Black American Nonfiction
Enjoy these nonfiction titles by Black American authors about Black history, culture, and life published within the last two years and selected by librarians at The Seattle Public Library. Annotations from review sources, as cited. (January 2026)
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Lifting as They Climb
Pressley-Sanon ... provides edifying profiles of six influential Black women Buddhists... The result is a worthwhile glimpse at the rich and complicated intersections of Blackness, womanhood, and spirituality. (Publishers Weekly)
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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My Black Country
Randall beautifully weaves together history and her personal story in a narrative informed by a deep love of country music, her commitment to undoing an ugly legacy of whitewashing, and her determination to change the face of Nashville to create space for herself and other Black artists. (Booklist)
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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The Black Utopians
Robertson's book shows that formerly enslaved people established 200 to 1,200 settlements in the U.S. and Canada between the late 18th and early 20th centuries, and their frameworks for self-ruled and safe spaces for Black people bear emotional and tangible links to the Black nationalism of the 1960s and '70s and the 21st-century Black Lives Matter movement. (Library Journal)
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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On Morrison
Serpell, a novelist and professor of English at Harvard, provides an insightful and stimulating exploration of the work of Nobel Prize winner Toni Morrison. Through exceptional close readings and sharp analyses, Serpell puts Morrison’s genius on full display. (Publishers Weekly)
Format: Book
Availability: On order
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A Black Queer History of the United States
Professors and gender studies authorities Snorton and Bost collaborate on this survey of the rich, vibrant, and overlooked queer Black culture in the U.S. across a century. (Kirkus)
Format: Book
Availability: All copies in use
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The Conjuring of America
Black feminist philosopher Stewart examines how magic has shaped Black experience in America by tracing the transformations of the conjure woman from the Negro Mammy during slavery to the Candy Lady, a revered elder in Black communities during the Civil Rights Movement. Stewart melds personal reflections, African mythology, and abundant primary sources, most notably interviews conducted by the Federal Writers’ Project, to create a brisk, spirited narrative. An entertaining, informative contribution to Black history. (Kirkus)
Format: Book
Availability: All copies in use
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Black California Gold
Black California Gold takes the temperature of black life in the California Bay Area, exploring the depths of race, family, migration, and identity amid a landscape of urban redevelopment, advanced gentrification, and black displacement across the region. (Publisher description)
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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The Afterlife of Malcolm X
Journalist Whitaker examines the far-reaching legacy of Malcolm X in this captivating biography. Readers will relish this sweeping and singular work. (Publishers Weekly)
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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Languages of Home
Novelist, essayist, and critic Wideman delivers a profound, career-spanning collection of essays on literature, sports, and culture. Incisive and enthralling, the collection puts Wideman’s keen critical eye and cultural awareness on full display. The result is an essential chronicle of the American experience. (Publishers Weekly)
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts
With this deeply personal cookbook/memoir, Wilkinson, former poet laureate of Kentucky, welcomes readers into her kitchen to share the culinary legacy passed down through five generations of Black Appalachians. (Library Journal)
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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