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Celebrate Black History Month - 2025

Established in 1976, Black History Month is held every February and is an annual celebration and recognition of the contributions and sacrifices of Black Americans. It's also a great time (though certainly not the only time) to learn more about the important people and events that have helped shape America, as well as those who are continuing to transform its future.

Cincinnati & Hamilton County Public Library

45 items

  • Rising From the Ashes

    Los Angeles. 1992, Edward Jae Song Lee, Latasha Harlins, Rodney King, and a City on Fire

    Yoo, Paula,
    Based on 100+ personal interviews as seen through the eyes and experiences of those who were there, this compelling, nuanced account of Los Angeles’ 1992 uprising, which erupted in violence, discusses its impact on Korean and Black…
    BookNew York : Norton Young Readers, 2024. — 305.800979 Y59 2024
  • A two-time Olympic gold medalist and three-time world champion in track from South Africa reflects on her groundbreaking career and her fight for identity and the right to compete in professional sports after she was forced to take…
    BookNew York, NY : Norton Young Readers, an imprint of W. W. Norton & Company, [2024] — 796.42092 S471Zs2 2024
  • Flamboyants

    the Queer Harlem Renaissance I Wish I'd Known

    Johnson, George M. (George Matthew), 1985-
    Profiling the Black and Queer icons from the Harlem Renaissance, an Emmy nominated, award-winning Black nonbinary author and activist interweaves personal stories to bring these flamboyant writers, artists and activists to life, detailing…
    BookNew York : Farrar Straus Giroux, 2024. — 700.92396 J67 2024
  • King

    a Life : Young Adult Edition

    Eig, Jonathan,
    Young readers learn about Martin Luther King Jr.’s rise as a civil rights leader, preacher and dreamer, and about his triumphs, flaws, complexities and contradictions, in an adaptation of a Pulitzer Prize-winning biography about King.
    BookNew York : Farrar, Straus Giroux, 2025. — 323.092 K53Ze 2025
  • The Swans of Harlem

    Five Black Ballerinas, a Legacy of Sisterhood, and Their Reclamation of a Groundbreaking History

    Valby, Karen,
    A full accounting of five incredibly talented Black ballerinas from the Dance Theater of Harlem illuminates their hard-fought, historic and overlooked contributions to the world of classical dance at a time when racism shut out Black…
    BookNew York : Delacorte Press, [2025] — 792.802809 V139 2025
  • Taking readers on an emotionally charged journey through the lives of women in the past and considering what it means to be a woman today, this powerful new poetry collection touches upon topics such as identity, race, politics, mental…
    BookSomerville Massachusetts : Candlewick Press, 2023. — 821.92 T364w 2023
  • In this powerful YA memoir, the poet, writer, and hip-hop educator traces his journey from being a closeted gay Black teen battling poverty, racism, homophobia, and his own personal Boogeyman to becoming an openly gay first-generation…
    BookNew York : Katherine Tegen Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, [2024] — 811.6 K28h 2024
  • Poemhood, Our Black Revival

    History, Folklore & the Black Experience: a Young Adult Poetry Anthology

    Featuring contributions from an award-winning, bestselling group of Black voices, past and present, this powerful poetry anthology elicits vital conversations about race, belonging, history, and faith to highlight Black joy and pain.
    BookNew York, NY : HarperTeen, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, [2024] — 808.810083 P744 2024
  • A Long Time Coming

    a Lyrical Biography of Race in America From Ona Judge to Barack Obama

    Shepard, Ray Anthony,
    Meticulously researched and drawn from numerous primary sources, this biography-in-verse tells the story of racism in the U.S. through six important Black Americans from different eras who struggled for justice, chronicling how much — and…
    BookNew York : Calkins Creek, an imprint of Astra Books for Young Readers, [2023] — 305.800973 S547 2023
  • Those Who Saw the Sun

    African American Oral Histories From the Jim Crow South

    Avery, Jaha Nailah,
    Those Who Saw the Sun is a collection of oral histories told by Black people who grew up in the South during the time of Jim Crow. Jaha Nailah Avery is a lawyer, scholar, and reporter whose family has roots in North Carolina stretching…
    BookMontclair : Levine Querido, 2023. — 305.896073 A954 2023
  • The Spirit of Freedom

    Powerful Women of the Civil Rights Movement

    Gitlin, Marty,
    This book shines a light on the unsung women of the Civil Rights Movement, women who overcame enormous odds to fight for the rights of Black Americans. The women profiled include Ella Baker, Fannie Lou Hamer, Dorothy Height, Ruby Hurley,…
    BookLanham : Rowman & Littlefield, [2024] — 973.0496073 G536 2024
  • Nearer My Freedom

    the Interesting Life of Olaudah Equiano by Himself

    Edinger, Monica, 1952-
    Using Olaudah Equiano's autobiography as the source, the text shares Equiano's life story in found verse. Readers will follow his story from his childhood in Africa, enslavement at a young age, liberation, and life as a free man.
    BookMinneapolis : Zest Books , [2023] — 306.362092 E64Zed 2023
  • American Wings

    Chicago's Pioneering Black Aviators and the Race for Equality in the Sky

    Smith, Sherri L.,
    Following a group of determined Black Americans who created a flying club as the U.S. hurtled toward WWII, this inspiring true story recounts how these pioneering Black men and women battled powerful odds for an equal share of the sky.
    BookNew York : G.P. Putnam's Sons, 2024. — 629.13092 S659 2024
  • A searing debut YA poetry and essay collection about a Black cancer patient who faces medical racism after being diagnosed with leukemia in their early twenties.
    BookNew York : Kokila, 2024. — 362.196994 N395Zn 2024
  • Messenger

    the Legend of Muhammad Ali

    Bernardin, Marc,
    Muhammad Ali, one of the most revered—and controversial—figures of the twentieth century, immortalized the words "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee" with the beauty, strength, and originality of his boxing style. Now, his epic story…
    Graphic NovelNew York : First Second, 2023. — 796.83092 A398Zbe 2023
  • Stay Up

    Racism, Resistance, and Reclaiming Black Freedom

    Dill, Khodi,
    Blending memoir, cultural criticism, and anti-oppression theory, this groundbreaking book equips readers with essential tools to understand how racism impacts their lives, empowering them to be confident in their identities and embrace the…
    BookToronto : Annick Press, [2023] — 305.896097 D578 2023
  • The Sum of Us

    How Racism Hurts Everyone : Adapted for Young Readers

    McGhee, Heather C.,
    Now adapted for a new generation of young readers, leaders, thinkers, and activists, this New York Times best-seller, which doubles as a call to action, examines how damaging racism is to all people and offers hope and real solutions so we…
    BookNew York : Delacorte Press, 2023. — 305.800973 M145s 2023
  • Breaking the Chains

    African American Slave Resistance

    Katz, William Loren,
    Describes slavery in the United States, the harsh conditions under which slaves lived, the active and passive resistance with which they fought for their rights, the revolts, and the involvement of slaves in the Civil War.
    BookNew York : Triangle Square Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Seven Stories Press, 2023. — 975.00496073 K19b 2023
  • In this inspirational story of courage, determination, strength, and self-invention, an elite wheelchair racer and wrestler recounts a childhood of abuse and neglect until he meets two saviors — a wrestling coach who sensed his “warrior…
    BookSomerville, Massachusetts : Candlewick Press, 2023. — 796.812092 C596Zc2 2023
  • Black Americans do not fit neatly into one box. They live in rural communities and urban cityscapes. Many identify as Democrats, but others lean Republican. Many Black Americans are descended from slaves, but others have immigrant…
    BookSan Diego, CA : ReferencePoint Press, [2023] — 305.896073 N224 2023