What To Read for Black History Month

Good Dirt

By Charmaine Wilkerson

Perfect for book clubs, this wise and enthralling novel from the author of Black Cake weaves between the present—a young woman mysteriously jilted at the altar—and her ancestors’ past as enslaved people paving the way for her with their courage and ingenuity. I didn’t think I would like this as much as I adored Black Cake, but Wilkerson has done it again, hooking me early and keeping me turning the pages until the book’s hope-filled resolution. Though this is a mainstream novel, notes of faith appear and the content is PG except for a couple of brief non-graphic yet sensual scenes. Riveting and brimming with truth. (Penguin Random House)

From the back cover:

“When 10-year-old Ebby Freeman heard the gunshot, time stopped. And when she saw her brother, Baz, lying on the floor surrounded by the shattered pieces of a centuries-old jar, life as Ebby knew it shattered as well.

“The crime was never solved—and because the Freemans were one of the only Black families in a particularly well-to-do enclave of New England—the case has had an enduring, voyeuristic pull for the public. The last thing the Freemans want is another media frenzy splashing their family across the papers, but when Ebby’s high-profile romance falls apart without any explanation, that’s exactly what they get.

“So Ebby flees to France, only for her past to follow her there. And as she tries to process what’s happened, she begins to think about the other loss her family suffered on that day 18 years ago—the stoneware jar that had been in their family for generations, brought North by an enslaved ancestor. But little does she know that the handcrafted piece of pottery held more than just her family’s history—it might also hold the key to unlocking her own future.

“In this sweeping, evocative novel, Charmaine Wilkerson brings to life a multi-generational epic that examines how the past informs our present.”

The American Queen: A Novel Based on the True Story of Appalachia’s Kingdom of the Happy Land

By Vanessa Miller

I love reading a seemingly far-fetched novel and finding out it is based on a true story. The American Queen tells a tale that seems made up but is wonderfully true. After growing up enslaved and witnessing the sale of her mother and the lynching of her father, Louella’s heart is full of hate. She seems to know that she can trust the plantation pastor, though, and reluctantly marries him. She and Reverend William forge quite a bond as they lead their fellow enslaved folks out of the plantation and onto what they hope are new lives of freedom and independence. After a year of wandering, they find their promised land, dubbed the Kingdom of the Happy Land, and co-lead it as King and Queen. Still, even though they are no longer enslaved, Louella and William and their people face terrible trials as now-impoverished landholders resent their prosperity in Happy Land. Through every hardship, as they face violence and even death, Louella’s heart softens as she learns to lean on the God who loves her.

From the back cover:

“There is only one known queen who truly ruled a kingdom on American soil. Meet the queen of Happy Land.

“Transformative and breathtakingly honest, The American Queen is based on actual events that occurred between 1865 and 1889 and shares the unsung history of a Black woman who built a kingdom in Appalachia as a refuge for the courageous people who dared to dream of a different way of life.

“Over the 24 years she was enslaved on the Montgomery Plantation, Louella learned to feel one thing: hate. Hate for the man who sold her mother. Hate for the overseer who left her daddy to hang from a noose. Hate so powerful there's no room in her heart for love, not even for the honorable Reverend William, whom she likes and respects enough to marry.

“But when William finally listens to Louella's pleas and leads the formerly enslaved people off the plantation, Louella begins to replace her hate with hope. Hope that they will find a place where they can live free from fear. Hope that despite her many unanswered prayers, she can learn to trust for new miracles.

“Soon, William and Louella become the appointed king and queen of their self-proclaimed Kingdom of the Happy Land. And though they are still surrounded by opposition, they continue to share a message of joy and goodness—and fight for the freedom and dignity of all.

“The American Queen weaves together themes of love, hate, hope, trust, and resilience in the face of great turmoil. With every turn of the page, you will be transported to a pivotal period in American history, where oppressed people become extraordinary heroes.” (Thomas Nelson)

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry

By Mildred Taylor

If you’ve read this modern classic in school, it might be time for a reread. Cassie Logan, the 10-year-old heroine at the heart of this soul-stirring book for middle graders, is someone whose courage and resilience in the face of adversity never fails to inspire and instruct readers of all ages. My favorite scenes involve food: the way Cassie learns about her Black heritage through her mother’s butter beans, and the way Cassie’s mother teaches her children how to love their neighbor through a can of Crowder Peas. As a bookish foodie, I love the way Taylor writes about soul food, as well as her moving depictions of one Southern family’s deep love for one another, their land, and the people in their community. When one falls, the other is helped up, just as Scripture teaches.

From the back cover:

“Winner of the Newbery Medal, this remarkably moving novel has impressed the hearts and minds of millions of readers.

“Set in Mississippi at the height of the Depression, this is the story of one family’s struggle to maintain their integrity, pride, and independence in the face of racism and social injustice. And it is also Cassie’s story—Cassie Logan, an independent girl who discovers over the course of an important year why having land of their own is so crucial to the Logan family, even as she learns to draw strength from her own sense of dignity and self-respect.” (Penguin Random House)

The Spirit of Justice: True Stories of Faith, Race, and Resistance

By Jemar Tisby
Reviewed by Ann Byle

Jemar Tisby, author of the bestselling The Color of Compromise and award-winning How to Fight Racism, continues his study of racism in his new book, The Spirit of Justice. This time he looks at the history of the United States from its earliest settlement by non-Native Americans to the present as it relates to the Black fight for justice and liberty.

He asks, “What manner of people are those who courageously confront racism instead of being complicit with it? And what can we learn from their example, their suffering, their methods, and their hope?”

He answers by “focus(ing) primarily on the beliefs and action of Black Christians.” Tisby puts their actions into the context of American history, revealing how their faith in God was the basis for their actions on behalf of their brothers and sisters as well as themselves.

He starts with the colonial era when “the status of people of African descent had already begun to harden into an oppressed racial class.” Yet poets such as Phillis Wheatley and advocates such as Benjamin Banneker felt called to voice their faith and anti-slavery sentiments.

In the pre-Civil War anti-slavery movement, Frederick Douglass and his wife Anna Murray Douglass stand out. Harriet Tubman and Elizabeth Keckley are explored in the chapter on the Civil War, and in his study of the rise of Black institutions during the post-Civil War years Tisby highlights Elias Camp Morris and the National Baptist Convention and William J. Simmons and the Kentucky Normal and Theological Institute.

Tisby also looks at the civil rights movement and Martin Luther King Jr., talking through some of the lesser-known stories of his life and moving beyond the “I Have a Dream” speech to look at King’s vision for economic considerations for Black people.

At first glance, The Spirit of Justice might look like a compilation of profiles of prominent Black voices in the freedom movement. But it is so much more than that. Tisby offers a unique survey of American history focused on the fight for Black freedom and its ties to the Christian faith.

He also explores key women in the Black freedom movement such as Coretta Scott King, Ella Baker, and Ruby Dee, and focuses on Shirley Chisholm and Myrlie Evers-Williams in the Black power era. He also taps into men and women working today to further the struggle for Black freedom and liberty.

Tisby’s writing is clear and his research is thorough. Readers will learn much about American history, the faith of Black people fighting for their freedom, and how the two are inextricably combined. As Tisby says, “The spirit of justice still speaks.” (Zondervan Reflective)