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6 Must-Read Fiction Books by Black Authors
By Mary Kay McBrayer
If you learn history best through fiction and want to observe Black History Month, here are six books you should read. Explore the rich tapestry of storytelling spanning from historical fiction, political drama, mystery, and global perspectives. With gripping tales of resilience and resistance to global perspectives, there’s a book for everybody to dig in to.
Situated in Oakland of 1968, Nettie Boileau meets Melvin Mosley at the Black Panthers’ Free Health Clinics. They’re soon deeply in love, and when the two head to launch the Chicago chapter of the Panthers, they find themselves in the crosshairs of J. Edgar Hoover’s infamous anti-civil rights efforts. On top of this high-stakes venture, Nettie also learns that social justice doesn’t always include women.
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In the upper middle class African American St. Louis of the 1940s, the Sable family has controlled the Black vote for decades. Jordan and Sara Sable run a prosperous funeral home, and Jordan is also a political boss. When tragedy disrupts their legacy and dignified empire, the Sables resort to an unconventional solution. This book is a novel… but it’s inspired by the author, Gail Milissa Grant’s own family story.
This item is a preorder. Your payment method will be charged immediately, and the product is expected to ship on or around February 4, 2025. This date is subject to change due to shipping delays beyond our control.
Speaking of political intrigue, you might want to try this satirical thriller by former Afro-Latino Miami homicide prosecutor, now Chief of Staff to Congress and author of this book, Robin Peguero. Cameron Leann arrives to D.C. from an Iowa farm to join a group of junior staffers working under the cohort of U.S. Senators known as the Gang of Six, and all of the juniors hate their bosses. When a surprise leak sinks the President’s Supreme Court pick, the Gang of Six all turn on each other, and it’s hard to follow the new allegiances. Naturally the juniors are all caught in the middle… and then one senator turns up dead.
This item is a preorder. Your payment method will be charged immediately, and the product is expected to ship on or around March 26, 2024. This date is subject to change due to shipping delays beyond our control.
Mystery master Walter Mosley returns to P.I. Joe King Oliver in this new installment: Oliver’s beloved Grandma B has a single dying wish, to see her estranged son, Oliver’s father. He’s been living underground since his release from prison, so Oliver not only needs to find him, but he also must prove his innocence to protect his family’s future. At the same time, the wife and child of California billionaire have gone missing… and once Oliver finds Marigold and her daughter, he realizes it’s better for her to stay hidden. But is that solely for Marigold’s benefit, or does Oliver have ulterior motives?
This item is a preorder. Your payment method will be charged immediately, and the product is expected to ship on or around January 28, 2025. This date is subject to change due to shipping delays beyond our control.
Langston Hughes is one of the most famous voices of the Harlem Renaissance, and this collection of his early poetry from 1921-27 is curated by award-winning author, Danez Smith. In fact, these early poems were written without formal training on whatever scraps of paper were nearby, all inspired by working-class Black people he met through his travels before he turned 25 years old. Smith offers their insight and perspective on all the works contained here, as well.
This item is a preorder. Your payment method will be charged immediately, and the product is expected to ship on or around November 19, 2024. This date is subject to change due to shipping delays beyond our control.
This novel tells the story of the Ewerike family, who settled in Florida after surviving the Nigerian Civil War. In particular, the father, Fidelis, who is now a barrister but was also a POW, hears of 276 schoolgirls abducted from their school in Nigeria. His survivor’s guilt and post-traumatic stress manifest by seeing similarities between his sixteen-year-old daughter, Amara, and his sister Ugochi, who went missing during the Civil War. He locks Amara in her room to protect her, and his wife (her mother) Adaobi tries to free her with no success. She asks their local preacher for liberation from the curse she’s convinced has followed her family, and the family tries to find its footing amid the psychological and physical generational trauma.
This item is a preorder. Your payment method will be charged immediately, and the product is expected to ship on or around February 4, 2025. This date is subject to change due to shipping delays beyond our control.
Mary Kay McBrayer is the author of Madame Queen: The Life and Crimes of Harlem’s Underground Racketeer, Stephanie St. Clair and America’s First Female Serial Killer: Jane Toppan and the Making of a Monster. You can find her short works on history, true crime, and horror at Oxford American,Narratively, Mental Floss, and FANGORIA, among other publications. She hosts the podcast about women in true crime who are not just victims, The Greatest True Crime Stories Ever Told. Follow Mary Kay McBrayer on Instagram and Twitter, or check out her author site here.
