2017 MG & YA Titles by African Americans

26 Dec 2017 news 5 Comments

2017 is almost over and with help, I’ve put together a list of the middle grade and young adult novels authored by Black writers and published in the US. You can find our 2016 list here. If I’ve missed any titles, please leave them in the comments. We do not include self-published titles for this list since we’re trying to see what US publishers are producing annually. It’s right to celebrate THUG sitting atop the bestseller list, but context matters, too. If 3,000 novels for teens are published in the US each year, how much progress have we really made?

FICTION

  1. One Last Word: Wisdom from the Harlem Renaissance by Nikki Grimes. Bloomsbury USA. Ages 10-14
  2. Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson. Katherine Tegen Books. Ages 13+
  3. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas. Balzer + Bray. Ages 12+
  4. Piecing Me Together by Renee Watson. Bloomsbury. Ages 12+
  5. Ahgottahandleonit by Donovan Mixon. Cinco Puntos. Ages 12–18index
  6. Heels, Heartache & Headlines (Hollywood High) by Ni-Ni Simone and Amir Abrams. Kensington Teen/Dafina. Ages 14–up.
  7. American Street by Ibi Zoboi. Balzer + Bray. Ages 14+
  8. Overturned by Lamar Giles. Scholastic Press. Ages 12+
  9. The End of Oz (Dorothy Must Die), Vol. 3 by Danielle Page. HarperCollins. Ages 14+
  10. The Sky Throne by Chris Ledbetter. Month9Books. Ages 12+
  11. Crossing Ebenezer Creek by Tonya Bolden. Bloomsbury. Ages 13+
  12. The Go-Between by Veronica Chambers. Delacorte Press. Ages 12+index
  13. Cleo Edison Oliver in Persuasion Power by Sundee Frazier. Arthur A. Levine Books. Ages 8-12
  14. Out of Wonder: Poems Celebrating Poets by Kwame Alexander, Chris Colderley, Marjory Wentworth. Candlewick. Ages 8-12.
  15. Rise of the Jumbies by Tracey Baptiste. Algonquin. Ages 13-18
  16. Midnight Without a Moon by Linda Williams Jackson. HMH. Ages 10-12
  17. The Harlem Charade by Natasha Tarpley. Scholastic. 8-12index
  18. Dork Dairies #12: Tales from a Not-So-Secret Crush Catastrophe by Rachel Renee Russell. Ages 9-13
  19. M.F.K. by Nilah Magruder. Insight Comics. Ages 12+
  20. Tru and Nelle: A Christmas Tale by G. Neri. HMH. Ages 10-12
  21. Dear Martin by Nic Stone. Crown Books for Young Readers. Ages 14+
  22. I Am Alfonso Jones by Tony Medina. Tu Books. YAindex
  23. Auma’s Long Run by Eucabeth Odhiambo. Carolrhoda Lab TM. Ages 10-13
  24. Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds. Simon and Schuster. Ages 12+
  25. One Shadow on the Wall by Leah Henderson. Atheneum. Ages 8-12
  26. You Don’t know Me But I Know You by Rebecca Barrow. HarperTeen. YAindex
  27. Beasts Made out of Night by Tochi Onyebuchi. Razorbill. YA
  28. Starfish by Akemi Dwan Bowman. Simon Pulse. Ages 12+
  29. Solo by Kwame Alexander and Mary Rand Hess. Blink. YA
  30. The Stars Beneath Our Feet by David Barclay Moore. Knopf. Ages 10+
  31. Akata Warrior by Nnedi Okorafor. Vikings Books for Young Readers. YA
  32. When I Am Through With You by Stephanie Kuehn. Dutton. YAindex
  33. Calling My Name by Liari Tamani
  34. Patina (Track) by Jason Reynolds  Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books. Ages 10+
  35. Siege of Shadows by Sarah Raughley. Simon Pulse. YA
  36. Reign of Outlaws by Kekla Magoon. Bloomsbury. Ages 8-12.
  37. The Truth of Right Now by Kara Lee Corthron. Simon Pulse. YA
  38. Little & Lion by Brandy Colbert. Little, Brown. YA
  39. indexIt All Comes Down to This by Karen English. Clarion. Ages 10-12.
  40. Clayton Byrd Goes Underground by Rita Williams-Garcia. Amistad. Ages 9-12
  41. Not Now, Not Ever by Lily Anderson. Wednesday Books. YA
  42. OMG…Is He Also a Witch? by Talia Aikens-Nunez. Central Avenue Publishing. Ages 9-12
  43. Mulatto Girl Aggie, 13: Name on the Ledger by LaKesa Cox. Black Rose Writing.
  44. Miles Morales: Spider-Man by Jason Reynolds. Marvel Press. YAindex
  45. Mango Delight by Fracaswell Hyman. Sterling Children’s Books. Ages 9-13
  46. Sasha Savvy Loves to Code by Sasha Ariel Alston. Gold Fern Press. Ages 7-10
  47. Jupiter Storm by Marti Dumas. Plum Street Press. Ages 8-12
  48. Gabriela Speaks Out (American Girl) by Teresa E. Harris. Scholastic. Ages 8-12
  49. The Magnificent Mya Tibbs: Spirit Week Showdown by Crystal Allen. Balzer + Bray. Ages 8-12
  50. Twintuition: Double Trouble by Tia and Tamera Mowry. HarperCollins. Ages 8-12
  51. Hello Starz by Alena Pitts. Zonderkidz. Ages 8-12
  52. Day Dreams and Movie Screens by Alena Pitts. Zonderkidz. Ages 8-12
  53. Calico Girl by Jerdine Nolen. Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books. Ages 8-12
  54. The Lost Tribes: Safe Harbor by C. Taylor-Butler. Move Books. Ages 9-12
  55. The Gauntlet by Karuna Riazi. Salaam Reads/Simon & Schuster. Ages 8-12
  56. The Mesmerist by Ronald L. Smith. Clarion Books. Ages 10-12

NONFICTION

  1. How Dare the Sun Rise: Memoirs of a War Child by Sandra Uwiringiyimana and Abigail Pesta.  Ages 13+
  2. The Playbook: 52 Rules to Aim, Shoot, and Score in this Game Called Life by Kwame Alexander (HMH)
  3. Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History by Vashti Harrison. Ages 8-12index
  4. Becoming Kareem: Growing Up On and Off the Court by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Raymond Obstfeld ages 10-13
  5. School of Awake: A Girl’s Guide to the Universe by Kidada Jones. Ages 14-18
  6. Pathfinders: the Journeys of 16 Extraordinary Souls by Tonya Bolden. Abrams. Ages 10-14
  7. Now or Never! Fifty-Fourth Massachusetts Infantry’s War to End Slavery by Ray Shepard (Boyds Mill) index
  8. Schomburg: The Man Who Built a Library by Carole Boston Weatherford. Candlewick. Ages 9-12.
  9. Al Roker’s Extreme Weather: Tornadoes, Typhoons and Other Weather Phenomena by Al Roker. HarperCollins. Ages 8-12
  10. Hidden Human Computers: The Black Women of NASA by Sue Bradford Edwards and Duchess Harris. Essential Library.
  11. Be the One: Six True Stories of Teens Overcoming Hardship with Hope by Byron Pitts. Simon & Schuster. Ages 12+
  12. Despite the Heights, the true story of Ivory Latta, one of the smallest women to play for the WNBA by Ivory Latta & Charles R Smith, Jr. Warren Publishing. Ages 6-10