This standout creative nonfiction debut explores the lives and histories of plants considered nonnative or invasive as metaphors for the Black experience in America.

In Tending the Vines, Ashia S. Ajani illuminates how eight unique plants tell the story of the Black diaspora in America. Each chapter is a deep dive into one plant―including eucalyptus, passionflower, wild mustard, and kudzu―exploring their significance in African tradition, their role through the Middle Passage and Chattel Slavery, and their enduring importance in modern households and communities.

Tending the Vines unpacks the complex rhetorical lives of these plants, most of which have been used as both ugly metaphors for Black incursion as well as powerful symbols for Black liberation. It also highlights the ethnobotanical uses that have sustained displaced populations for centuries. Throughout, Ajani complicates our notions of “invasive” and belonging, by contextualizing how plants move, are moved, and, of course, move us.

“As you turn the pages of this novel and get lost in Dana’s story, allow yourself to relive the horrors of slavery....Allow yourself to know the pain of our nation’s past.”—Tomi Adeyemi, New York Times bestseller and Hugo and Nebula award-winning author, from the new foreword

This brand new package for young adults includes a redesigned interior for better readability, specially commissioned cover art by Carlos Fama, metallic stock cover, and spot gloss on cover elements

“I lost an arm on my last trip home. My left arm.”

Dana’s torment begins when she suddenly vanishes on her 26th birthday from California, 1976, and is dragged through time to antebellum Maryland to rescue a boy named Rufus, heir to a slaveowner’s plantation. She soon realizes the purpose of her summons to the past: protect Rufus to ensure his assault of her Black ancestor so that she may one day be born. As she endures the traumas of slavery and the soul-crushing normalization of savagery, Dana fights to keep her autonomy and return to the present.

Blazing the trail for neo-slavery narratives like Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad and Ta-Nehisi Coates’s The Water Dancer, Butler takes one of speculative fiction’s oldest tropes and infuses it with lasting depth and power. Dana not only experiences the cruelties of slavery on her skin but also grimly learns to accept it as a condition of her own existence in the present. “Where stories about American slavery are often gratuitous, reducing its horror to explicit violence and brutality, Kindred is controlled and precise” (New York Times).

“Reading Octavia Butler taught me to dream big, and I think it’s absolutely necessary that everybody have that freedom and that willingness to dream.” 
—N. K. Jemisin

The critically acclaimed author of In the Wake, "Christina Sharpe is a brilliant thinker who attends unflinchingly to the brutality of our current arrangements . . . and yet always finds a way to beauty and possibility" (Saidiya Hartman).

A singular achievement, Ordinary Notes explores profound questions about loss and the shapes of Black life that emerge in the wake. In a series of 248 notes that gather meaning as we read them, Christina Sharpe skillfully weaves artifacts from the past—public ones alongside others that are poignantly personal—with present realities and possible futures, intricately constructing an immersive portrait of everyday Black existence. The themes and tones that echo through these pages, sometimes about language, beauty, memory; sometimes about history, art, photography, and literature—always attend, with exquisite care, to the ordinary-extraordinary dimensions of Black life.

At the heart of Ordinary Notes is the indelible presence of the author’s mother, Ida Wright Sharpe. “I learned to see in my mother’s house,” writes Sharpe. “I learned how not to see in my mother’s house . . . My mother gifted me a love of beauty, a love of words.” Using these gifts and other ways of seeing, Sharpe steadily summons a chorus of voices and experiences to the page. She practices an aesthetic of "beauty as a method,” collects entries from a community of thinkers toward a “Dictionary of Untranslatable Blackness,” and rigorously examines sites of memory and memorial. And in the process, she forges a brilliant new literary form, as multivalent as the ways of Black being it traces.

The defining and uncompromising memoir from Super Bowl quarterback and renowned Civil Right activist, Colin Kaepernick.

On September 1, 2016, Colin Kaepernick took a knee during the national anthem, but the world has never fully understood the whole story. Not the "why." Not what it cost. Not what it took to become the man who was ready for that moment.

That story begins in Turlock, California, where Kaepernick, a Black kid adopted into a white family, spent his earliest years navigating an identity the world around him didn't always know how to hold. Everything that connected him to who he truly was--his Blackness, his culture, his sense of self--was met with resistance. Sports became his refuge and his proving ground. On the field, his talent could not be questioned, minimized, or taken from him. It was the one space that was entirely his. And what that space produced was extraordinary: a quarterback whose arm and instincts would carry him to the Super Bowl and into the history books.

But success brought with it an education he hadn't anticipated. He began to see the NFL not just as a league, but as a mirror of American capitalism, of racial exploitation, of a country that celebrated Black entertainment and criminalized Black lives in the same breath. He had been reading: Malcolm X. Muhammad Ali. Huey P. Newton. Angela Davis. He had been watching. And what he saw in the NFL, in Turlock, in the repeated, unpunished killing of Black and Brown Americans by the very systems claiming to protect them, converged into an undeniable truth: this was not someone else's fight. It was his. It is ours.

When Kaepernick knelt, he was not acting on impulse. He was acting on years of becoming, of absorbing, reckoning, and refusing to look away. In response, the NFL blackballed him, the country revealed its true self, and the man who had spent his whole life earning his place chose, deliberately, to risk all of it for something larger than himself.

But in the ten years since he took a knee, the questions his protest raised about race, power, identity, and the courage it takes to fight for a more equitable world have not gone away. They are the questions of our time. They are the questions this book answers.

In THE PERILOUS FIGHT, Kaepernick delivers his story with the same unflinching conviction that defined the moment the world watched. Equal parts memoir and manifesto, it traces the off-the-field battles that turned a single act of protest into a movement that changed American sports and culture forever. This is the story of a man who became someone the moment demanded. It is a story about identity, sacrifice, and the cost of courage. And it is, ultimately, a story about all of us and the future we are still fighting to build.

Celebrate the unity, sisterhood, and community of Black women with gorgeous illustrations from Andrea Ballo, the artist behind Coloring with Coco and Coco Michele Illustrations.

Find joy and self-expression with an elevated adult coloring book that's all about Black women and celebrating the connection between them! Each illustration was created by Andrea Ballo, the artist and influencer behind the popular TikTok account Coloring with Coco. On every page, you'll find energetic images to color that encourage love for yourself and the community of Black women around you.

Stunning, unique, and empowering illustrations―Color 36 gorgeous illustrations that capture the vibrancy and diversity of Black women.

Get inspired―The artwork in this book is themed around sisterhood and community! It's a celebration, an art piece, and an experience you can create with your favorite art supplies.

A beautiful gift for you or someone special―This high-quality coloring book for adults features heavy paper, perforated pages, and a thick card stock insert to block color bleed, making it a gorgeous and meaningful gift!

Unleash your creativity with the Coloring with Coco: Sisterhood in Solidarity coloring book.

A groundbreaking new direction for Claudia Rankine, the best-selling author of Citizen and Just Us

Claudia Rankine has widened contemporary literature with her consciousness-raising, genre-defying works. In her first book after her celebrated American trilogy, presented with full-color visuals, Rankine shifts into sustained narrative, memory, criticism, and essay to offer her most personal and emotionally resonant writing yet.

Triage follows the turbulent friendship between two composite characters, the narrator and the theorist, self-identified sisters struggling to define their wounded histories and their shared but separate lives. During college, they invent a game of collapse: Every time they see each other, they have to stop and fall to the ground. As their kinship continues off and on for decades, “collapse” takes on new meanings that are seen and felt in the violence of their pasts, artworks depicting couches where someone might ease their exhaustion, the ongoing devastation in Gaza, and the antagonism of their conversation and their love for each other.

Triage is an argument for the necessity of grieving and the demand for action in our time of relentless loss. “No matter our posture,” Rankine writes, “we are all among the rubble.” This is a book for those complicated but beautiful friendships that we come to rely on to unsettle us, to make us better.

A profound exploration of the art and magic of writing by New York Times bestselling author Isabel Allende.

In this deeply personal and insightful book, Isabel Allende delves into her creative process, reflecting on nearly half a century of writing that has captivated millions of readers worldwide.

For Isabel, writing is more than a craft. It is an addiction, a means of preserving memory, and a way to make sense of life. She offers readers an intimate glimpse into her creative world, where stories take shape through intuition, discipline, and a deep connection to the human experience. It is also a glimpse into the life of a writer who views literature as a portal to understanding the chaos of life.

Story Telling is not a prescriptive guide to writing. Rather, it is a conversation. In it, Isabel shares her triumphs, mistakes, and lessons learned from the challenges and joys of writing. She intertwines her own stories with invaluable wisdom for anyone pursuing the craft, making this book equally a memoir, a masterclass in the alchemy of storytelling, and a celebration of the enduring power of stories.

Denishia Boswell is a successful florist and owner of Happily Ever After Floral Shop. Although she creates beautiful bouquets and floral designs to enhance any romantic or intimate setting, she’s having problems enhancing her own love life. She’s in a lackluster relationship that she is ready to give the ax to, but the fear of being alone has kept her from doing so. However, a celebrity client comes her way, and he is after more than just flowers. She finds it extremely hard to ignore his romantic advances, despite her current relationship status.

Ezekiel Wheeler is focused on advancing his acting career. He’s determined to be a sought-after actor that can name his price. None of that means anything if he has no one to celebrate his accolades with. He doesn’t want the celebrity girlfriend or the women approaching him. He wants to be the aggressor. While planning a surprise party for his mother, he contacts a florist to provide the perfect setup for the festivities. The moment he hears her voice, he’s all in.

Denishia and Ezekiel have an undeniable attraction to one another, although her current situation forces her to somewhat deny it in the beginning. When things change and heartache suddenly finds her address, Ezekiel is there to help her pick up the pieces. However, will the ensuing drama force them apart, or will they tread through the moments of uncertainty together?

Never-before-seen unpublished works by award-winning American literary icon Ntozake Shange, featuring essays, plays, and poems from the archives of the seminal Black feminist writer who stands alongside giants like Toni Morrison and Alice Walker, curated by National Book Award winner Imani Perry with a foreword by New York Times bestselling author Tarana Burke.
 
            In the late ’60s, Ntozake Shange was a student at Barnard College discovering her budding talent as a writer, publishing in her school’s literary journal, and finding her unique voice. By the time she left us in 2018,  Shange had scorched blazing trails across countless pages and stages, redefining genre and form as we know them, each verse, dance, and song a love letter to Black women and girls, and the community at large.
            Sing a Black Girl’s Song is a new posthumous collection of Shange’s unpublished poems, essays, and plays from throughout the life of the seminal Black feminist writer. In these pages we meet young Shange, learn the moments that inspired for colored girls who have considered suicide/when the rainbow is enuf…, travel with an eclectic family of musicians, sit on “The Couch” opposite Shange’s therapist, and discover plays written after for colored girls’ international success. Sing a Black Girl’s Song houses, in their original form, the literary rebel’s politically charged verses from the Black Arts Movement era alongside her signature tender rhythm and cadence  that capture the minutia and nuance of Black life. Sing a Black Girl’s Song is the continuation of a literary tradition that has bolstered generations of writers and a long-lasting gift from one of the fiercest and most highly celebrated artists of our time.  

From the buzzy, viral sensation Only For The Week, comes the next book in Natasha Bishop’s The Forever Falling series, featuring an intimate bucket list road trip, sexy banter, and a sweet and spicy second chance romance.

If you’re reading this, I’m dead.

Dani Jenkins is a boss. A model turned influencer, she doesn’t have time for taking a risk on romance. She prefers to keep things casual, but when her mentor Tanya dies, she is brought face-to-face with the man who broke her heart.

Dani and Micah had their chance at love...

Artist Micah Wright is a protector who loves fiercely. He’s known as the man everyone can count on, but he’s never forgiven himself for letting down the woman he loves. With Tanya’s dying wish forcing Dani and Micah back together to complete a scavenger hunt road trip, Micah sees a second chance for them to get things right.

Does time heal all wounds?

Tensions are high as their undeniable connection reignites, but Dani refuses to let her guard down. As they continue their journey, Micah is determined to prove to Dani that love is worth fighting for, but can she release her fears and relearn the art of loving?

Tropes: Friends to lovers / He falls first / Second chance romance / Black joy /Forced proximity / Right person, wrong time / Fling to forever

An award-winning sexuality educator takes down society’s deeply entrenched colonial views on sex and gender throughout history in this accessible, candid, and revolutionary exploration of how we can—and should—reclaim our minds and bodies for a more pleasurable existence for all.

When you think about sex ed, your mind likely goes back to those uncomfortable school desks and the stifled laughs of your teenage years. But what we’ve been socialized to believe about sexuality actually hinders our own pleasure well into adulthood. Whether we know it or not, even the most progressive among us are often using 400-year-old inherited thoughts and belief systems in the twenty-first century. Why are we still carrying forth these ancient values that have never served the vast majority?

As a Black, queer, non-binary, disabled femme, Ericka Hart believes that sex ed done right can actually be a tool for liberation. In Nasty Work, she breaks down the ways that social implications keep us from experiencing pleasure, particularly for marginalized communities across race, gender, sexuality, and ability, and how we can dismantle these oppressive myths. From examining what guides our attraction to others to the history of consent, Ericka Hart takes the blinders off and reveals a more empowering view of sex and sexuality.

Nasty Work blends eye-opening research with powerful, poignant personal narrative that disrupts everything you thought you knew about sex and society, offering a liberatory framework that makes pleasure accessible for all.

A COLLECTION OF INCISIVE ESSAYS ABOUT AFRICAN ART, CULTURE AND THE CONTINENT’S STRUGGLE TO SHAKE OFF EUROPEAN RULE

Too many of our convictions about the fifty-four nations of Africa come from non-African sources. Western media often treat the continent as a simulacrum of Western anxieties. In contrast, Jeremy Harding focuses on specific historical episodes and cultural practices – cinema, art, ethnography and journalism – to steer us away from treacherous generalisations.

Analogue Africa celebrates the ingenuity with which African artists – and a handful of Europeans – have reimagined the colonial encounter and voiced their impatience with white minority rule. Among his illustrious cast of filmmakers, photographers, writers and painters are Seydou Keïta, Sanlé Sory, Ernest Cole, Sarah Maldoror, John Akomfrah, William Kentridge and Binyavanga Wainaina. Harding argues that Western museums with priceless African holdings – the British Museum, the Musée du Quai Branly, the Royal Museum of Central Africa in Belgium – are now the sites of a struggle over the colonial past, adding the latest chapter to an unfinished history.