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These are a few popular books for black women to read this year. This list contains mostly new books from popular black women authors. In this list, I only mention books above a 90% customer rating. These books for black women have thousands of positive reviews on Amazon. Additionally, these books are also highly recommended on GoodReads (a popular website for avid readers).
I hope you enjoy at least two of the books on this list!
The Sisters Are Alright
The most amazing thing about reading this book is that it will take you back in time and allow you to understand and reveal the origins of the Mammy, Sapphire and Jezebel stereotypes. Tamara Winfrey Harris goes into important aspects of life ranging from sex and marriage to beauty and strength. This is a book that interviews women of all backgrounds while making sure that you will enjoy every single page. This is definitely one of the books that every black woman in America should read. It has humor, thrills, drama and can be enjoyed by many demographics.
The Personal Touch
This is a book that teaches you about the things you need to do if you want to be able to succeed in the modern world. Terrie Williams is going to take you on a journey that allowed her to represent some of the most popular and famous actors including the likes of Eddie Murphy. The book gives you a lot of insight on the struggles, the hard work and the process of achieving success, but most of all, it shows you that you need to be consistent and passionate about your work.
Fervent
This is a book that is dedicated to the process of prayer, but it deals with the subject in a very creative and clever way. This is the kind of reading that really captures your attention because of the fresh approach that it offers. You will love it and you will be recommending it to your friends without a doubt. This is a must-read for anyone who is okay with the subject of prayer being discussed in such an open way.
Year of Yes
This is all about learning to become comfortable with things that often make you uncomfortable. Shona Rhimes has an unconventional but luring writing style. The book itself will make you feel that awkwardness and discomfort as she dives deeper into the subjects. Then suddenly you will be glued to each page of her book. This is a brilliant ride by Shonda and you will want to recommend it to your friends. Year of Yes is an excellent book to gift a black woman that needs her spirits lifted.
The Little Black Book of Success
Do you want to have a successful mentor in your pocket? According to Elaine Meryl Brown, Rhonda Joy McLean, and Marsha Haygood, their book will serve as the ultimate guide for you to achieve that. The truth is that they are not bluffing because they are all highly successful black women who are going to teach you important lessons on how to achieve success in every area of your life. Think of this book as a GPS system that will help you navigate through the most difficult moments.
All the Joy You Can Stand
There are all kinds of challenges in life and being able to achieve financial success is hard, but being happy and feeling joy is an even harder task. Debrena Jackson Gandy will show you the way of finding both happiness and success in a way that is going to make you glad that you decided to read this book. You won’t be able to put her book down until you are completely done with it.
You are a Badass
Another book that the black woman in your life should read. Jen Sincero brings us a book that is unlike anything you have ever read before. Not because the content is unique in terms of the topic, but because of the way she masterfully talks about it, you will laugh and relax during this read. This book will show you how to identify when you are having imposter syndrome. You will learn how to love yourself fully and give yourself the chance to really create the life that you envisioned.
Feel Free
For the first time ever, essayist Zadie Smith has gathered her nonfiction pieces of work together for us. Enjoy these five essays that offer a perspective on important events in politics and culture.
We notice that we enjoy adding to this best book for black women to read list. These books below follow the theme of positivity, however, there is a more serious tone. Instead of simple struggles, these books may have more real-world grittiness as well as some dark comedy. And as always, these books will have some focus on real issues within our community. These black writers are finding interesting ways to talk about police violence, mass incarceration, and racism using literature as a medium to keep many of people engaged.
Don’t Call Us Dead
From Danez Smith comes a collection of poems that offers unique perspectives of the world. One poem follows the life of a black, queer, HIV positive individual and allows the reader to experience life through their perspective. Another poem takes the reader to a paradise for young black boys murdered by the police. With this read, you’ll experience a range of emotion from joy to sadness to rage as a result of this spectacular collection.
The Hate U Give
Follow the story of Starr, a 16-year-old girl trying to figure out life while attending a predominantly white high school. Angie Thomas created a strong protagonist in this coming to age story. During this read, Starr has internal struggles from abandonment as well as fighting corruption and increased police violence in her predominantly black neighborhood. Everything changes for Starr after being the sole witness to a shooting involving a police officer and an unarmed black teen.
If you like these books for black women, you may like these popular books from black authors.
