#Cybils2022: The Black Experience, Part 3

And for the last week of Black History Month, all the Young Adult books! There have been so many good books to celebrate this month; I hope you’ve found at least one new book to pick up and either enjoy on your own or share with a child in your life!

African Town
by Charles Waters and Irene Latham
G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers

“I was blown away by this story based on the actual lives of several of the last Africans brought to America as slaves. I had never heard of African Town (now called Africatown) either, so everything about this story was new to me.” – Anne@HeadFullofBooks

Ain’t Burned All the Bright
by Jason Reynolds, illustrated by Jason Griffin
Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books

“I’m not even sure how to describe this book. But it’s Jason Reynolds’ poetry along with striking images, and I would really like to talk with a kid who reads this book to find out all the things they notice that I miss. It feels like there’s more than meets the eye here. But I do know I like it.” – Sondra Eklund

Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me ’round: My Story of the Making of Martin Luther King Day
by Kathlyn J. Kirkwood, illustrated by Steffi Walthall
Versify

Augusta Savage: The Shape of a Sculptor’s Life
by Marilyn Nelson
Christy Ottaviano Books

“As far as a biography in verse goes, Augusta Savage: The Shape of a Sculptor’s Life, was well done. It provides a memorable look at the complicated and challenging trajectory of an artist and sculptor, battling for her place in an unfair world.” – TheBrookeList

Moonwalking
by Zetta Elliott and Lyn Miller-Lachmann
Farrar, Straus & Giroux

Nothing Burns as Bright as You
by Ashley Woodfolk
Versify

Pauli Murray: The Life of a Pioneering Feminist and Civil Rights Activist
by Terry Catasús Jennings and Rosita Stevens-Holsey, illustrated by Ashanti Fortson
Yellow Jacket

“Pauli Murray is told in verse, giving poetic gravitas to her life from her early childhood; the early death of her mother and separation of the siblings, which saw Pauli Murray move to Baltimore to live with her aunt, who eventually adopted her; her life in the Jim Crow South, which awakened the activist in her, and her work to dismantle the white male patriarchy that sought to “other” her and hold her, and other women and people of color, down. Queer and Black, she was a force for positive change.” – Rosemary Kiladitis

Star Child: A Biographical Constellation of Octavia Estelle Butler
by Ibi Zoboi
Dutton Books for Young Readers

The Door of No Return
by Kwame Alexander
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Freedom! The Story of the Black Panther Party
by Jetta Grace Martin and Joshua Bloom and Waldo E. Martin Jr.
Levine Querido

“A well-told and well-researched tale of an activist group that arose out of the movements of the sixties.” – Deb Nance at Readerbuzz

Revolution in Our Time: The Black Panther Party’s Promise to the People
by Kekla Magoon
Candlewick Press

“I came to this book with a vague understanding of the Black Panthers, but I underwent a direct study of this group reading Magoon’s book. Most of my exposure to the Black Panthers came from a white perspective that just focused on a very narrow view of this group as militant, uncompromising, and irrational. It was good to read a Black author describe this group in a more complex, nuanced way.” – Karen D. Austin

You Are More Than Magic: The Black and Brown Girls’ Guide to Finding Your Voice
by Minda Harts
Dial Books

“While I am not the target audience for this book, I was impressed with the beneficial wisdom and confidence it imparted. Any teen girl, black or brown or white, would learn a great deal from this conversation with an older, wiser sister, intended as a mentoring boost.” – TheBrookeList

Girl on Fire
by Alicia Keys and Andrew Weiner, illustrated by Brittney Williams
HarperAlley

Mister Miracle: The Great Escape (2022)
by Varian Johnson, illustrated by Daniel Isles
DC Comics

Victory. Stand!: Raising My Fist for Justice
by Tommie Smith and Derrick Barnes and Dawud Anyabwile
Norton Young Readers

“As a graphic novel memoir, Victory. Stand! is tight, focused narrative told in linear format interspersed with flashbacks. The “present” is the race for Olympic gold, and the flashbacks are to Smith’s early childhood in Texas. There is a constant feeling of moving forward with purpose, and Smith’s connection to places and family share the focus for much of the story. It’s a gripping tale, and one with excellent: pacing, mix of dialogue and narration, and artwork. The full package, if you will.” – Cecelia of Adventures of Cecelia Bedelia

Confessions of an Alleged Good Girl
by Joya Goffney
HarperTeen

“This book made me literally laugh out loud, it made me tear up, it basically just made my heart feel full and I’m already drooling over whatever Joya Goffney puts out next. This is a great, feminist, sex-positive story for any teen in your life and tbh for you and your life as well.” – Gina A.

Finding Jupiter
by Kelis Rowe
Crown Books for Young Readers

Vinyl Moon
by Mahogany L. Browne
Crown Books for Young Readers

Bitter
by Akwaeke Emezi
Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers

“Prequels are hard to write well—after all, who cares about a story where you already know the ending? Well, Bitter isn’t like that. Because despite everything we saw during the events of Pet, we really didn’t learn how the injustices of the city of Lucille were resolved, or what “resolved” even truly meant—so Bitter is the rare prequel where you don’t actually know at all how the story will end.” – Max at Completely Full Bookshelf

Burn Down, Rise Up
by Vincent Tirado
Sourcebooks Fire

“This was such a creative approach to both the weird town legends trope and zombies, both elements that I love in a good book.” – Teen Librarian Toolbox, Karen

How To Succeed in Witchcraft
by Aislinn Brophy
G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers

“And the magic in the story was so cool. It felt like what our current world would be like if magic were possible, and I really loved that. Especially since I read so much fantasy that doesn’t take place in our world. ” – JessieMae

Rust in the Root
by Justina Ireland
Balzer + Bray

“Justina Ireland’s new historical fantasy is everything that other historical fantasy about magicians in the 1920s and 1930s should have been.” – Rosemary Kiladitis