March Is Designated as National Reading Month: Books by Black Authors for All Ages

Above: The New Citizens Press Community Action Network (TNCPCAN) has always been supportive of reading programs. Katreva N. Bisbee volunteered during one of TNCPCAN’s book giveaways on October 30, 2017. They have given away about 10,000 books to our community.

Photo by TNCPNEWS

By Rina Risper

The New Citizens Press

When my children were growing up, books by writers of color were hard to find. Nevertheless, I would take my children to a bookstore almost every month because I knew how important reading had been to me as a child. When I was in Grade 4, Ms. Levine, the librarian at my elementary school, asked me to volunteer at the library. However, the main characters of the books that I read voraciously did not have the same experiences that I had undergone, nor were they Black or Brown.

Later, as a reader, a writer, and an occasional novice literary critic, I loved reading young adult books that flowed and had a compelling storyline. But it was difficult to find titles for young people too; the most exciting book that I remember reading was “Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret” by Judy Blume. If you have not read it, I can tell you that it is a preteen story about boys, friendship, religion, kissing, growing bodies, and periods. I couldn’t find many other similar titles as a child. I suppose others are having trouble finding books of their taste too.

This made me wonder since February is the month of love and Black History, why not intertwine it with National Reading Month in March? After all, books are the best means to learn new things. Even though my children are adults now, I want to see what is available for those who want to gift children’s books with Black children as the protagonists. Children will devour books, learning a lot in the process, if you encourage them. Reading to them is also a great way to determine if your child loves a book. If you have a tablet, you can also download e-books.

However, personally, I love the feel of paper between my fingers. Now it is easier to figure out the age appropriateness of books by just researching on Google, although they don’t have warnings about explicit content.

Here, I have compiled a list by grade:

Grades 9–12

“The Skin I’m In” by Sharon Flakes