“It was books that taught me that the things that tormented me most were the very things that connected me with all the people who were alive, who had ever been alive.” – James Baldwin
It can be difficult for white parents to understand and talk to their kids about the racism that’s experienced by black and brown communities. It can sometimes even be difficult for black and brown parents to know how to approach conversations about racism with their kids.
To help encourage honest and productive conversations about race and racism in your own home, we’ve compiled a list of books that are worth diving into and learning from. From picture books to graphic novels to memoirs and personal essays, there’s a book on this list for every reading and maturity level.
Bonus: Support your community by seeing what’s available for curbside pickup at your favorite library branch or local bookstore! And if your bookstore doesn’t have it in stock, they can likely have it shipped directly to your house from their warehouse.
Picture Books/Early Readers
- The Undefeated
Written by Kwame Alexander; Illustrated Kadir Nelson - Black Is a Rainbow Color
Written by Angela Joy; Illustrated by Ekua Holmes - Saturday
Written and illustrated by Oge Mora - Hair Love
Written by Matthew A. Cherry; Illustrated by Vashti Harrison - Something Happened in Our Town: A Child’s Story about Racial Injustice
Written by Marianne Celano, Marietta Collins, Ann Hazzard; Illustrated by Jennifer Zivoin - My Hair is a Garden
Written and illustrated by Cozbi A. Cabrera - Separate Is Never Equal: Sylvia Méndez and Her Family’s Fight for Desegregation
Written by Duncan Tonatiuh - We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga
Written by Traci Sorell; Illustrated by Frané Lessac - Sulwe
Written by Lupita Nyong’o; Illustrated by Vashti Harrison - Malcolm Little: The Boy Who Grew Up To Become Malcolm X
Written by Ilyasah Shabazz; Illustrated by A.G. Ford
Chapter Books/Middle Grade
- My Family Divided: One Girl’s Journey of Home, Loss, and Hope
Written by Diane Guerrero - Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice
Written by Phillip Hoose - To Kill a Mockingbird
Written by Harper Lee - Esperanza Rising
Written by Pam Muñoz Ryan - What is Race? Who are Racists? Why Does Skin Colour Matter? And Other Big Questions
Written by Claire L. Heuchan and Nikesh Shukla - Maniac Magee
Written by Jerry Spinelli - Bud, Not Buddy
Written by Christopher Paul Curtis - The Skin I’m In
Written by Sharon G. Flake - Ghost Boys
Written by Jewell Parker Rhodes - Miles Morales: Spider-Man
Written by Jason Reynolds
Related: 5 Things You Can Do Now to Raise Antiracist Children
Teen
- All American Boys
Written by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely - American Street
Written by Ibi Zoboi - Jazz Owls: A Novel of the Zoot Suit Riots
Written by Margarita Engle; Illustrated by Rudy Gutierrez - How It Went Down
Written by Kekla Magoon - Dreamland Burning
Written by Jennifer Latham - Dear Martin
Written by Nic Stone - The Hate U Give
Written by Angie Thomas - Internment
Written by Samira Ahmed - Iron River
Written by Daniel Acosta - American Born Chinese
Written and illustrated by Gene Luen Yang
Adult
- Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You
Written by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi - “Multiplication Is for White People”: Raising Expectations for Other People’s Children
Written by Lisa Delpit - Between the World and Me
Written by Ta-Nehisi Coates - Notes of a Native Son
Written by James Baldwin - The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
Written by Michelle Alexander - “Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?”: A Psychologist Explains the Development of Racial Identity
Written by Beverly Daniel Tatum - A Black Women’s History of the United States
Written by Daina Ramey Berry - Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning
Written by Cathy Park Hong - I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness
Written by Austin Channing Brown - How Does It Feel to Be a Problem?: Being Young and Arab in America
Written by Moustafa Bayoumi
