North Carolina Black History Reading List - 33 books

February is Black History Month. We’ve put together a big list of Black History Month events in the Charlotte area, and that list is growing.

Extend the learning by welcoming some new books into your home library. These are books that address Black history and culture, and also have a connection to North Carolina — either in subject matter, or through the author or illustrator.

You can find many of these books in your local bookstore — and if not, you can ask the store to order them. We highly recommend you shopping from local bookstores. However, we’re listing the links on Amazon for your convenience.

Please read on for a list of North Carolina Black history books for children and adults. The books for kids are listed first. Jump to adult books.

Books for Kids

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That Flag

Hardcover Book
Brown, Tameka Fryer (Author)
English (Publication Language)

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My Hands Sing the Blues: Romare Bearden’s Childhood Journey

Hardcover Book
Harvey, Jeanne Walker (Author)
English (Publication Language)

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The Talk

Hardcover Book
Williams, Alicia D. (Author)
English (Publication Language)

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Victory. Stand!: Raising My Fist for Justice

Smith, Tommie (Author)
English (Publication Language)
208 Pages – 09/27/2022 (Publication Date) – Norton Young Readers (Publisher)

We Were the Fire: Birmingham 1963

Amazon Kindle Edition
Moses, Shelia P. (Author)
English (Publication Language)

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Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut

Hardcover Book
Barnes, Derrick (Author)
English (Publication Language)

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Salt in His Shoes: Michael Jordan in Pursuit of a Dream

Jordan, Deloris (Author)
English (Publication Language)
32 Pages – 11/01/2003 (Publication Date) – Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers (Publisher)

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Sing a Song: How Lift Every Voice and Sing Inspired Generations

Hardcover Book
Lyons, Kelly Starling (Author)
English (Publication Language)

Standing in the Need of Prayer: A Modern Retelling of the Classic Spiritual

Amazon Kindle Edition
Weatherford, Carole Boston (Author)
English (Publication Language)

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Not Done Yet: Shirley Chisholm’s Fight for Change

Hardcover Book
Brown, Tameka Fryer (Author)
English (Publication Language)

Take Back the Block

Amazon Kindle Edition
Giles, Chrystal D. (Author)
English (Publication Language)

BOX: Henry Brown Mails Himself to Freedom

Amazon Kindle Edition
Weatherford, Carole Boston (Author)
English (Publication Language)

One Love: (Multicultural Childrens Book, Mixed Race Childrens Book, Bob Marley Book for Kids, Music Books for Kids)

Amazon Kindle Edition
Marley, Cedella (Author)
English (Publication Language)

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Jayden’s Impossible Garden

Hardcover Book
Mangal, Mélina (Author)
English (Publication Language)

Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky (Volume 1) (Tristan Strong Novel, A)

Amazon Kindle Edition
Mbalia, Kwame (Author)
English (Publication Language)

A History of Me

Amazon Kindle Edition
Theodore, Adrea (Author)
English (Publication Language)

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Genesis Begins Again

Williams, Alicia D. (Author)
English (Publication Language)
384 Pages – 08/18/2020 (Publication Date) – Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books (Publisher)

Books for Adults

Legacy: Three Centuries of Black History in Charlotte, North Carolina

Grundy, Pamela (Author)
English (Publication Language)
139 Pages – 02/11/2022 (Publication Date) – Nerve Media Productions LLC (Publisher)

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All the Songs We Sing: Celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the Carolina African American Writers’ Collective

English (Publication Language)
224 Pages – 06/02/2020 (Publication Date) – Carolina Wren Press (Publisher)

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Half in Shadow: The Life and Legacy of Nellie Y. McKay

Benjamin, Shanna Greene (Author)
English (Publication Language)
276 Pages – 04/21/2021 (Publication Date) – The University of North Carolina Press (Publisher)

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Romare Bearden in the Homeland of His Imagination: An Artist’s Reckoning with the South (A Ferris and Ferris Book)

Hardcover Book
Gilmore, Glenda Elizabeth (Author)
English (Publication Language)

Just Over the Hill: Black Appalachians in Jackson County, Western North Carolina

Amazon Kindle Edition
McDonald, Victoria A. Casey (Author)
English (Publication Language)

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Home Is Where: An Anthology of African American Poetry from the Carolinas

Used Book in Good Condition
Dawes, Kwame (Author)
English (Publication Language)

John Chavis: African American Patriot, Preacher, Teacher, and Mentor (1763-1838)

Used Book in Good Condition
Othow, Helen Chavis (Author)
English (Publication Language)

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Charlotte (NC) (Black America Series)

Used Book in Good Condition
Ely, Vermelle Diamond (Author)
English (Publication Language)

The Geography of Jazz

Amazon Kindle Edition
Moore, Lenard D. (Author)
English (Publication Language)

Sale

Sycorax’s Daughters

Brooks PhD, Kinitra (Author)
English (Publication Language)
565 Pages – 03/10/2017 (Publication Date) – Cedar Grove Publishing (Publisher)

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Sorting Out the New South City, Second Edition: Race, Class, and Urban Development in Charlotte, 1875–1975

Hanchett, Tom (Author)
English (Publication Language)
428 Pages – 02/03/2020 (Publication Date) – The University of North Carolina Press (Publisher)

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Coltrane on Coltrane: The John Coltrane Interviews (Musicians in Their Own Words)

DeVito, Chris (Author)
English (Publication Language)
416 Pages – 04/01/2012 (Publication Date) – Chicago Review Press (Publisher)

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History of African Americans in North Carolina

Crow, Jeffrey J. (Author)
English (Publication Language)
304 Pages – 01/01/1992 (Publication Date) – North Carolina Office of Archives and History (Publisher)

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