It’s Black History Month! This month, and every month, it’s so important to read diverse voices.
If you’re looking for some inspiration for your reading this month, how about a family saga? Family sagas follow a single family as their decisions and actions ripple across generations. I love character-driven books, and family sagas really offer that opportunity to deeply understand and connect with characters. Here’s a few of my favorite family sagas written by Black authors:
Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison: A lyrical, melancholic tale following a man on a journey from his rustbelt city through his family’s past in a search for identity. It’s gorgeously written, gut-wrenching, and stylistically complex.
The Revisioners by Margaret Wilkerson Sexton: A lush, atmospheric story alternating perspectives between a modern single mother and her great-great grandmother Josephine, a former slave who purchased her own farm in 1925. This one is haunting, emotional, and a thoughtful exploration of the impact of slavery through generations.
Butter Honey Pig Bread by Francesca Ekwuyasi: Told through the interwoven stories of two sisters and their mother, this is a mystical, lyrical novel with themes of motherhood, friendship, love, and faith. I was blown away by this emotional debut and so look forward to reading Ekwuyasi’s future books.
Some Sing, Some Cry by Ntozake Shange and Ifa Bayeza: A sweeping, dramatic historical saga following seven generations of a musically gifted family through key moments in United States history. This is an epic story, stretching from the promise of emancipation to the digital age, but it never feels slow. The women in the Mayfield family are strong, courageous, and triumphant against brutal obstacles.
Looking for even more suggestions? Check out more titles here. What are you reading this month? Any genres you’d like to explore with a focus on diverse authors? Let me know!
I Blame My Shelf 