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The Greatest Books by and About Black Women

Far too often Black women are excluded from the classic literary canon. But Black women have consistently published evocative, thoughtful works. Our stories soar. They provoke. They inspire. The work of Black women across history is expansive. Though this list contains more than 100 selections, this is still only the tip of the literary iceberg.
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All About Love (Bell Hooks)
All About Love
1
Bell Hooks
Americanah (Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie)
Americanah
2
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
An Untamed State (Roxane Gay)
An Untamed State
3
Roxane Gay
Annie John
Annie John
4
Another Brooklyn (Jacqueline Woodson)
Another Brooklyn
5
Jacqueline Woodson
Assata (Assata Shakur)
Assata
6
Assata Shakur
Bad Feminist (Roxane Gay)
Bad Feminist
7
Roxane Gay
Before You Suffocate Your Own Fool Self
Before You Suffocate Your Own Fool Self
8
Beloved (Toni Morrison)
Beloved
9
Toni Morrison
Beneath the Lion's Gaze by Maaza Mengiste
Beneath the Lion's Gaze by Maaza Mengiste
10
Bitch Is the New Black: A Memoir (Helena Andrews)
Bitch Is the New Black: A Memoir
11
Helena Andrews
Black Feminist Thought
Black Feminist Thought
12
Black White and Jewish (Rebecca Walker)
Black White and Jewish
13
Rebecca Walker
Bloodchild (Octavia Butler)
Bloodchild
14
Octavia Butler
The Bluest Eye (Toni Morrison)
The Bluest Eye
15
Toni Morrison
The Boy Next Door (Irene Sabatini)
The Boy Next Door
16
Irene Sabatini
Boy, Snow, Bird (Helen Oyeyemi)
Boy, Snow, Bird
17
Helen Oyeyemi
Breath, Eyes, Memory (Edwidge Danticat)
Breath, Eyes, Memory
18
Edwidge Danticat
The Broke Diaries
The Broke Diaries
19
Brown Girl Brownstones
Brown Girl Brownstones
20
Brown Girl Dreaming (Jacqueline Woodson)
Brown Girl Dreaming
21
Jacqueline Woodson
Brown Girl in the Ring (Nalo Hopkinson)
Brown Girl in the Ring
22
Nalo Hopkinson
Cane River
Cane River
23
Citizen (Claudia Rankine)
Citizen
24
Claudia Rankine
The Coldest Winter Ever
The Coldest Winter Ever
25
The Collected Poems of Lucille Clifton (Lucille Clifton)
The Collected Poems of Lucille Clifton
26
Lucille Clifton
The Color Purple (Alice Walker)
The Color Purple
27
Alice Walker
Coming of Age in Mississippi (Anne Moody)
Coming of Age in Mississippi
28
Anne Moody
Corregidora
Corregidora
29
Daddy Was a Number Runner (Louise Meriwether)
Daddy Was a Number Runner
30
Louise Meriwether
The Darkest Child
The Darkest Child
31
Drinking Coffee Elsewhere
Drinking Coffee Elsewhere
32
Dust (Yvonne Owuor)
Dust
33
Yvonne Owuor
Dust Tracks on a Road: An Autobiography
Dust Tracks on a Road: An Autobiography
34
Ella Baker and the Black Freedom Movement: A Radical Democratic Vision (Barbara Ransby)
Ella Baker and the Black Freedom Movement: A Radical Democratic Vision
35
Barbara Ransby
The Farming of Bones
The Farming of Bones
36
Feminist Theory From Margin to Centre
Feminist Theory From Margin to Centre
37
The Fifth Season (N. K. Jemisin)
The Fifth Season
38
N. K. Jemisin
For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Not Enuf (Ntozake Shange)
For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Not Enuf
39
Ntozake Shange
The Friends (Rosa Guy)
The Friends
40
Rosa Guy
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