

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