If you’ve been following my Twitter account for a while, you’ll know that I work on the Children’s floor of a bookshop. It’s brilliant job for several reasons, one of which is being able to make recommendations for young readers!
This really comes into play when we celebrate events like Black History Month and it’s so rewarding to be able to put a book in a child’s hands where they can see themselves or that makes them light up. Recently I’ve been coming up with displays for Black History Month and Black Lives Matter and thought I’d share some of my recommendations with you!
I want to note here that Black history should never simply be confined to one month of the year. There’s nothing stopping you from picking up these books for your little bookworms (or even doing some of your own research) all year round. Especially with the Black Lives Matter movement, conversations should have been started and it’s our job to keep the momentum going, to continue to educate ourselves and help to make the world a better place for everyone.
Little Bookworms:
📚 Big People, Little Dreams series:
(Available in board book form!)
Muhammad Ali
Maya Angelou
Josephine Baker
Ella Fitzgerald
Rosa Parks
Wilma Rudolph
Harriet Tubman
📚 Dream Big, Little Leader by Vashti Harrison
📚 Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History by Vashti Harrison
📚 Little Leaders: Exceptional Men in Black History by Vashti Harrison
📚 Antiracist Baby by Ibram X. Kendi
9-12 Readers:
📚 Big People, Little Dreams series:
(This series is brilliant and is still expanding so keep an eye out for new releases!)
Muhammad Ali
Maya Angelou
Josephine Baker
Jean-Michel Basquiat
Ella Fitzgerald
Aretha Franklin
Martin Luther King Jr.
Jesse Owens
Rosa Parks
Pelé
Prince
Wilma Rudolph
Harriet Tubman
Stevie Wonder
📚 DK Life Stories series:
Martin Luther King Jr.
Katherine Johnson
Nelson Mandela
Jesse Owens
Harriet Tubman
📚 Rebel Girls series:
Madam C. J. Walker Builds a Business
Dr. Wangari Maathai Plants a Forest
📚 Extraordinary Lives series by Dr Sheila Kanani:
Michelle Obama
Rosa Parks
📚 Timelines from Black History: Leaders, Legends, Legacies from DK
📚 500 Words: Black Lives Matter by Chris Evans, Angelica Bell and Michael Underwood
📚 What is Race? Who are Racists? Why Does Skin Colour Matter? And Other Big Questions by Claire Heuchan and Nikesh Shulka
📚 Black and British by David Olusoga
📚 Black History Matters by Robin Walker
Teenage:
(If your teens are old enough, you could obviously start to look at more general history books, as well as those just aimed at teens that I list here!)
📚 We Are Not Yet Equal by Carol Anderson
📚 I Will Not be Erased edited by gal-dem
📚 This Book is Anti-Racist by Tiffany Jewell
📚 Stamped: Racism, Antiracism and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
📚 Taking Up Space by Chelsea Kwakye and Ore Ogunbiyi
📚 It’s Trevor Noah: Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
What do you think of this list? Are there any more that titles that you’d recommend? Have you read any of the books on this list? I’d love to know!
You can always find me over on Instagram and Twitter if you’d like to discuss these books (or any others that I’ve featured) in more detail 😌
Hannah's Bookshelf 🌸 
This is great! Jason Reynolds remixed Stamped From the Beginning by Ibram X. Kendi for a young adult audience. It is simply called Stamped! It would be a perfect addition to this list.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Not sure how I missed that one! Thank you!
LikeLike
I am so jealous of your job! It sounds like so much fun! I’ll have to check these books out myself! Great post! ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s such a fun job! I’ve learnt so much since being there 🤩 Hope you enjoy them! 🥰
LikeLiked by 1 person