December is one of my favorite literary shopping months.
Even in this pandemic and with independent bookstores working together to offer possibilities, I am still able to indulge in my bibliophile dreams.
It is also a time for my to keep culling down the list for 2021.
Are you book shopping for your teens? I always give a new book to my kids for Christmas and Kwanzaa. They also get a new book for their birthday.
Titles we think will make great presents (and some will make the 2021 list):
The Coming by Daniel Black
American Spy by Lauren Wilkerson
The Voting Booth by Brandy Colbert
This is My America by Kim Johnson
The Black Kids by Christian Hammons Reed
Smash It! by Francina Simone
Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi
These Ghosts are Family by Maisy Card
little family by Ishmael beah
The Mothers by Brit Bennett
The Yellow House by Sarah M. Broom
Black Sunday by Tola Rotimi Abraham
The Shadow King by Maaza Mengiste
Black Girl Unlimited by Echo Brown
Kamala Harris: Rooted inJustice by Nikki Grimes (children’s book)
Just Us by Claudia Rankine
We love independent booksellers and as a Womanist literary organization, strive to make our purchases from them as much as possible.
Tweet
You can find these Black Woman owned booksellers on Instagram
@Harrietts_bookshop – Harriett’s Bookshop In Philadelphia
@semicolon – Semicolon Bookstore in Chicago
@Eyeseeme – Eye See Me Children’s Bookstore in University City MO
@Mahoganybooks – Mahogany Books in Washington DC
A great resource for avoiding Amazon (when possible), Barnes and Noble, or other major retailers, is to consider http://www.bookshop.org – they have a lot of the contemporary titles and if you search the independent bookstore, they will receive the sale. I purchased a few of my last titles from them.
Other bookstores I visit are
The Harvard Bookstore in Harvard Square
Left Bank Books in the Central West End – St. Louis
Atticus Bookstore – New Haven
Strand – New York City
The Tattered Cover – Denver
Wherever you find yourself, consider a book, the gift of literature lasts a lifetime. It is a respite from the screens the teens are on all day with Zoom school and staying connected with friends. Reading a book together can offer them a new way to build community.
Tell us what you think and what are your favorite bookstores?
Interested in reading with us this summer? Contact me.
