The Jubilee Reader Issue 14 - November/December 2024
The Jubilee Reader
Recent books by African American writers, writers from the African diaspora, and on related topics.
Issue 14 • November/December 2024
Fiction
54 Miles
Leonard Pitts, Jr.
Two families in mid-1960s Harlem and Alabama grapple with the promise and brutality of the Civil Rights era while reckoning with family secrets and unresolved trauma.
And So I Roar
Abi Daré
After hearing a secret conversation between her terminally ill mother and her aunt, a woman must choose between protecting a runaway or uncovering a truth that could change the lives of the girls in their Nigerian village.
Aya: Claws Come Out
Marguerite Abouet
The latest entry in Ivorian writer Abouet’s ongoing graphic novel series about life in Côte d’Ivoire.
The Ballad of Jacquotte Delahaye
Briony Cameron
A ruthless pirate captain’s indentured servant struggles to survive his brutality and must decide what price she’s willing to pay to secure a better future.
Between Friends & Lovers
Shirlene Obuobi
A medical doctor/influencer with strong opinions about health, growth, and self-love realizes she needs to take her own advice when her love life takes one disastrous turn after another.
The Bookshop Sisterhood
Michelle Lindo-Rice
Four best friends on the verge of opening a bookstore must lean on each other to navigate the unexpected changes that life has thrown their way.
The Cottage on Pelican Bay
Brenda Jackson
When he returns home to care for his aging parents, a man is shocked to discover that the no-strings woman of his dreams and onetime one-night stand is his boss’s sister.
A Cup of Flour, a Pinch of Death
Valerie Burns
The owner of a successful bakery becomes a murder suspect when the woman who stole her fiancé is found dead inside her shop.
Curvy Girl Summer
Danielle Allen
Approaching her thirtieth birthday, a woman seeking love through a dating app finds unexpected connections amidst the lies, catfishing, and chaos of online romance.
Daughter of the Merciful Deep
L. Penelope
A woman who hasn’t spoken since she was 11 seeks assistance from a strange man with uncanny abilities to help fight the construction of a dam that will wash away her home.
Devil is Fine
John Vercher
A biracial man who inherits a former plantation from his estranged white grandfather must confront his family’s past and his own identity.
Devour
Jazmine Joyner
A graphic novel retelling of the West African legend of Anansi the Spider, set in the deep South.
A Dream in the Dark
Robert Justice
A lawyer whose father was wrongfully convicted takes the case of a man who is being accused of sexual assault by a blind woman.
An Epitaph for Jezebel
L. Divine
An Atlanta reporter goes undercover at the strip club where she once worked when a dancer is murdered and political pressures try to shut the club down for good.
False Idols: The Book of Thieves
K’wan
A bloody battle for power in New York City begins when the head of a powerful family is arrested.
Farewell, Amethystine
Walter Mosley
LA detective Easy Rawlins investigates the disappearance of an ex-lover’s ex-husband.
Frederick Douglass
Sidney Morrison
A work of historical fiction detailing the life of Frederick Douglass, the abolitionist, orator, and newspaper publisher whose work after escaping slavery paved the way for freedom for all.
God Bless You, Otis Spunkmeyer
Joseph Earl Thomas
An ex-Army grad student navigates PTSD, single fatherhood, and strained family ties while confronting the complexities of race, love, and justice.
Grown Women
Sarai Johnson
Three generations of strong-willed women in rural Tennessee find an unexpected chance for reconciliation when they reunite to raise a child.
Her Part to Play
Jenny Erlingsson
A woman accepts a job as a makeup artist for a movie filming in her small Southern hometown, but faces romantic friction with the actor who got her fired from her last job in Hollywood.
Her Private Security Detail
Patricia Sargeant
A man grapples with his attraction to the beautiful philanthropist he has been hired to protect.
House of Shades
Lianne Dillsworth
In 1833 London, a doctor leaves her husband and son behind to accept a commission to cure the owner of a large estate in Fitzrovia, where she uncovers longhidden, life-changing secrets.
The Hypocrite
Jo Hamya
A young playwright awaits her father’s verdict on her new show, which lays him bare to create a skewering critique of the sexual mores of the men of his generation.
In a League of Her Own
Kaia Alderson
An ambitious 1930s Harlem socialite becomes the unlikely business manager for a Negro Leagues baseball team and fights for respect and success in a segregated world.
It’s Elementary
Elise Bryant
In the Shadow of the Fall
Tobi Ogundiran
An acolyte who yearns to one day be a priestess risks the ire of a divine being and her own future after experiencing a vision that awakens an ancient war.
A PTA mom and one of the few Black parents at her child’s school finds herself entangled in mystery when the school’s principal disappears after a tumultuous meeting.
Jewel Me Twice
Charish Reid
Passions rekindle when a professional thief and her ex-lover/partner-in-crime reunite for a final heist that has them crisscrossing Europe on a real-life treasure hunt.
The Knowing
Carolyn Mitchell Boykin
A healer able to discern spirits discovers a unique connection with a child who may be the vessel for the coming savior.
Let the Games Begin
Rufaro Faith Mazarura
An intern at the 2024 Summer Games finds things heating up when she meets the heartthrob runner of Team Great Britain.
The Lions’ Den
Iris Mwanza
In 1990, a young Zambian lawyer fights for the life of a trans sex worker and assembles a coalition of opposition to demonstrate against the president and his corrupt administration.
The Liquid Eye of a Moon
Uchenna Awoke
When his father is passed over for village head, leaving their family as the lowest Igbo caste, 15-year-old Dimkpa must make his own fate.
Now or Never
Hazel Ro
Masquerade O. O. Sangoyomi
In a reimagined 15th century West Africa, a young woman marries a warrior king and is swept into a world of temptations and political machinations.
Two women ready for love vie for the attention of the same man.
One of Our Kind
Nicola Yoon
A family that moves to a planned Black utopia in California discovers an unsettling secret about their new home.
Pardon My Frenchie
Farrah Rochon
The owner of a successful doggie daycare finds all that she’s worked for hanging in the balance when she meets the world’s worst dog hater.
The Rich People Have Gone Away
Regina Porter
When his pregnant wife goes missing after a heated argument, a man becomes the prime suspect in her disappearance.
The Road to the Salt Sea
Samuel Kolawole
When a room service order at his hotel leads him to interfere with a sex worker involved with a powerful guest, a man is trapped in a web of violence, guilt, and fear, sending him into a fight for his life and freedom.
Second Tide’s the Charm
Chandra
Blumberg
A marine biologist spending her summer on a shark research boat owned by her ex-boyfriend finds herself in uncharted waters when they chart a new course towards love.
She Who Knows
Nnedi Okorafor
A 13-year-old girl who receives a mystical call must journey with her father and brothers to uncover her destiny.
Sounds Like a Plan
Pamela Samuels-Young
Rival private investigators with opposites-attract energy must join forces when they are framed for murder.
A Taste for More
Phyllis R. Dixon
Fleeing the poverty of the South with entrepreneurial ideas, a woman and her daughter travel north in search of a better life, but find the obstacles of racism and prejudice among the hurdles of urban life.
They Dream in Gold
Mai Sennaar
In 1969 Switzerland, a pregnant woman embarks on a search for her husband, a Senegalese musician who has disappeared while on tour in Spain.
This Great Hemisphere
Mateo Askaripour
500 years in the future, a woman who was born invisible sets off on a quest to find her brother, who was presumed dead but is now a murder suspect.
The Townsend Family Recipe for Disaster
Shauna Robinson
When her grandmother passes away, a woman comes South to reconnect with her estranged relations and must step up to save the family’s annual barbecue.
Troubled Waters
Mary Annaïse Heglar
Trouble in Queenstown
Delia Pitts
A New Jersey PI hired to tail the wife of a mayor’s nephew is drawn into trouble when her surveillance leads to a racially charged murder tied to the mayor’s family.
A woman mourning the death of her brother must turn to her grandmother for help when she unwittingly unearths long-buried family secrets.
What Fire Brings
Rachel Howzell Hall
A writer’s search for her missing friend in Topanga Canyon uncovers decades-old secrets that may be tied to a best-selling thriller author.
What You Leave Behind
Wanda M. Morris
A woman who returns to her childhood home in Georgia exposes a deadly scheme of illegal land grabs and property redevelopment that threatens her community and family.
The Whitewashed Tombs
Kwei Quartey
A female private eye in Ghana must contend with politics and prejudice when she investigates the murder of a LGBTQ+ activist.
Zero Option
Peter Kirsanow
An OSS agent races to stop an assassin from disrupting a vital conference that will shape the course of World War II.
Non-Fiction
Arts & Music
Bring Judgment Day: Reclaiming Lead Belly’s Truths from Jim Crow’s Lies
Sheila Curran Bernard
An exploration of the life and music of Huddie Ledbetter — the blues guitarist known better as Leadbelly — within the context of the Jim Crow era.
Hip-Hop is History
Questlove
The Roots drummer and best-selling author Questlove chronicles fifty years of hip-hop and how it has affected every aspect of our culture.
Spirit of the Century: Our Own Story
Blind Boys of Alabama
An insider history of the Blind Boys of Alabama, the longest running group in American music, and the untold story of their world, written with band members and key musical colleagues.
Biography
Ink: The Indelible J. Mayo Williams
Clifford R. Murphy
A biography of J. Mayo Williams, an Ivy Leagueeducated professional football player in the 1920s who was responsible for discovering and recording some of the premier Black musicians of his time.
Love & Whiskey
Fawn Weaver
The story of Nearest Green, the African American distiller who was instrumental in the creation of the whiskey that now bears Jack Daniel’s name.
Night Flyer: Harriet Tubman
and the
Faith Dreams of a Free People
Tiya Miles
The National Book Award-winning author of All That She Carried reckons with the myth and the truth behind Harriet Tubman, an American who everyone knows and few truly understand.
A Passionate Mind in Relentless Pursuit: The Vision of Mary McLeod Bethune
Noliwe Rooks
An examination of the life of the educator and presidential advisor whose activism helped lay the foundation of the modern Civil Rights movement.
Rise of a Killah
Ghostface Killah
In this illustrated biography, the co-founder of the WuTang Clan recounts the people, places, and events that have meant the most to him.
A Seat at the Table: The Life and Times of Shirley Chisholm
Glenn L. Starks
A biography of the first African American woman elected to the U.S. Congress and the first African American woman of a major political party to make a serious run for president of the United States.
Tiger, Tiger
James Patterson
A biography of Tiger Woods, whose phenomenal success led to his induction into the World Golf Hall of Fame, despite potentially career-ending injuries and multiple public scandals.
Finance
Get Up and Get On It: A Black Entrepreneur’s Lessons on Creating Legacy and Wealth
Dana Frank
Real estate mogul Frank recounts her family’s journey from poverty to financial success, and explores how Black families can better create generational wealth.
History
Fifteen Cents on the Dollar: How Americans Made the Black-White Wealth Gap
Ebony Reed & Louise Story
In this exploration of the history of Black wealth, the authors lay bare the systemic economic discrimination ingrained in America’s financial framework that has resulted in the income gap between Black and white communities.
A Plausible Man: The True Story of the Escaped Slave Who Inspired Uncle Tom’s Cabin
Susanna Ashton
The story of John Andrew Jackson, a runaway slave who hid in the home of Harriet Beecher Stowe and inspired her to write Uncle Tom’s Cabin, the novel that helped catalyze the overthrow of slavery.
Rooted: The American Legacy of Land Theft and the Modern Movement for Black Land Ownership
Brea Baker
Baker recounts her family’s devastating land loss in Kentucky and North Carolina and explores the impact of land theft and violent displacement targeted at Black landowners between 1910 and 1997.
We Refuse: A Forceful History of Black Resistance
Kellie Carter Jackson
A historian deconstructs the false binary of Black resistance to white supremacy and offers a new look at the variety of responses to oppression, particularly those made by Black women.
Memoir
Another Sojourner Looking for Truth: My Journey from Civil Rights to Black Power and Beyond
Millicent E. Brown
Brown, the named plaintiff in the federal court case that forced the initial desegregation of public schools in South Carolina in 1963, recounts her experiences as a Civil Rights activist.
A Black Girl in the Middle: Essays on (Allegedly) Figuring it
All Out
Shenequa Golding
A debut essay collection that explores the in-between moments for Black women and girls, and what it means to simply exist.
Dear Cisgender People: A Guide to Trans Allyship and Empathy
Kenny Ethan Jones
A trans activist and writer discusses living with gender dysphoria, accessing gender-affirming care, and how to make the world a more welcoming place for trans people.
Did Everyone Have an Imaginary Friend (Or Just Me)?: Adventures in Boyhood
Jay Ellis
The award-winning star of HBO’s Insecure recounts how his imaginary best friend helped him navigate his childhood as an only child and military brat who was always the new kid in school.
Everything and Nothing at Once: A Black Man’s Reimagined Soundtrack for the Future
Joel L. Daniels
In this essay collection, performer and storyteller Daniels takes readers from his upbringing in the Bronx to raising two daughters of his own.
First in Line: How COVID-19
Placed Me on the Frontlines of a Health Care Crisis
Sandra Lindsay
The first person to receive the COVID-19 vaccine recounts her life, from her immigrant beginnings in 1980s New York to winning the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Going Fast and Fixing Things
Rich Benoit
The entrepreneur responsible for launching the nation’s first business devoted to repairing electric vehicles provides insight into his personal and professional life, along with advice on defying the consumerist ethos that saturates our current culture.
Nephew: A Memoir in 4-Part Harmony
MK Asante
In this memoir addressed to his nephew, who survived a shooting, the best-selling author of Buck addresses poetry, poverty, violence, and more.
The Outsider Advantage: Because You Don’t Need to Fit In to Win
Ciera Rogers
The founder and CEO of the body-positive swimwear line Babes and Felines shares the lessons she has learned from her past and her unorthodox rise to success.
Traveling Without Moving: Essays From a Black Woman Trying to Survive in America
Taiyon J. Coleman
A Minnesota professor recounts how race and racism have shaped her life, from her childhood on Chicago’s South Side to her life in academia.
Undefeated: Changing the Rules and Winning on My Own Terms
Shaunie Henderson
The creator of the TV show Basketball Wives opens up about the struggles, heartbreaks, losses, and triumphs that have made her who she is today.
Philosophy and Religion
The Black Practice of Disbelief: An Introduction to the Principles, History, and Communities of Black Nonbelievers
Anthony B. Pinn
A short introduction to the history, secular beliefs, and cultural sensibilities that inform Black Humanism.
The Book of Juju: Africana Spirituality for Healing, Liberation, and Self-Discovery
Juju Bae
Podcaster, priestess, and witch Juju Bae teaches readers how to connect with their ancestors, as well as how to create a spiritual practice that incorporates their wisdom.
Born Royal: Overcoming Insecurity to Become the Woman God Says You Are
Oneka McClellan
The lead pastor of Shoreline City Church in Dallas shares biblical truths and real stories to illustrate how women can live confidently in their own identity.
Loving Your Black Neighbor As Yourself: A Guide to Closing the Space
Between Us
Chanté Griffin
In this guide to fighting racial injustice, Griffin demonstrates how white Christians can employ their religious beliefs to better support Black members of their communities.
Political Science
The New Breadline: Hunger and Hope in the Twenty-First Century
Jean-Martin Bauer
A humanitarian leader interweaves personal insights with discussions of how structural systems of racism, classism, and sexism thwart progress in the battle against hunger.
The
Originalism
Trap: How Extremists
Stole the Constitution and How We the People Can Take it Back
Madiba K. Dennie
Lawyer and scholar Dennie explores how the Constitutional interpretation known as originalism has allowed extremist ideologues to move the country to the right, and provides an alternate framework of interpretation that emphasizes the people-forward power of the Reconstruction Amendments.
Science & Nature
Dare
to Bird: Exploring the Joy and Power of Birds
Melissa Hafting
A photographic celebration of the healing power of birds that showcases stunning images from the continental United States, Hawaii, and Canada.
Sharks Don’t Sink: Adventures of a Rogue Shark Scientist
Jasmin Graham
The co-founder of Minorities in Shark Sciences shares how she flourished outside of academia by remembering the important lesson she learned from sharks: Keep moving forward.
Small Space Revolution: Planting Seeds of Change in Your Community
Tayshan Hayden-Smith
Professional soccer player and gardening activist Hayden-Smith demonstrates how to transform small outdoor spaces into successful community gardens.
Self-Care
The Black Woman’s Guide to Coping with Stress: Mindfulness & SelfCompassion Skills to Create a Life of Joy & Well-being
Cheryl L. Woods Giscombé
Psychologist and registered nurse Giscombé explores the beliefs that drive Black women’s stress and provides self-awareness practices to help readers find balance and joy in their lives.
Do
it
Anyway: Don’t Give Up Before It Gets Good
Tasha Cobbs Leonard
The Grammy-winning gospel performer discusses the power of faith and perseverance in the face of adversity.
Hood Wellness: Tales of Communal Care From People Who Drowned on Dry Land
Tamela Julia Gordon
Utilizing elements of memoir, self-help, and critical race theory, Gordon investigates the importance of self-care and personal wellbeing, and the power of community care.
My Divine, Natural Hair: Inspiration & Tips to Love & Care for Your Crown
Shelia Burlock
Addressing topics such as hair loss, growth, styles, tools, and maintenance, this book provides spiritual and practical guidance to women of African descent as they embrace and celebrate their natural hair journeys.
Negotiating While Black: Be Who You Are to Get What You Want
Damali Peterman
Lawyer Peterman draws on her experiences to present real-world negotiating techniques and shows how everything is potentially up for discussion.
Protecting My Peace: Embracing Inner Beauty & Ancestral Power
Elizabeth Leiba
A guide for women seeking to prioritize their mental, emotional, and physical health, as well as connect with their ancestral roots, incorporate spirituality into their lives, and foster personal growth.
Protect Your Peace: Nine Unapologetic Principles for Thriving in a Chaotic World
Trent Shelton
Former NFL wide receiver Shelton shares wisdom, inspiration, and personal stories to help reshape your mindset and redefine the meaning you find in your life.
RAPilates: Body and Mind Conditioning in the Digital Age
Chuck D
Hip-hop icon Chuck D presents an illustrated Pilates exercise program for people of all ages.
The Third Perspective: Brave Expression in the Age of Intolerance
Africa Brooke
A self-help guide aimed at helping readers develop critical thinking skills by engaging in self-questioning when engaged in difficult conversations.
Social Science
Ascension: The Sociology of an African American Family’s Generational Journey
Lois Benjamin
A sociological exploration of the lives of Pennie and Roscoe James and the values they passed on to their children that provided them with the ability to thrive in the face of adversity.
In These Streets: Reporting from the Front Lines of Inner-City Gun Violence
Josiah Bates
An exploration of how poverty, policing, and community investment and disinvestment impact the escalating epidemic of gun violence in the United States.
To Be a Problem: A Black Woman’s Survival in the Racist Disability Rights Movement
Dara Baldwin
A disability activist and policymaker shares the path that led her to activism, critiques the disability rights community, and calls for a collective liberation that is pro-Black and centers disabled people of color.
Uncomfortable Conversations with a Jew
Emmanuel Acho and Noa Tishby
In an effort to better understand Judaism and antisemitism, Uncomfortable Conversations With a Black Man author Acho poses questions to Israel: A Simple Guide to the Most Misunderstood Country on Earth author Tishby, who provides historical, political, and personal responses.
True Crime
A Devil Went Down to Georgia: Race, Power, Privilege, and the Murder of
Lita McClinton
Deb Miller Landau
The story of the 1987 murder of a Black, Atlanta socialite by a for-hire killer enlisted by her white husband, who saw her as the cause of his financial troubles.
Hell Put to Shame: The 1921 Murder Farm Massacre and the Horror of America’s Second Slavery
Earl Swift
The story of the murder of eleven Black farmhands on a Georgia plantation in 1921, a crime that exposed the “peonage system,” a form of legal enslavement established across the South after the Civil War.
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