Happy Black History Month! I know people have been expecting more posts from me but I’ve been quietly working behind the scenes on a couple of projects. Plus, I started a new part-time job that has been taking up most of my time lately. Don’t worry I’m not abandoning yall, just working on getting myself back into a routine.
Anyway, let’s get into the first post for Black History this year. If you’ve followed Mamademics for a while, you know that I really enjoy historical fiction novels, particularly romances. I’m also a huge fan of young adult novels but I tend to gravitate to fantasy in that genre. This year I thought it would be fun to check out historical fiction young adult novels.
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Without further adieu, here are five young adult Black historical novels to read this year.
First up, Zora and Me, a fictionalized account of Zora Neale Hurston’s early years. This coming-of-age story is set in the town of Eatonville, Florida, a place that was a true testimony to the power of community, love, and pride.
“Whether she’s telling the truth or stretching it, Zora Neale Hurston is a riveting storyteller. Her latest creation is a shape-shifting gator man who lurks in the marshes, waiting to steal human souls. But when boastful Sonny Wrapped loses a wrestling match with an elusive alligator named Ghost — and a man is found murdered by the railroad tracks soon after — young Zora’s tales of a mythical evil creature take on an ominous and far more complicated complexion, jeopardizing the peace and security of an entire town and forcing three children to come to terms with the dual-edged power of pretending.
Want to learn more about Zora Neale Hurston and other Harlem Renaissance authors? Check out my Black History is American History, Language Arts course for ages 7-12 – BHIAH Quarter One – Language Arts (7-12)
The next novel actually inspired this list. WINGMEN by Almond Jones was sent to me from a PR firm and I couldn’t believe that I hadn’t heard about this novel earlier. WINGMEN is set in 1940 during World War II and follows Celeste Bonalee, a Black woman pilot, who gets caught in the middle of a political drama when her plane is shot down over Paris in 1940. Can Celeste and her wingmen make it back home in one piece? Or will war consume her generation and its aspirations? WINGMEN is the story of us all and the lessons we have yet to learn.
I came across this next novel, Betty Before X, while doing some research for a future BHIAH course on activism. This fictionalized account of the four important years in the early life of Dr. Betty Shabazz is written by Renee Watson in collaboration with Betty’s daughter, Ilyasah Shabazz.
“In Detroit, 1945, eleven-year-old Betty’s house doesn’t quite feel like home. She believes her mother loves her, but she can’t shake the feeling that her mother doesn’t want her. Church helps those worries fade, if only for a little while. The singing, the preaching, the speeches from guest activists like Paul Robeson and Thurgood Marshall stir African Americans in her community to stand up for their rights. Betty quickly finds confidence and purpose in volunteering for the Housewives League, an organization that supports black-owned businesses. Soon, the American civil rights icon we now know as Dr. Betty Shabazz is born.”
Young readers will connect with the themes of self-acceptance and belonging that we all grow through as we journey to adulthood.
The Watsons Go To Birmingham – If you’re looking to talk to your children about the horrors that Black people faced during the Civil Rights Movement, this novel is definitely a starting point. One family heads from Flint, Michigan to the deep south in the hopes of getting one of their children on the straight narrow. The year is 1963 and while they know they’re heading into segregation, they don’t know that they will be smack dab in the middle of one of the most horrifying moments in America’s history, the burning of the Sixteenth Avenue Baptist Church with four little girls inside.
If I had to choose one novel that sparked my interest in historical fiction, it would be Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry. I read this book for the first time as a middle schooler and remember feeling connected to the protagonist, Cassie Logan, an independent girl who learns why her family having their own land is so important. Set in Mississippi at the height of the Depression, this is the story of one family’s struggle to maintain their integrity, pride, and independence in the face of racism and social injustice.
Have you read any of the novels on this list? Which one do you plan to read in the future?
