There’s no better time to honor Black authors and their stories than Black History Month — but there are so many books by Black authors being released in 2022 if you’d like to continue the celebration all year long.

Books are our worthy companions, meant to provide solace, joy, and an escape from the real world. However, for Black readers, solace can be difficult to find when we do not see ourselves represented in the books that we pick up.

According to research by The New York Times, just 11% of books published in 2018 were written by people of color. Discouragingly, the books that exist despite this statistic typically do not receive the same level of support and backing as other books. And a fresh round of book bans has made this effort much more difficult.

But in the face of it all, Black authors are still writing and sharing their stories with the world. The upcoming stories in 2022 show the fullness and diversity of the Black experience, not centering only our pain and trauma, but also highlighting Black joy and Black love. From Akwaeke Emezi’s debut poetry collection on gender and self, to Laila Sabreen’s novel about Black Muslim teens fighting increasing Islamophobia, and Julian Winters’ queer friends-to-lovers romance, these are the 25 books by Black authors you should add to your bookshelves this year.

In this heartfelt portrayal of Black girlhood, KB's world is turned upside down when her father dies of an overdose, leaving a mountain of debt behind. As a result, KB’s mother drops her and her teenage sister, Nia, off to temporarily live with a grandfather they hardly know, in a strange new city. Over the summer, KB has trouble making friends and staying connected with her sister. As she tries to bring her family back together before school starts again, she’s forced from her childish perceptions into the harsh realities of life. Kai Harris’ coming-of-age debut captures all the nuance and vulnerability of growing up Black and poor in America.

What The Fireflies Knew, By Kai Harris

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A dying Black father grappling with his son's sexuality writes letters to make amends to him. Through the letters Jacob writes to his son Isaac, he describes his family history, his relationship with his son’s mother, and his hopes as a father. Don't Cry for Me is an empathetic and compelling representation of Black masculinity, queerness, and generational trauma in America.

Don't Cry For Me, By Daniel Black

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Described as Dear White People meets the “Varsity Blues” college admissions scandal, this debut novel follows freshman Savannah Howard, who sacrificed a carefree high school experience to ensure she got into an elite college. When she’s admitted into the prestigious Wooddale University, it appears that all her dreams have come true. But soon after her arrival to the university, she is subjected to microaggressions and a blackface incident occurs. Savannah starts digging, and must decide whether or not to publicly reveal the truth about Wooddale's racist history — and present.

Required Reading for the Disenfranchised Freshman, By Kristen R. Lee

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Who doesn’t love a good romance story? Meet-cutes and declarations of love and happily-ever-afters... but what happens when you don't see yourself represented in such stories? In this essay anthology edited by Book Riot columnist and librarian, Jessica P. Pryde, several Black writers and cultural critics explore the importance of Black love in storytelling.

Black Love Matters: Real Talk on Romance, Being Seen, and Happily Ever Afters, By Jessica P. Pryde

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Muslim teen Sabriya's pleasant summer is ruined when a terrorist attack close to her home sparks an uptick in Islamophobic sentiments. As a result, she uses her online blog to express herself and her frustrations. Soon, the blog goes viral and two more teens, Zakat and Farah, join her to run what has now evolved into an online community for young Muslim people. However, when a member of the trio is threatened, they must find out who is behind the hate — and decide whether to let the blog go or risk everything to make their voices heard.

You Truly Assumed, By Laila Sabreen

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Told in three distinct narratives, Nobody’s Magic tells the stories of Suzette, Maple, and Agnes, three Black women with albinism living in Shreveport, Louisiana. Suzette is a sheltered twenty-year‑old who must fight for her independence and agency when she suddenly finds romance. After her mother's unsolved death, Maple has shut herself off in the motel where she works — but a chance meeting with someone who understands her pain may lead her to the answers she seeks. And Agnes, stuck in a mindless job far from home, piques the interest of a lonely security guard and army veteran who discovers her possession of an astonishing power.

Nobody's Magic, By Destiny O. Birdsong

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When Alexis Duncan is seriously injured in a gang shooting, her college scholarship and pro-basketball dreams are crushed. On the verge of becoming another poor, Black teen trapped in her neighborhood, Alexis is convinced by the new Indian student (and her new crush) Aamani to join the school's STEM team in hopes of earning her scholarship differently. But as her future begins to take a new shape, her old loyalties may jeopardize everything she cares about.

Every Variable of Us, By Charles A. Bush

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Genie was the star ballerina with a promising future at her New York City dance school. That is, until she suffered a horrific fall, leaving her unable to use her legs. Three months after the accident, Genie is having a hard time coping, and she distances herself from her mother and her best friend, Hannah. Then, at her rehab facility, she meets Kyle, a former gymnast suffering from a brain injury. With Kyle and Hannah's help, Genie finds the courage to begin her healing process and confront the past – including the possibility that her accident may not have been an accident at all.

Turning, By Joy L. Smith

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In this dark YA military fantasy based on Yoruba-Nigerian mythology, main character Sloane is a Scion, a descendant of the ancient Orisha gods. For decades, the colonialist Lucis have committed genocide on her people. When she’s forced to join the Lucis army as a child soldier, she sees an opportunity to use her secret powers to exact her revenge from within. But along the way, she risks becoming the very monster she’s feared for so long.

Blood Scion, By Deborah Falaye

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In this stunning and vivid depiction of the busy streets of Lagos, Eloghosa Osunde’s novel follows a diverse cast of characters: “the queer, the poor, the displaced, the footloose and rogue spirits.” As their lives intertwine across Lagos, these vagabonds are seized and challenged by spirits who command the city's dark energy. Blending the mythical, the fantastical, and the real, Vagabonds! is a deeply-imaginative work and a celebration of the diversity of Lagos society.

Vagabonds! By Eloghosa Osunde

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Isaac Martin is looking forward to spending the summer with his best friend Diego before they split up and he starts college. He's had it all planned out for them to attend a comic convention and his first-ever Teen Pride. But an unexpected encounter with Isaac’s old crush Davi complicates the summer’s plans. When Diego finds out about Isaac’s reconnection with Davi, he starts acting strangely — and with summer’s clock ticking away, Isaac must figure out why. Expect lots of pining in this cute friends-to-lovers romance!

Right Where I Left You, By Julian Winters

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According to the official synopsis, Akwaeke Emezi – award-winning author of Freshwater, PET, and more – imagines a new depth of belonging in their bold debut poetry collection. Written from a spirit-first perspective, these visceral poems investigate the essence of self, gender, and desire, to embody the radiant power and epic grief of a mischievous and wanting young deity.

Content Warning: Everything, By Akwaeke Emezi

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Ashley Woodfolk’s novel-in-verse follows a friendship between two girls that develops into a tumultuous romance over a single day. The story delves into the complexity of female friendships with tenderness and care, and is a must-read for anyone embarking on a journey of love that doesn't fit “the norm.”

Nothing Burns As Bright As You, By Ashley Woodfolk

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According to the official synopsis, Ayosa is a wandering spirit – joyful, exuberant, filled to the brim with longing. Her only companions are as lonely as Ayosa herself, from the ghostly Fatumas to Sindano, the kind owner of a café no one ever visits. Ayosa is constantly fixed on her mother, Nabumbo Promise, who is hardly a companion, coming and going as she pleases. However, when a new friend offers Ayosa an alternative life, she must decide whether she can free herself from her unpredictable but charming mother. Weaving Kenyan folklore with realism, Things They Lost is an extraordinary tale about love, longing, and the bond between mothers and daughters.

Things They Lost, By Okwiri Oduor

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Janelle Monáe partners with an array of talented writers to produce an anthology of short stories set in an alternate future where ideas – as a means of self-conception – may be controlled or deleted by a select, entitled few. That is, until Jane 57821 remembered and broke free. Based on one of her acclaimed albums, Dirty Computer, this Afrofuturistic collection tackles how love, queerness, race, and gender can intertwine in the fight for freedom.

The Memory Librarian: And Other Stories of Dirty Computer, By Janelle Monáe

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In the “world of the living,” Moon experiences depression and suicidal thoughts. But at night, they escape to the spirit realms where they are safe. That’s until the realm finds itself up against new threats, and it's up to Moon and their new friends and creature-guides to defend the spirit world. Healing and self-acceptance await.

Moonflower, By Kacen Callender

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In her latest release, Elizabeth Acevedo (NYT best-selling author of The Poet X and Clap When You Land) brings her famous spoken word poem to life in a compelling message about self-love. Paired with full-color illustrations by artist Andrea Pippins, this poetry collection is unafraid of nuance, sharing the complex dynamics of Black hair and Afro-Latinidad culture – “the history, pain, pride, and powerful love of that inheritance,” according to the official synopsis.

Inheritance, By Elizabeth Acevedo

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Patience Adewale feels unwanted and unloved at home with her distant father and stepmother. Years before, her mother was exiled from their compound, and Patience needs to know why. Is her mother still alive? The biggest questions of her life begin to come into focus after Patience goes to Lagos for university and befriends her cousin Kash and his pal Emeka. But they’re also small-time thieves, and soon Patience is involved in a major heist. When things go wrong, though, the repercussions come at a high cost in this coming-of-age story.

Patience Is A Subtle Thief, By Abi Ishola-Ayodeji

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Out-and-proud Theo and closeted Gabi are rival sons of competing family businesses – an Asian American cafe and a Puerto Rican bakery, respectively. When a new fusion cafe threatens to destroy their families’ businesses and their dreams, they form an unlikely alliance running an underground coffee and boba shop at school. And of course, they must also navigate their growing feelings for one another.

Café Con Lychee, By Emery Lee

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Emmy and Rose are sisters and best friends who separate when their parents get a divorce. Six years later, Rose disappears, and Em decides to pay a visit to her father in Ohio and look for her missing older sister. However, the longer she searches, the more she realizes how little she knew about Rose. This touching YA novel tackles family dynamics and the bonds of Black sisterhood.

How to Live Without You, By Sarah Everett

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Brooklyn-based Nigerian artist Feyi Adekola lost her partner in a horrible accident five years ago. As she struggles with balancing her grief with the desire to move forward with her life, she meets a handsome new man at a party and is introduced to a world of glitz, glamour, and wealth, complete with a romantic jetset to the Caribbean. However, her amazing new relationship may be jeopardized by her forbidden attraction to another person in the house. Following The Death of Vivek Oji, Akwaeke Emezi's new release is a story of grief, healing, and choosing love against all odds. Amazon Studios and Michael B. Jordan’s Outlier Society have already bought the screen rights to the novel.

You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty, By Akwaeke Emezi

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On Rotation explores the struggles and expectations of the immigrant experience, from the perspective of Angie Appiah, the eldest daughter of a Ghanian household who has been a success her whole life. However, when she fails a major medical school exam and her boyfriend breaks up with her, that life starts to unravel. Throw in a new love interest who isn’t who she expects to be with, and you’ve got “a quarter life crisis of epic proportions,” the plot synopsis reads. “And Angie, who has always faced her problems by working ‘twice as hard to get half as far,’ is at a loss.”

On Rotation, By Shirlene Obuobi

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Cassie is a plus-size Black photographer who is offered the opportunity to shoot and direct a nationwide campaign aimed at empowering plus-size body types. After some minor incidents occur, she ends up a model instead of a photographer. Which would be just fine, if she wasn’t working with her competitor, fellow photographer Reid Montgomery. But enemies can turn to lovers, and the romance that blossoms is irresistible.

The Accidental Pinup, By Danielle Jackson

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This magical realism novel is an exploration of grief and teenage love. Sixteen-year-old dancer Zharie Young is dealing with the tragic death of her mother — and, well, the fact that she possibly (probably) transformed into a zombie before she died… and zombies have taken up residence in her life ever since. When her new neighbor, the tall, charming Bo, transforms into a half-zombie, she begins to feel closer to the answers she's been looking for all along. “As Zharie sifts through what's real and what's magic, she discovers a new truth about the world,” the plot synopsis reads. “Love can literally change you — for good or for dead.”

The Undead Truth of Us, By Britney Lewis

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Avery is a biracial, openly queer teen who moves with her parents to Bardell, Georgia after her estranged grandmother falls ill. Though her mother and grandmother don’t get along, Avery finds solace in new friends Jade and Simone, the latter of whom becomes a new love interest. Meanwhile, family secrets and the small town’s racist history loom, and Avery has to decide how far down to investigate. This debut is an examination of how a history of racial violence can reverberate for generations — it’s both a gripping portrayal of the South's inherent racism and a love story for queer Black girls.

We Deserve Monuments, By Jas Hammonds

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