Looking for some great reads? (Picture: Getty / Waterstones)
Black History Month is a great time to dive deep into fiction by Black authors.
An opportunity to immerse yourself into the wide spectrum of Black stories, learn about Black history, and be part of discussions about race and identity.
From stories that centre Black joy to hard-hitting modern classics, here are some wonderful books to add from our reading list to yours for Black History Month -and beyond.
(Picture: Waterstones)
Ordinary People
By Diana Evans
Shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction 2019, the Rathbones Folio Prize 2019, and the Orwell Prize for Political Fiction 2019, Ordinary People shares the exceedingly normal and no less all-consuming struggles of two couples in South London in 2008.
Get it from Waterstones for £8.99
(Picture: Waterstones)
Swing Time
By Zadie Smith
Swing Time takes us dancing through the decades of an unsteady friendship between two girls who love dance – one’s a gifted performer while the other’s talents take her far, far away.
Get it from Waterstones for £8.99
(Picture: Waterstones)
Long Way Down
By Jason Reynolds and with illustrations by Danica Novgorodoff
This verse-novel-turned-graphic-novel, which won the Kate Greenaway Medal 2022, follows Will as he sets out to get revenge on the person who shot his brother but ends up derailed by visits from other people he knew and lost in years gone by.
Get it from Waterstones for £12.99
(Picture: Waterstones)
An American Marriage
By Tayari Jones
Winner of the Women’s Prize for Fiction 2019, An American Marriage explores the impact a wrongful conviction can have on a young Black couple living the ‘American dream’.
Get it from Waterstones for £8.99
(Picture: Waterstones)
Boy, Snow, Bird
By Helen Oyeyemi
This retelling of the Snow White fairytale by award-winning Helen Oyeyemi follows three women and the complicated ties that bind them.
Get it from Waterstones for £9.99
(Picture: Waterstones)
The Hate U Give
By Angie Thomas
Now a modern classic, this British Book Awards Children’s Book of the Year 2018-winning novel might be a YA book, but it’s not scared to delve into hard truths about class, race and police brutality.
Get it from Waterstones for £7.99
(Picture: Waterstones)
Who’s Loving You: Love Stories by Women of Colour
Edited by Sareeta Domingo
This collection of short stories centres women of colour to celebrate the dizzying highs and crushing lows of love.
Get it from Waterstones for £8.99
(Picture: Waterstones)
Mr Loverman
By Bernardine Evaristo
Booker Prize-winning novelist Bernardine Evaristo’s Mr Loverman follows 74-year-old Barrington Jedidiah Walker as he struggles to find a way to end his marriage to Carmel and live his truth as a gay man with his real love and childhood friend, Morris.
Get it from Waterstones for £8.99
(Picture: Waterstones)
Luster
By Raven Leilani
Longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction 2021, Luster is all about Edie as she veers from hook-up to hook-up to Eric, a white father who’s got an adopted black daughter and a wife who’s agreed (kind of) to an open marriage.
Get it from Waterstones for £9.99
(Picture: Waterstones)
Honey & Spice
By Bolu Babalola
‘Romcomoisseur’ and Sunday Times Bestselling author Bolu Babalola gives readers pure romantic comedy with her book Honey & Spice, which follows Kiki Banjo as she tries to navigate a fake relationship with attractive ‘wasteman’ Malakai Korede – without actually falling for him for real.
Get it from Waterstones for £14.99
(Picture: Waterstones)
Little & Lion
By Brandy Colbert
Another impactful YA novel, the Stonewall Children’s Award-winning Little & Lion follows Suzette as she struggles to deal with her stepbrother’s mental illness and the feelings she’s starting to get for the girl he loves.
Get it from Waterstones for £7.99
(Picture: Waterstones)
Take My Hand
By Dolen Perkins-Valdez
Inspired by real events, this heartbreaking and compassionate book centres around two young Black girls and one woman’s fight for justice against a particularly disturbing arm of oppression.
Get it from Waterstones for £14.99
Black History Month
October marks Black History Month, which reflects on the achievements, cultures and contributions of Black people in the UK and across the globe, as well as educating others about the diverse history of those from African and Caribbean descent.
For more information about the events and celebrations that are taking place this year, visit the official Black History Month website.
October is Black History Month (Picture: Metro.co.uk)
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Black History Month
October marks Black History Month, which reflects on the achievements, cultures and contributions of Black people in the UK and across the globe, as well as educating others about the diverse history of those from African and Caribbean descent.
For more information about the events and celebrations that are taking place this year, visit the official Black History Month website.
October is Black History Month (Picture: Metro.co.uk)
SHOPPING: From joyful stories to hard-hitting modern classics, here are some wonderful books to add to your reading list.