It’s Black History Month, and while we love to celebrate Black authors all year round, it’s always fun to have an opportunity to talk more about authors that I love. Today, I’m bringing you a list of five of my favorite nonfiction books by Black authors that I’ve read in the past year. These vary in genre—there’s a couple of memoirs and a couple of educational nonfiction books here—but all are well worth the read and give you insight into both who the authors are as people and how they use their identity as Black people to empower themselves and those around them.
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Refusing Compulsory Sexuality
Author: Sherronda J. Brown
Release Date: September 13th, 2022
Genre: Informative / History
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I was immediately intrigued by this book when I saw the title. To be honest, I didn’t even realize it was going to be about asexuality until I started it, having somehow missed the equally-as-big subtitles. It was such a great look into how the cis-hetero-white patriarchy oppresses people through sexual control and the way it’s in our best interest (regardless of sexuality) to leave those narratives behind.
All Boys Aren’t Blue
Author: George M. Johnson
Release Date: April 28th, 2020
Genre: Memoir
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All Boys Aren’t Blue is George M. Johnson’s memoir, but it’s also a manifesto, written to appeal to both young people and adults. The way he wrote was incredibly accessible while also being a powerful statement on the power of family bonds and the way those can both help and hurt us. Johnson has the perspective of being a clearly gay boy who was good at sports and joined a fraternity, an experience that isn’t talked about very often and was fascinating to hear about.
The Body Liberation Project
Author: Chrissy King
Release Date: March 14th, 2023
Genre: Self Help / Informative
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When I decided to start caring about the way I looked again (I’d spent many years too exhausted to even think about getting dressed in the morning), I knew the first step was to unpack my relationship with my body. The Body Liberation Project offers an honest, powerful alternative to “body positivity” that resonated with me. I’ve recommended this book to so many of my friends and now I’m here recommending it to you as well!
Dear Senthuran
Author: Akwaeke Emezi
Release Date: June 8th, 2021
Genre: Autobiography / Memoir
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Akwaeke Emezi is undeniably one of the best authors of our time. Their lack of adherence to any particular genre or narrative structure makes every book they’ve written great, but in particular Dear Senthuran shines. Emezi’s memoir is poignant and made me cry just as much as it inspired me.
Quietly Hostile
Author: Samantha Irby
Release Date: May 16th, 2023
Genre: Memoir in Essays / Humor
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I hadn’t read anything by Samantha Irby before this, but I deeply enjoyed both the stories and her sense of humor. Mileage will definitely vary here depending on your sense of humor, but Irby’s deeper moments brought it back for me and made this a worthwhile essay collection.
What are your favorite nonfiction books by Black authors?
