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Home · Entertainment

56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022

The new year promises ghetto fabulous fairy tales, moving memoirs, strong arguments for joy, and sweet reflections on fatherhood.
By Keyaira Boone · Updated February 8, 2022

Black authors are carrying us into bird sanctuaries, catholic mass pews, sweeping tropical graveyards, locker room huddles, ship bows, and the hollows of suburbia this season. 

Novelists are asking questions about family by creating characters that are able to express large ideas about life, death and love through the tiny details we recognize in our daily lives. From impatiently pressing ignore on a phone call, to dragging a carry-on through the airport, anxiously awaiting news about a loved one at the doctor’s office, and thumbing through a drawer to find a treasured recipe, you’ll see your own stories in the moments shared on the page.

There are reliable allies, callous power players, zealous record correctors, strong spirit commanders, sexy but complicated exes, and righteous truth tellers showing up in texts.

Behind-the-scenes stories are coming to book shelves as well. A Haitian-American model and sit-com star-turned-Beverly-Hills-powerhouse is sharing her story of sustaining a career in Hollywood. a southern entrepreneur who’s turned veganism into big business and Broadway-performer-turned-superstar is taking us through her journey from the stages to the Oscars. 

Stories of Black people flourishing in arenas that often shut us out are being told as well. Take a closer look at the Black middle class and the way their narratives can be left out of mainstream media, learn about those who fought for our civil rights, and ease into the dens of falcons. 

Join a pair of first-generation British sisters as they come together to confront the restrictions of their culture and ponder how they can merge honoring their heritage with pursuing their happiness. Engage with the storytelling skills of a beloved musician on a whole new level. Listen to a reality show star have a frank conversation about tokenism or romance yourself with a bit of poetry. 

See 56 new books from Black authors we can’t wait to read in 2022 below.

01
Eat Plants, B*tch: 91 Vegan Recipes That Will Blow Your Meat-Loving Mind – Pinky Cole (6/21)
Slutty Vegan founder and CEO Pinky Cole advocates for healthy eating with a southern twist
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Gallery/13A/Simon & Schuster
$28.99 PRE-ORDER HERE
02
A Life Unimagined: The Rewards of Mission-Driven Service in the Peace Corps and Beyond Hardcover – Williams S. Aaron (12/28)
Williams takes us through a lifetime of service to the United States of America.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
University of Wisconsin–Madison’s International Division
Buy Here
03
Through the Banks of the Red Cedar: My Father and the Team That Changed the Game – Maya Washington (1/1)
Washington lovingly celebrates her father’s gridiron legacy.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Little A
Buy Here
04
I Am Because We Are An African Mother’s Fight for the Soul of a Nation – Chidiogo Akunyili-Parr (1/4)
A daughter tells a story of her mother’s courage in the face of sexism, corruption, and a major drug crisis.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
House of Anansi Press
Buy Here
05
One True Loves – Elise Bryant (1/4/22)
A post-grad quest for self-discovery leads to an adventure of the heart.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
HarperCollins Publishers
Buy Here
06
Lifting As We Climb Black Women’s Battle For The Ballot Box – Evette Dionne (1/4)
Dionne highlights those erased from the struggle for suffrage.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Viking Books for Young Readers
Buy Here
07
A Killer Sundae – Abby Collette (1/4)
The taste of a fall celebration turns bitter when murder finds it way on the menu in this mystery.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Penguin Random House
Pre-Order Here
08
The Kindred – Alechia Dow (1/4)
A pair of citizens work together to save the universe from oncoming evil in a world where dual minds have been created to ensure everyone has someone to listen to them.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Inkyard Press
Buy Here
09
Wahala – Nikki May (1/11)
A deadly glamazon resurface tp infiltrate a trio of life-long friends.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Doubleday
Pre-Order Here
10
This Boy We Made: A Memoir of Motherhood, Genetics, and Facing The Unknown – Taylor Harris (1/11)
Parenting, healthcare, and politics are all on the table in this medical memoir about a family fighting illness
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Catapult Books
Pre-Order Here
11
Letters To The Sons Of Society – Shaka Senghor (1/18)
The best-selling author writes moving letters to his children.
The 19 Best New Winter Reads
Convergent Publishing
Buy Here
12
Manifesto – Bernardine Evaristo (1/18)
Evaristo recalls all the forces she fought to have her ideas take up space in the world in this creative memoir.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Grove Atlantic
Pre-Order Here
13
Yinka, Where Is Your Huzband? – Lizzie Damilola Blackburn (1/18)
An upcoming wedding places added pressure on a chaste single woman facing judgment from her friends and family. Looking to seal the deal, she enlists a spreadsheet on her search for a huzband and wonders if she should be looking for herself.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Pamela Dorman Books
Pre-Order Here
14
Just Pursuit: A Black Prosecutor’s Fight for Fairness – Laura Coates (1/18/22)
Coates describes the tipping of scales she witnessed as a prosecutor.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Simon & Schuster
Pre-Order Here
15
Civil Rights Queen Constance Baker Motley And The Struggle For Equality – Tomiko Brown-Nagin (1/25)
The activist may not have been a household name but her work as “the only Black woman member in the legal team at the NAACP’s Inc. Fund,” helped further the fight for full race and gender equality in America. Written by a legal expert, this biography breaks down just how impactful her contributions were.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Pantheon
Pre-Order Here
16
A Journey Below the Mason-Dixon to Understand the Soul of a Nation – Imani Perry (1/25)
Perry explores the American South to understand the country at large.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Ecco
Pre-Order Here
17
Miss Me With That Hot Takes, Helpful Tidbits, And A Few Hard Truths – Rachel Lindsay (1/25)
One of the boldest voices in Bachelor Nation continues to stand up and speak out.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Ballantine Books
Pre-Order Here
18
Don’t Cry for Me – Daniel Black (2/1)
You’ll need to pull out the tissues for this beautiful text about fatherhood, vulnerability, failure, and unconditional love.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
HarperCollins Publishers
Pre-Order Here
19
Black Joy Stories of Resistance, Resilience, and Restoration – Tracey Michae’l Lewis-Giggetts (2/1)
This collection of essays from Tracey Michae’l Lewis-Giggetts recognizes the intrinsic value in Black joy.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Gallery Books
Pre-Order Here
20
Black Love – Jessica P. Pryde
Pryde reviews the way that Black romance has been depicted – and excluded- from the media we consume.
13 Queer Reads We’re Rushing To Add To Our Bookshelves
Berkley Books
Pre-Order Here
21
The Black Agenda Bold Solutions for a Broken System – Anna Gifty Opoku-Agyeman (2/1)
Opoku-Agyeman presents ideas from lawmakers, academics, and activists on how to move our nation forward.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Macmillan
Pre-Order Here
22
The Last Enforcer Outrageous Stories From the Life and Times of One of the NBA’s Fiercest Competitors – Charles Oakley, Frank Isola (2/1/)
Oakley takes readers through “every punch and slap,” in his eventful professional basketball career.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Gallery Books
Pre-Order Here
23
Black Cake – Charmaine Wilkerson (2/1)
A pair of siblings reconnects to honor their mother after receiving posthumous messages that uncover a series of secrets and require them to share her biggest when the time is right.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Ballantine Books
Pre-Order
24
Required Reading For The Disenfranchised Freshman – Kristen R. Lee (2/1)
When a full-ride scholarship to an Ivy League Institution upends her plans to attend an HBCU, a first-year college student is challenged to consider the price of using her voice to speak for what’s right.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Crown Books
Pre-Order Here
25
What The Fireflies Knew – Kai Harris (2/1)
A pair of Detroit children scramble to pick up the pieces at the home of their estranged grandfather after the death of their father and vanishing of their mother.
The 19 Best New Winter Reads
Penguin Random House
Buy Now
26
Bird Brother: A Falconer’s Journey and the Healing Power of Wildlife – Rodney Stotts (2/3)
The ornithophile explains how he made it through the crack epidemic, violence, and eventually prison to become one of the few Black master falconers in the birder community.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Island Press
Pre-Order Here
27
Black American Refugee Escaping The Narcissism Of The American Dream – Tiffanie Drayton (2/8)
Drayton’s experiences living across the United States and in Tobago expose the lack of access to the American dream for the average Black citizen.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Viking
Pre-Order Here
28
Nobody’s Magic – Destiny O. Birdsong (2/8)
A trio of Black women with albinism in Louisiana face turning points in their lives.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Grand Central Publishing
Pre-Order Here
29
Mirror Girls – Kelly McWilliams (2/8)
This supernatural horror story about twins ripped apart at birth will be a huge hit with fans of ‘The Vanishing Half.’
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Hachette Book Group
Pre-Order Here
30
Moon Witch, Spider King – Marlon James (2/15)
The next sequel in the Dark Star trilogy features more plotting and power brokering from a whole new perspective.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Penguin Random House
Pre-Order Here
31
When I’m Gone, Look for Me in the East – Quan Barry (2/22)
A pair of brothers ponder how much of life should be centered on fulfilling one’s duty on a mission to locate a spiritual leader.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Penguin Random House
Pre-Order Here
32
A Black Boy at Eton – Dillibe Onyeama
Penned when he was 21, Onyeama’s memoir tells the story of the massive racism he faced as the first Black student to complete an education at the prestigious Eton college.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Penguin UK
Pre-Order Here
33
Bless The Daughter Raised By A Voice In Her Head – Warsan Shire (3/1)
The first full-length collection of poetry from Shire touches on themes of “ migration, womanhood, trauma, and resilience.”
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Random House Trade
Pre-Order Here
34
The Last Suspicious Holdout – Ladee Hubbard (3/8/22)
This series of interconnected stories explores the nuance of the Black middle class and the impact of the stereotypes foisted on them including “welfare Queens,” “crack babies,” and “super predators.”
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Amistad Press
Pre-Order Here
35
Unbossed How Black Girls Are Leading the Way – Khristi Lauren Adams (3/8)
They can crop pictures and appropriate culture all they like but we know Black girls have always been leaders and so does Khristi Lauren Adams.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Broadleaf Books
Pre-Order Here
36
The Other Side of Yet Finding Light in the Midst of Darkness – (3/15)
Hord recalls how she was able to connect with her inner light after experiencing profound loss following the murder of her daughte by her ex-husband.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Atria Books
Pre-Order Here
37
When We Were Birds – Ayanna Lloyd Banwo (3/15)
This love story follows the unexpected circumstances that bring Trinidadians with differing relationships with the afterlife together in a vast ancient cemetery.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Pre-Order Here
38
I’m So (Not) Over You – Kosoko Jackson (3/16)
Two exes fake a reconciliation to save one’s reputation, but the time together forces them to reconsider their feelings in what looks like a delightful rom-com, set against a fancy family’s wedding festivities.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Penguin Random House
Pre-Order Here
39
Fat Luther, Slim Pickin’s A Black Catholic Celebration of Faith, Tradition, and Diversity – Marcia Lane-McGee, Shannon Wimp Schmidt (3/25)
A classic R&B debate is used as an entry point into the intersection of Black culture and Catholicism.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Ave Maria Press
Pre-Order Here
40
Finding Me – Viola Davis (4/5)
The master thespian tells us how she was able sharpen the skills that continue to keep us captivated.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Harper One
Pre-Order Here
41
Memphis – Tara M. Stringfellow (4/5)
After finding their way out of an abusive household a family is forced to reckon with how inherited racial trauma has impacted their collective path.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
The Dial Press
Pre-Order Here
42
Hope and Glory – Jendella Benson (4/7)
A Black woman relocates to bring her family back together following her father’s unexpected death. In the process she uncovers a secret, and reconnects with an old friend forcing her to question the values she was raised with.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
HarperCollins Publishers
Pre-Order Here
43
Love Me As I Am – Garcelle Beauvais (4/12)
Her cast members may not hear her until the tears fall but we are always all ears for Garcelle.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Amistad Press
Pre-Order Here
44
A Woman Of Endurance – Dahlma Llanos-Figueroa (4/12)
This novel uses Afro-Boricua culture and spirituality to explore slavery from a little examined perspective.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
HarperCollins Publishers
Pre-Order Here
45
The Blood Gift Duology- Volume Number 1 The Blood Trials – N. E. Davenport (4/5)
Disloyalty, revenge, and bloodlust come together to serve a tale of what it takes to be a true warrior when you’re fighting alone.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Voyager
Pre-Order Here
46
Love Me As I Am – Garcelle Beauvais (4/12)
The musician is continuing to bring her storytelling skills to new mediums.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
HarperCollins Publishers
Pre-Order Here
47
Take My Hand – Dolen Perkins-Valdez (4/12)
Inspired by true events this story highlights the horrific discrepancies in our healthcare system and illustrates their heartbreaking consequences.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Berkley
Pre-Order Here
48
Shine Bright – Danyel Smith (4/19)
The experienced journalist uses her talent for reporting to tell the personal stories of Black women in Pop music.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Roc Lit 101
Pre-Order Here
49
The Other Mother – Rachel M. Harper (5/3)
A musical prodigy sets out to find out about his family’s past.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
COUNTERPOINT PRESS
Pre-Order Here
50
My Seven Black Fathers A Young Activist’s Memoir of Race, Family, and the Mentors Who Made Him Whole – Will Jawando (5/3)
Jawando paints a much-needed picture of mentorship in the Black male community.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Pre-Order Here
51
His Name Is George Floyd – Robert Samuels and Toluse Olorunnipa (5/17)
Every hashtag that becomes a battle cry began as a human being. This biography focuses on George Floyd, the person and how his legacy became a symbol.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Penguin Random House
Pre-Order Here
52
You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty – Akwaeke Emezi (5/24)
Grief plunges a woman into a world of passion and shrouds her in possibilities.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Atria Books
Pre-Order Here
53
Love Radio – Ebony LaDelle (5/31)
A DJ is forced to take his own advice when romance comes knocking at his door in this sweet tale of young Black love.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Pre-Order Here
54
Paul Laurence Dunbar- The Life and Times of a Caged Bird – Gene Andrew Jarrett (6/7)
This detailed biography reveals the private struggles behind the public poetry.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Princeton University Press
Pre-Order Here
55
American Royalty – Tracey Livesay (6/28)
A crown prince falls for a hip-hop princess in this modern day fairytale.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
William Morrow & Dey Street/HarperCollinsPublishers/Avon Books
Pre-Order Here
56
Sister Friends Forever – Kimberla Lawson Roby (8/9)
The 29th book from the prolific writer focuses more on the power of friendship.
56 New Books We Can’t Wait To Read In 2022
Grand Central Publishing
Pre-Order Here
TOPICS:  black books Books
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