What to Read Next: Black History Month 2025

Imani Perry studies the color blue in all its history and hues in this remarkable analysis. From West Africa to the American South, Black in Blues examines the color’s relation to Blackness and culture from the award-winning author of South to America.

Juan Williams holds a mirror to the present by reflecting on past movements in this urgent call to action. Unflinching and meticulously researched, Williams reminds us that there is always more work to be done.

Based on on-the-ground research compiled over seven years of travel through thirty countries, An African History of Africa is a meticulously researched, sweeping study of the continent’s culture, people and history. Shining a light on overlooked African scholarship, Badawi presents a decolonized history in this remarkable and accessible account.

Eve L. Ewing dissects how American schools perpetuate systemic racism from the very start of children’s lives. By examining the history of Black and Native students in schools, Ewing’s sharp and illuminating study is an eye-opening account of inequality in the United States.

Irvin Weathersby Jr. journeys around the United States, taking readers along on a trail of public art and installations that alternately glorify or condemn our country’s horrific white supremacist past. From Louisiana to North Carolina to South Dakota and more, In Open Contempt will change your perception of some of our most famous monuments.

Gripping, informative and heart-wrenching, Geisberg gathers intimate accounts, ads and public pleas from formerly enslaved people who were forced apart from their families. Last Seen highlights one of the most horrific — and often overlooked — impacts of slavery, one that still reverberates throughout America today.

A remarkable history detailing the Black struggle for home and safety in America, but also the inspirational story of Black innovation in creating an ideal life in a country far from ideal.

A riveting account of an American hero. Coauthored by Tubman’s great-great-great grandniece, Harriet Tubman is a compelling and inspiring deep-dive into the life, myth and legend and history of an indelible figure.

A remarkable and transcendent account of slavery and intergenerational trauma, featuring Lee Hawkins’ personal experiences. Powerful, sharp and raw, this is a poignant portrait of slavery’s overwhelming impact on our world.

A detailed, glittering account of a fundraising soiree for the ages: the very first presidential campaign for a Black woman. With a chapter-by-chapter look at individual guests, A More Perfect Party is a necessary deep-dive into a trailblazing politician.

This bestselling, conversation-driving anthology features some of our top journalists, historians, poets, essayists, and photographers examining the lasting impacts of slavery in America.

Four of Baldwin’s critically-acclaimed, bestselling essay collections in a single volume, with a terrific new introduction by Eddie S. Glaude. “[Baldwin] is an artist, a writer, in conversation with a wide range of influences (inheritances and ancestors) that shape what he sees and how he inhabits the genre.”

Trailblazer. Activist. Visionary. James Baldwin inspired countless artists with his pointed, elegant and electric work — Ta-Nehisi Coates, Roxane Gay, and Jason Reynolds, to name a few. Showcasing his inimitable voice through essays on culture, politics and identity, Notes of a Native Son is a revolutionary, necessary read.

The Warmth of Other Suns details the Great Migration, the movement of Black Americans out of the South and to the North and West. This is a work of massive importance, written with an immensely approachable voice to boot.

A $500 investment lays the foundation for an iconic beauty products empire — the first African American company to have its stock traded on Wall Street — in this unforgettable success story.

One of Zora Neale Hurston’s greatest strengths lay in her use of language and diction, creating an immersive, exacting reading experience. An incredible historic account published almost 60 years after her death, Barracoon is a shining example of what made her one of our most important writers.

A meticulously detailed account of a momentous case in American history. Michelle Adams gives readers and in-depth look at the pursuit of racial equality by examining where we’ve been — and where we’re going.

Josephine Baker’s name is synonymous with the roaring twenties, iconic flapper girls and her signature pet cheetah — but did you know she was a French spy, too? Sharp and dazzling, Fearless and Free tells the incredible life story of an unstoppable force.

A mother’s dying wish, a daughter’s determination and one complex family history. From These Roots traces a fragile lineage and uncovers the painful truth of revisionism and injustice in America.

A memoir that centers on reading, writing and the way literature can shape us and make us feel seen, Gather Me is an ode to the power of storytelling.

A revelatory testament to a contentious — and often misunderstood — figure in American history.

Featuring an afterword from acclaimed poet Reginald Dwayne Betts, this is a beautifully designed volume of King’s timely and timeless letter.

Groundbreaking and profound, Reclaiming the Black Body is an urgent study of Black women’s relationship with fatphobia, bodily autonomy, and generational traumas relating to food.

A fresh take on a pivotal moment in American history, rigorously researched and recounted in incredible detail that deepens our understanding of the end of the Civil War and the start of Reconstruction.

Conventional wisdom says ideas and social concepts drive the creation of political policy; this award-winning book that made its author a bestselling, household name explains how the truth is actually reversed, and policy creates the ideas it needs to justify its existence.

An intimate and accessible story of power and politics, family and home, secrets and lies, that never loses sight of the personal costs of change.

A powerful collection of essays that combines personal stories with global themes, from colonialism to motherhood to climate disasters and more.

Shocking, engrossing and thought-provoking, Skloot chronicles how scientists took Henrietta’s cells without consent. Lacks’ harrowing case raises questions of race, science and bioethics in modern medicine.

An inspiring, emotionally resonant true story of family and love, endurance and survival.

Tiya Miles uncovers the humanity behind the legend in this brilliant account of Harriet Tubman’s life. Through thorough research and careful analysis, Miles fleshes out the true story of this complex leader and irrepressible dreamer.