"Books change lives. They have the power to inspire revolutions, transform government policy, and reveal to us our common humanity even when the people we read about have experiences that differ wildly from our own. Books also offer a platform for stories to be told that have otherwise gone unheard, giving a voice to the voiceless and effecting change.
Stacker compiled a list of 100 of the best books by Black Americans. The titles presented here are spread out between centuries, genres, subject matter, and themes. To create the list, we referred to major Black-owned platforms such as Shondaland, Essence, and O, The Oprah Magazine. Stacker also used social media and Black reading groups such as Women of Color in Romance and popular book platforms such as Book Riot and Goodreads. The list contains historical fiction, mystery, sci-fi, sociology, political commentary, poetry, cookbooks, and many more."