26 Black Books We Can’t Wait To Curl Up And Read In 2026 - Page 26

Black authors are putting their pen to paper and telling our stories in books this season. Melanated wordsmiths are sharing our tales, that show our greatness, resilience, and beauty. They’re also connecting the dots of our collective history through treasured pieces of pottery, plant beds, and traditions. 

This year’s reads are helping us deal with grief, navigate boardrooms, reevaluate our thoughts on romance and structure our families to serve the needs of everyone, including ourselves. 

See 26 books we can’t wait to curl up with this year below.

1. Phases A Memoir – Brandy

The “Vocal Bible” looks back on a life of recording riffs, showcasing resilience and inspiring generations of young Black girls to frame their own stories. We are excited to hear what she was thinking and feeling as she worked her way onto our playlists and into our hearts. 

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2. The Way Love Goes: A Guide to Building a “Beaurtiful” and Everlasting Relationship by Da Brat & Judy

One of our favorite couples is shedding light on how they live and love together in this adorable how-to guide. It’s the perfect cuffing season read! 

3. The Power in Surrender: 100 Ways to Tap into the Courage to Trust God’s Plan Over Fear, Worry, and Doubt by Sarah Jakes Roberts

Right now we are all in need of prayer. What better time for Sarah Jakes Roberts to remind us that surrender is the ultimate way to reclaim our power and demonstrate our courage? Spending some time in the shadow of the creator might just help us remember what we can and can’t control. 

4. It’s Never Too Late A Memoir by Marla Gibbs

Gibbs is a fixture in Black entertainment who received a front row seat to several shifts in the space. She has brought us joy for generations in series from 227 to The Last OG. Fans of The Mother of Black Hollywood will love this memoir from the legacy actress. 

5. Black. Single. Mother. by Jamilah Lemieux

One of the most powerful Black feminist voices on the internet is finally coming to bookshelves and we are here for it! Lemieux has been instrumental in reframing attitudes toward Black women and calling out misogynoir for years. Now the proud mom of Mini Milah is exploring what it looks like to embrace motherhood on your own. 

6. Kin by Tayari Jones

Jones takes her sharp eye to maternal sacrifices, friendship complications, the limitations of religion, and the confinement of class in this finely drawn novel.

7. Good Dirt by Charmaine Wilkerson

The storyteller behind Black Cake takes another turn at a novel about loss and legacy in this mystery. Here a family heirloom sits at the center of the tale, serving as a symbol for mystery and connection. 

8. Cleopatra by Saara El-Arifi

You don’t need to be a fan of historical fiction to be excited about this retelling of one of the baddest women to ever lead an empire. Shakespeare might have been focused on the Roman perspective but that’s his one side of the story. This faux-memoir will give you all of the guts and guile from the Queen’s point of view. 

9. When Trees Testify: Science, Wisdom, History, and America’s Black Botanical Legacy by Beronda Montgomery

The connection between Blackness and botany is spotlighted in this tale of how liberation and legacy are tangled at the roots. Your inner plant parent will go up for it.

10. The Soul Instinct by Beatrice Dixon

The Honey Pot founder takes readers on the journey that led her to create a disruptive personal care brand. Learn how she got the recipe for the spicy pads we love and how she weathered the storm of using them to create an empire. 

11. Who’s Watching Shorty? Reclaiming Myself from the Shame of R. Kelly’s Abuse by Reshona Landfair

Reshona Landfair reveals her experiences with the disgraced R&B star in this memoir. It features a forward from Drew Dixon, who has become one of the faces of hip-hop’s Me Too reckoning. 

12. With Love from Harlem A Novel of Hazel Scott by ReShonda Tate

Adam Clayton Powell Jr. goes from civil rights icon to romantic hero in this spellbinding romance.

13. Score by Kennedy Ryan

Everyone you know is carrying a Kennedy Ryan book in her bag for good reason. The storyteller can carry a romance. Here she brings together two creatives forced to work together to tell the story of the Harlem Renaissance. 

14. Leave Your Mess at Home by Tolani Akinola

Siblings reconnect after an unexpected incident sparks a shameful homecoming. Its eldest daughter syndrome meets the social media era with a twist on a lovely Chicago bridge. 

15. The Thing About Home by Rhonda McKnight

A shamed influencer returns home to the low country, where she uncovers family secrets with the help of a friend.

16. Trash Bag Tales & Other Stories from an Accidentally Happy Life by Charell Star

This moving memoir covers the author’s journey from “foster kid” to becoming an advocate and storyteller.

17. Blackness Is a Gift I Can Give Her On Race, Community, and Black Women in Hockey by R. Renee Hess

Hockey is having a cultural moment. This well-researched project gives a chance to root for every Black woman who has ever been on the ice, and we’re here for it. 

18. Everybody’s Fly: A Life of Art, Music, and Changing the Culture by Fab Five Freddy

Take a stroll through the glory days of the genre with the hip-hop pioneer we should all be thanking for our favorite playlists.

19. The Shape of Dreams by April Reynolds

In this novel, friends band together in 1980s Harlem to get justice for a slain child against the backdrop of the crack epidemic.

20. Language as Liberation Reflections on the American Canon by Toni Morrison

We all know the celebrated cannon has some major missing elements. Visit with one of the greatest Black female voices to ever grace the page as she examines the impact of Black representation in literature spaces. During an avalanche of gaslighting, tone shaming, and endless switch-ups, this feels like it arrived on time. 

21. Surviving Paris by Allison Davis

A medical memoir set in the City of Lights that centers a Black woman? Yes, please. 

22. The Re-Write by Lizzie Damilola Blackburn

This novel manages to fulfill your Love Island cravings and tell a beautiful story about what it takes to believe in yourself when the world is telling you not to. The premise is just the kind of extra non-sense that we love sticking around for. Its the perfect combination of petty, funny and sweet. It dives into the messiness of what its like to live and love in an image obsessed culture and the details are so strong that you never want to leave the characters.

23. Full of Myself: Black Womanhood and the Journey to Self-Possession by Austin Channing Brown

Black women who have been pushed out of the workplace will resonate with the opening of this powerful text from Channing  Brown. The familiar condescensions and slights of hands throughout the book will comfort readers and let them know their experiences are not singular but evidence of systemic pushout. 

24. August Lane by Rebecca Black

You don’t have to love country music to appreciate this tale of would be teenage lovers turned creative bitter rivals. It’s a back door historical romance that highlights Black contributions to the genre and highlights how childhood neglect can look different for everyone. 

25. Behind These Four Walls by Yasmin Angoe

A missing friend, a suspicious mansion, a messy family and a fearless heroine come together to create a thriller that can be devoured in a quick get away.