In I Wonder as I Wander, Langston Hughes vividly recalls the most dramatic and intimate moments of his life in the turbulent 1930s.

His wanderlust leads him to Cuba, Haiti, Russia, Soviet Central Asia, Japan, Spain (during its Civil War), through dictatorships, wars, revolutions. He meets and brings to life the famous and the humble, from Arthur Koestler to Emma, the Black Mammy of Moscow. It is the continuously amusing, wise revelation of an American writer journeying around the often strange and always exciting world he loves.

"The most potent weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed." Like all of Steve Biko's writings, those words testify to the passion, courage, and keen insight that made him one of the most powerful figures in South Africa's struggle against apartheid. They also reflect his conviction that black people in South Africa could not be liberated until they united to break their chains of servitude, a key tenet of the Black Consciousness movement that he helped found.

I Write What I Like contains a selection of Biko's writings from 1969, when he became the president of the South African Students' Organization, to 1972, when he was prohibited from publishing. The collection also includes a preface by Archbishop Desmond Tutu; an introduction by Malusi and Thoko Mpumlwana, who were both involved with Biko in the Black Consciousness movement; a memoir of Biko by Father Aelred Stubbs, his longtime pastor and friend; and a new foreword by Professor Lewis Gordon.

Biko's writings will inspire and educate anyone concerned with issues of racism, postcolonialism, and black nationalism.

For fans of The Holiday comes a heartwarming Christmas house-swap rom-com debut in which finding yourself and finding love come hand in hand.

Bee Tyler needs a break. In the bustling San Francisco tech community, no one ever seems to stand still—especially her perfect sister and business partner, Beth. So when her best friend suggests a getaway on the wildly popular house-swap app, Vacate, Bee decides a countryside retreat might be exactly what she needs.

Clover Mills has had a year. Between losing her mother and making the complicated decision to leave her fiancé, sticking around the idyllic Christmas obsessed town of Salem, Ohio, just doesn’t feel right. So when she hears about Vacate, she jumps at the chance to spend the holidays in the unfamiliar city of San Francisco.

Soon enough, Bee is living in Clover’s cozy Salem cottage, and Clover is living in Bee’s sleek San Francisco apartment. As Clover can’t seem to stop running into Bee’s frustratingly gorgeous sister, Beth, and Bee finds herself spending more and more time with Clover’s ultra charming ex-fiancé, Knox, the two women realize that this Christmas they may find just what they were looking for and more…

A smart, sexy "perfect romance" about mistaken identities, a no-strings fling, and the way one night—and one person—can change your life forever from the bestselling author of Darius the Great Is Not Okay (Julie Murphy & Sierra Simone, bestselling co-authors of A Merry Little Meet Cute)

When it comes to love, substitute teacher Farzan Alavi is a disaster. Newly heartbroken—again—he’s drowning his sorrows at Kansas City’s newest wine bar. Only instead of being crowded between strangers, he’s escorted to a VIP table for one. There, the hot sommelier does more than treat him to the meal of his life. The way he flirts with Farzan ignites instant sparks. 
 
There’s just one problem: David Curtis thinks Farzan is Kansas City’s most influential food critic. The truth only comes out after the two spend an unforgettably hot night together. Good news—both think the mix-up is hilarious. Bad news—David is studying to become a master sommelier and has no interest in a relationship. 
 
Neither expects their paths to cross again . . . until Farzan inherits his family’s bistro. The two agree to a friends-sans-benefits exchange: David will share his industry knowledge, and Farzan will help David study. Only business turns to pleasure when neither can ignore the attraction still sizzling between them. But with David set on moving cross-country after his test, and Farzan committed to his family’s restaurant, how can their relationship last past the expiration date?

This heart-pounding Southern gothic horror debut from Beatrice Winifred Iker, takes readers to Bricksbury University, the oldest and most storied HBCU in the nation. But as one student is about to find out, a long history comes with a legacy of secrets.
 
Zora Robinson is an ambitious grad student in her dream program, Appalachian Studies, at Bricksbury University. When her thesis advisor hands her a strange diary and suggests she research the local folklore about a beast roaming the woods surrounding campus, Zora finds a community uneager to talk to an outsider.
 
As she delves into the history of the beast, she uncovers a rumored secret society called the Keepers that has tenuous ties to the beast…and Bricksbury itself. Zora soon finds herself plagued by visions of the past, and her grip on reality starts to slip as she struggles to uncover what is real and what is folklore. But when a student goes missing, Zora starts to wonder if the Keepers ever really disbanded.
 
There’s something in the woods and it has its eyes on Zora.

On its one-hundredth anniversary, a powerful and essential meditation on the origins, evolution, and future of Black History Month from one of America’s leading historians of Black education and the author of American Grammar.

In I’ll Make Me a World, acclaimed Harvard scholar Jarvis R. Givens takes us on a personal and political journey through the 100-year history of Black History Month—from its radical beginnings in 1926 as “Negro History Week” to its role today as a celebration and flashpoint in America’s cultural battles. Drawing on archival research, personal stories involving family and students, and especially the wisdom of Black educators, Givens recovers the legacy of Carter G. Woodson and many others who envisioned Black history as a liberatory force—knowledge that shapes who we are, how we resist, and what we dream.

With striking clarity, Givens challenges today’s myopic commemorations of iconic figures and urges us to expand our understanding of Black history to include the everyday lives of ordinary people—the “workadays” whose stories have long gone untold but form critical parts of Black history. Indeed, people who played important roles in passing on Black memories that helped disrupt oppressively narrow perspectives on human life. Givens also attends to the labor involved in preserving Black history, especially in intellectual environments where it is constantly denigrated and undervalued, and he insists that more transparency about such processes is necessary to ensure this worthy tradition is passed on to future generations.

I’ll Make Me A World is a call to remember, reimagine, and reclaim an intellectual tradition built by communities well before our time, and to take seriously what is politically at stake in its preservation. At a time when Black history is under attack, this book offers an inspiring vision for how it can still be a source of power, truth, and possibility.

A suffocating and sharp narrative horror novel for fans of Victor LaValle and The Reformatory from "addictive" (Publishers Weekly) horror author Neena Viel, I’ll Watch Your Baby is a haunting reimagining of Linda Taylor--known as the original Welfare Queen―pursued, scrutinized, celebrated and vilified, and the impact her image has had for generations.

1974. Lottie Turner is already infamous. Running a wheel of schemes and scams, she’s willing to work for what she wants in…creative ways. But no business is more lucrative than desperate families looking to adopt a child―and there’s only one way to procure children quickly.

And the only way to take what’s owed you is to cross the line no one else is willing to cross.

1994. Bless has finally found the family she deserved. After suffocating slowly with lackluster parents and a non-starter past, she’s found the friends that means everything to her. That she’d live and die for. As they make their way across the country, one smash and grab at a time, Bless is used to acting fast and thinking on her feet.

But someone is playing a long game. Someone has unfinished business. Soon Bless is trapped in a web of horrors past and present, where the only escape hatch is a path only she can walk, if she finds the courage to take it.

Sonia Sanchez is a prolific, award-winning poet and one of the most prominent writers in the Black Arts movement. This collection brings her plays together in one volume for the first time. Like her poetry, Sanchez’s plays voice her critique of the racism and sexism that she encountered as a young female writer in the black militant community in the late 1960s and early 1970s, her ongoing concern with the well-being of the black community, and her commitment to social justice. In addition to The Bronx Is Next (1968), Sister Son/ji (1969), Dirty Hearts (1971), Malcolm/Man Don’t Live Here No Mo (1972), and Uh, Uh; But How Do It Free Us? (1974), this collection includes the never-before-published dramas I’m Black When I’m Singing, I’m Blue When I Ain’t (1982) and 2 X 2 (2009), as well as three essays in which Sanchez reflects on her art and activism. Jacqueline Wood’s introduction illuminates Sanchez’s stagecraft in relation to her poetry and advocacy for social change, and the feminist dramatic voice in black revolutionary art.

What will Maya be when she grows up? A rocket scientist like Annie Easley? An Olympic athlete like Alice Coachman? A brain surgeon like Alexa Canady?

In this heart-warming and funny story, Maya discovers the achievements of some amazing Black women . . . but it's a brave Nigerian princess who really captures her imagination! 

With humor and zeal, Stephanie Taylor celebrates the lives of incredible Black women in this moving and funny, feminist narrative, while award-winning illustrator Jade Orlando's colorful art perfectly captures the warm and charming mother-daughter relationship. 

What makes you big? What makes you small? From acclaimed author-illustrator Nina Crews, a picture book that introduces young children to the concepts of size and comparisons. A great choice for emergent readers, school classrooms, and storytime-sharing.  

Time to play outside! It’s easy for a young boy to feel small in a world that is made up of big, big things. But when he takes a closer look, he discovers that he is big, too. His dog is smaller than he is, and his cat is smaller than his dog. And the teeny, tiny ant crawling through the grass? Even smaller!

I’m Not Small will spark family and classroom conversations about the concept of size and size comparisons, about growing up, about feeling seen, and about observing the world around you. Minimal, playful text and bright, detailed illustrations make it easy to learn about comparing and categorizing objects. A must-have for fans of Anna Kang and Christopher Weyant’s You Are (Not) Small.

A chance to rewrite their ending is worth the risk in this swoony romantic comedy from Kosoko Jackson.

It’s been months since aspiring journalist Kian Andrews has heard from his ex-boyfriend, Hudson Rivers, but an urgent text has them meeting at a café. Maybe Hudson wants to profusely apologize for the breakup. Or confess his undying love…But no, Hudson has a favor to ask—he wants Kian to pretend to be his boyfriend while his parents are in town, and Kian reluctantly agrees.

The dinner doesn’t go exactly as planned, and suddenly Kian is Hudson’s plus one to Georgia’s wedding of the season. Hudson comes from a wealthy family where reputation is everything, and he really can’t afford another mistake. If Kian goes, he’ll help Hudson preserve appearances and get the opportunity to rub shoulders with some of the biggest names in media. This could be the big career break Kian needs.

But their fake relationship is starting to feel like it might be more than a means to an end, and it’s time for both men to fact-check their feelings.

From New York Times bestselling author Ayana Gray comes a new kind of villain origin story, reimagining one of the most iconic monsters in Greek mythology as a provocative and powerful young heroine.

The first edition hardcover will feature stunning sprayed edges, a premium dust jacket with foil, and a gorgeous custom-stamped case—while supplies last!

Meddy has spent her whole life as a footnote in someone else’s story. Out of place next to her beautiful, immortal sisters and her parents—both gods, albeit minor ones—she dreams of leaving her family’s island for a life of adventure. So when she catches the eye of the goddess Athena, who invites her to train as an esteemed priestess in her temple, Meddy leaps at the chance to see the world beyond her home.

In the colorful market streets of Athens and the clandestine chambers of the temple, Meddy flourishes in her role as Athena’s favored acolyte, getting her first tastes of purpose and power. But when she is noticed by another Olympian, Poseidon, the course of Meddy’s promising future is suddenly and irrevocably altered.

When her locs are transformed into snakes as punishment for a crime she did not commit, Medusa must embrace a new identity—not as a victim, but as a vigilante—and with it, the chance to write her own story as mortal, martyr, and myth.

Exploding with rage, heartbreak, and love, I, Medusa portrays a young woman caught in the crosscurrents between her heart’s deepest desires and the cruel, careless games the Olympian gods play.

This wild and entertaining novel expands on the true story of the West Indian slave Tituba, who was accused of witchcraft in Salem, Massachusetts, arrested in 1692, and forgotten in jail until the general amnesty for witches two years later.

Maryse Condé brings Tituba out of historical silence and creates for her a fictional childhood, adolescence, and old age. She turns her into what she calls "a sort of female hero, an epic heroine, like the legendary 'Nanny of the maroons, '" who, schooled in the sorcery and magical ritual of obeah, is arrested for healing members of the family that owns her.

From Agatha and Edgar Award nominated author Valerie Burns, influencer-turned-bakery-owner Maddy Montgomery has sold plenty of wedding cakes before, but before she turns one out for her and her fiancé’s wedding, she’ll have to solve a little case of murder first…

Aunt Octavia would be so proud! Maddy has turned Baby Cakes Bakery—named for her 250-pound English Mastiff, Baby—into a runaway success, and she’s marrying the love of her life, veterinarian Michael Portman. #DreamWedding! Plus the timing couldn’t be better: the country’s biggest bridal expo has come to New Bison, Michigan, and Maddy has secured a spot for Baby Cakes to showcase their cakes. She’s also entered a contest for an all-expenses-paid wedding extravaganza offered by world-renowned wedding planner Serafina.

Unfortunately, supremely nasty Serafina truly takes the cake—she makes the worst bridezilla seem like a shy flower girl. But there’s one thing the wedding planner didn’t plan on—being impaled by one of the skewers Baby Cakes uses on their tiered wedding cakes.

While Maid of Honor Sheriff April Johnson rounds up suspects at the expo, Maddy and her aunt’s friends, the Baker Street Irregulars, and even Baby join forces to unveil a killer hiding in plain sight . . . before wedding bells start to chime.

Black Interior Designers, Inc. (BID) presents the extraordinary work of 50 interior designers and offers a behind-the-scenes look as they share their inspirations, expertise, and thoughts on what it means to be a designer of color working in the industry today.

In 2010, Black Interior Designers, Inc. (BID) began to unite, connect, and promote Black designers, bringing their projects into the spotlight.

In Iconic Home: Interiors, Advice, and Stories from 50 Amazing Black Designers, author Ashley June Reese lends her thoughtful eye and powerful writing, weaving together inspiring interiors and the fascinating personal stories of each featured designer. Featuring 50 industry stars, with notable names such as Justina Blakeney, Faith Blakeney, Adair Curtis and Jason Bolden of JSN Studio, Bridgid Coulter, Corey Damen Jenkins, Forbes & Masters, General Judd, Keia McSwain, Brigette Romanek, the book tells their stories and shares their challenges and triumphs. Design philosophies and creative influences are brought to light and are illuminated with wonderfully designed spaces in a range of styles. The result is a behind-the-scenes look at what it means to be a designer of color creating work in the industry today.

*Ships in 7-10 Business Days*

An inspiring picture book biography of groundbreaking journalist and civil rights activist Ida B. Wells, as told by her great-granddaughter, Michelle Duster.

Ida B. Wells was an educator, journalist, feminist, businesswoman, newspaper owner, public speaker, suffragist, civil rights activist, and women’s club leader. She was a founder of the NAACP, the National Association of Colored Women, the Alpha Suffrage Club, and the Negro Fellowship League. Born in 1862, Ida challenged the racist and sexist norms of the late nineteenth and early twenthieth centuries through her writing and speaking. Faced with criticism and threats to her life, she never gave up.
Long overlooked, Ida's life and work shine in this picture book, timed for the 160th anniversary of her birth. This extraordinary true story is told by her great-granddaughter, Michelle Duster, who has been recognized for her activism and fight for contemporary racial justice, and is beautifully brought to life by Coretta Scott King Award Honoree artist Laura Freeman.

From the duo behind the best-selling If I Had a Dinosaur comes this humorous and imaginative celebration of unicorns.

Have you ever given any thought to what the perfect magical pet would be? Giants are far too big, and dragons are way too hot, but what about a unicorn? It might eat all your ice cream for breakfast, but if you get upset about that, it will feed you cotton candy! It can sprinkle star dust on grumpy siblings, carry you to soccer practice on a rainbow, and make sure you dream nothing but sweet and fluffy unicorn dreams.

In this playful tale, a little girl finds out firsthand what it’s like to have a magical creature as a pet.

Illustrated in color throughout

From the duo behind the bestselling If I Had series, a humorous and entertaining tale celebrating octopuses.

Have you ever thought about what the best aquatic pet would be? It’s an octopus, of course! When a little girl fantasizes about having a crazy smart octopus pet, she pictures jumping rope with its tentacles, practicing different ball games simultaneously, and playing hide-and-seek with her camouflaging friend (just look out for the ink!).

With vibrant illustrations and playful rhymes, If I Had an Octopus is a laugh-out-loud story celebrating friendship between a child and her octopus. From the duo behind If I Had a Dinosaur, If I Had a Sleepy Sloth, and If I Had a Unicorn, Gabby Dawnay and Alex Barrow’s latest is a charming and imaginative tale about our favorite eight-armed creature.

Illustrated in color throughout

A fast-paced, juicy debut novel that peeks behind the curtain at the cutthroat world of hip-hop music and the glamorous magazine scene in the late 1990s, written by the ultimate insider

It's 1999, and Nikki Rose is the only Black editor on the staff of a prestigious fashion magazine she once thought would be her ticket to becoming a respected editor in chief. But after being told one too many times by her boss that “Black girls don’t sell magazines,” she quits to take over Sugar, a struggling hip hop music and lifestyle magazine with untapped potential.

Thrown into an entirely new world of wealth, decadence, and debauchery, Nikki has just six months to save Sugar―and her own dreams. As she pulls all-nighters at the office and parties with New York City’s most influential bad boys, Nikki must prove she has what it takes to lead. But her most dangerous challenge is evading Alonzo Griffin, her very married, very powerful ex-lover and former boss, who is determined to destroy both her and Sugar. Along the way, Nikki leans on a circle of loyal friends and navigates unexpected romances that force her to reckon with what―and who―she truly wants.

If I Ruled the World is a smart, utterly immersive journey through one of the most dynamic eras in pop culture history―a story of ambition, friendship, love, and finding your own voice.

The inspirational life of Kamala Harris for kids!

From the newly-announced Young People's Poet Laureate comes a powerful and inspiring picture book that shares how each milestone and moment in Kamala Harris's life represents something that lies within young readers' reach, too―building community, asking for answers, learning from elders, standing up for what's right, pride, friendship, strength, and most of all―knowing that nothing is out of the reach of their future!

*ships in 7 - 10 business days*

With race and policing once more burning issues, this classic work from one of America’s giants of black radicalism has lost none of its prescience or power

One of America’s most historic political trials is undoubtedly that of Angela Davis. Opening with a letter from James Baldwin to Davis, and including contributions from numerous radicals such as Black Panthers George Jackson, Huey P. Newton, Bobby Seale and Erica Huggins, this book is not only an account of Davis’s incarceration and the struggles surrounding it, but also perhaps the most comprehensive and thorough analysis of the prison system of the United States.

Since the book was written, the carceral system in the U.S. has seen unprecedented growth, with more of America’s black population behind bars than ever before. The scathing analysis of the role of prison and the policing of black populations offered by Davis and her comrades in this astonishing volume remains as pertinent today as the day it was first published.

Featuring contributions from George Jackson, Bettina Aptheker, Bobby Seale, James Baldwin, Ruchell Magee, Julian Bond, Huey P. Newton, Erika Huggins, Fleeta Drumgo, John Clutchette, and others.

From Caldecott Honor and Coretta Scott King Award-winner Kadir Nelson comes a story about the power of one kind act.

If you plant a carrot seed, carrots will grow.

If you plant a lettuce seed, lettuce will grow.

But what happens if you plant a seed of kindness?

Or selfishnessÉ?

This is a resonant, gently humorous story about the power of our actions, and the rewards of compassion and generosity, from award-winning, beloved author-illustrator Kadir Nelson.

What was it like to be a kid during the March on Washington?

In 1963, the United States was at the peak of the Civil Rights Movement. This was the year when activists from around the country joined forces to organize one of the most important protests in US history: the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Some of the marchers who protested for equal rights were kids!

Join Eugene and Lori as they march with thousands of other people for a day of unity and celebration that changed the course of history.

ABOUT THIS SERIES:

Step back in time to the most relevant historical moments with the best-selling series, “If You Were a Kid”! In an exciting blend of fiction and nonfiction, a fictionalized narrative teaches history through the eyes of kids, while informational text introduces readers to key factual information. With engaging text, illustrations, and photos on every page, “If You Were a Kid” will spark readers’ curiosity and imagination, making learning about our past an accessible and unforgettable experience.

Join us as we celebrate the release of This Here Flesh by Cole Arthur Riley on IG LIVE.  Follow @kindredstorieshtx on Instagram for updates!

Event Deets:

When: Sunday, March 6 at 5:30 pm CST

Where: INSTAGRAM

How:  Set your calendar reminder for March 6 @ 5:30 PM CST and we'll see you on Instagram!

About the Book

In her debut, Cole Arthur Riley shares stories and reflections on discovering sacredness in her own skin. She reflects on the lives of her grandmother and father to show us an "embodied, dignity affirming spirituality", both in beliefs and actions. Part memoir, part coming of age, Riley explores pressing topics in this season of chaos. We are asked to examine our own inherited stories as well as our ability to hold love, joy, rage, peace and rest. 

About the Author

Cole Arthur Riley is a writer, liturgist, speaker seeking a contemplative life marked by embodiment and emotion. She is the creator and writer of Black Liturgies, a project seeking to integrate concepts of dignity, lament, rage, justice, rest, and liberation with literature and spirituality. She currently serves as spiritual teacher in residence with Cornell University’s Office of Spirituality & Meaning Making.

About the Moderator

In business and in life, Tracie Jae is The Quiet Rebel. Her work in the world is creating incremental and organic shifts to the status quo using conversations as instruments of change. Whether working with individuals, communities or organizations, she creates space to ensure that voices are heard and thoughts are respected. Her proprietary frameworks include 100 Voices Guided Conversations and HUMAN Centered Equity (TM). As often as possible, she incorporates silence in her work to offer participants opportunities to seek their own truths. She currently serves as Regional Representative for The Labyrinth Society and is active on the League of Women Voters Marketing Committee.

EVENT DEET

When: April 8 at 2:30 PM CST

Where: Kindred Stories Reading Garden

How: RSVP to reserve your spot for you and your littles. 

ABOUT THE BOOK

The first definitive collection of Igbo legends and traditions for kids, this book explores the mythological origins of the Igbo people, the ancient Nri Kingdom, and Igbo cosmology before delving into the Alusi, or the core Igbo deities. Following this introduction to the pantheon of gods and goddesses, a collection of the most popular Igbo myths, folktales, and legends will immerse kids in exciting stories of tricksters, shapeshifters, and heroes, including:

• The Wrestler Whose Back Never Touched the Ground
• Ojiugo, the Rare Gem
• The Tortoise and the Birds, or The Origin Story of Sea Turtles
• Ngwele Aghuli, Why the Crocodile Lives Alone
• How Death Came to Be
• And more!

The perfect book for kids who are fascinated by Greek mythology or love the Rick Riordan series, Introduction to Igbo Mythology for Kids offers a fun look into the stories, history, and figures that characterize Igbo culture.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR