'I'm Black and Proud' Book Recommendations

'I'm Black and Proud' Book Recommendations

Welcome to Know Thyself, a blog space created to infuse your journey with resources and tools to deepen your knowledge of self, culture, and community.

Here you will be encouraged to read and apply uplifting practices and principles to amplify the God/Goddess within to assist in unlocking the power that is….you. 


In celebration of Black History Month, we have curated a “Black and Proud” Book Recommendation List to get you started on your self growth journey. All books were hand selected to empower, enlighten, and invigorate pride in who you are, where you come from, and prepare you for who you are destined to be.  

Scroll below for details and tap in now. 

Woke Don't Mean Broke

Woke Doesn't Mean Broke x Ben Carson

This book is a game changer and will upgrade your life with each page flipped! Enriched with spiritual and key steps to help you on your journey to becoming your best self. In our culture, it is assumed that being woke and in tune with your higher self, limits your ability to enjoy and thrive materially….but that’s not true. If applied correctly, being woke, leads to an abundance of opportunities, including the ability to thrive in financial prosperity. Billy Carson breaks down this philosophy and helps the reader to navigate the financial matrix - weaving their way into an awakened abundant life.

What it Means when A Man Falls from the Sky  x Lesley Nneka Arimah

This is hands down a classic fictional piece that you will not want to put down once you crack it open. Author Lesley Nneka Arimah, takes us on a journey through the sharing of short stories to showcase what it means to be filled with purpose, experience loss, and overcome. In “Wild,” a disastrous night out shifts a teenager and her Nigerian cousin onto uneasy common ground. In "The Future Looks Good," three generations of women are haunted by the ghosts of war, while in "Light," a father struggles to protect and empower the daughter he loves. And in the title story, in a world ravaged by flood and riven by class, experts have discovered how to "fix the equation of a person" - with rippling, unforeseen repercussions. Before you finish this read, you will be wanting to know more about Lesley Nneka Arimah. Her writing is impeccable and her art of storytelling is playful, subversive, and incredibly human.

No One is Coming to Save Us  x Stephanie Powell Watts 

No One Is Coming to Save Us is a revelatory debut from an insightful voice, Stephanie Powell Watts. In this novel, you will explore the plight of an African American family striving to attain the American Dream. With hints of The Great Gatsby, you will feel the dramatic passion and fervor expressed as Stephanie captures you with her portrayal of family, success, and achieving the goals they desire. No One is Coming to Save Us is what we like to call, “straight talk, no chaser,” requiring the reader to get real about life and the necessity of making things happen for themselves. 

Black Leopard Red Wolf x Marlon James

What a story! This book is an amazing fantasy read that combines African mythology and history with subtle current cultural undertones. In the first of a planned trilogy, Marlon James takes us down a suspenseful, thrilling, and mouth dropping journey of a hunter named Tracker who is skilled with incredible abilities. Hunter has been tasked with locating a mysterious boy who has been missing for 3 years. To achieve this goal, he must explore muddy waters, enter unknown territory, and overcome the snares of the enemy in this thrilling, gut wrenching tale. This read will give you “Game of Throne'' vibes. No character is safe. Get ready to go on a wild thrilling ride, that will have you blowing up Marlon’s email!...asking, when is Book 2 coming out?!
Homegirls and Handgrenades x Sonia Sanchez

A reprint of Sonia Sanchez’s award-winning collection, which contains some of her seminal work. Winner of the American Book Award, this piece was originally written in 1984. Within each page, Sonia brings poetry and politics together to describe what it means to be and live the black experience in a time of transformative changes and chaos. Her writing is brilliant and the originality of her thoughts will have you desiring more and relating in the most empowering ways.
Everything Inside x Edwidge Danticat

In this book of short stories, Haitian American writer Edwidge Danticat explores themes of unexpected romance, divorce, and other relational topics that we may experience in life. Within the eight intimate tales of life and love, you are inspired to expand your view on the topics while exploring the importance of developing self to prepare for and further understand the vitality of relationship, loss, and staying rooted to what matters most.
Children of Blood and Bone x Tomi Adeyemi

Winner of numerous awards, including being ranked as an Instant New York Times Best Seller, the first installment in Adeyemi's mega-popular fantasy starts off with the story of Zélie. Zélie is a powerful woman who knows how to use magic in amazing and beneficial ways. When her village inherits a new King, whose intentions are evil and suppressive to the people, Zélie knows she must keep her abilities hidden to avoid being captured and killed. After a series of unfortunate events and filled with a huge passion to help her people, Zélie decides to take a chance to use her magic to help her people and return the land of Orïsha to its rightful place. When you close this book, you will not only be running to pick-up Book #2, you’ll be feeling empowered and ready to tap into your own magic and shine your divine light. 
Relationship Goals x Michael Todd

Relationships….there’s no way we can move through life without them. When we enter this world for the first time, we are immediately placed in a relationship with the one who birth us. From that moment, every person we experience, we have an opportunity to develop relationship with. If this is something we experience all our lives, why have many of us struggled with connecting and thriving in relationships? Pastor Michael Todd of Transformation Church is here to educate us on what relationship is and address many of the barriers that keep us from attaining relational success. This is a great transformative read that will help you develop yourself to show up to relationships with the goal of being successful.
F*ck Your Diet x Chloé  Hillard

This read will have you laughing your a** off, while feeling empowered to love yourself as you are! Every body is different and with all the societal norms that try to tell us what is “normal” Chloe Hilliard comes through to keep it all the way REAL! If you need a reminder on how beautiful you are, as you are, while laughing and being inspired to live your best life!....go cop this today.
Saving Savannah x Tonya Bolden

Love has the ability to transform you and this beautiful read by Tonya Bolden, showcases that in the most beautiful way. In Saving Savannah, a woman has everything she could ever dream of. Her life is good, she has ample resources, and could have any man she wants too. Yet, she doesn’t feel fulfilled. All the beauty around her, that many envy, leaves her feeling suffocated and lost….until love arises from an unexpected source and challenges her to see beyond what she has and connect to who she is. Saving Savannah will amplify your perspective on love and encourage you to go deeper than you’ve ever gone before.
We Want Our Bodies Back x Jessica Care Moore

Being a Black Woman in America is a game of strategy. We must be strong, courageous, unbothered, and a source of support even when we, ourselves, lack being given the same. As a result, many times, a covering is placed over our actions so others don’t see the pains we’re going through. In this eloquent poetic read, Jessica Care Moore says enough is enough! It is time for us to show up as ourselves, demanding respect, value, and appreciation...not for what we do...but for who we are and the power and love we give to our families, communities, and this world. This encouraging read ignites the flame to stand firm in yourself and inspire those around you to do the same.
This Child Will Be Great x Memoir of a Remarkable Life by Africa's First Woman President x Ellen Johnson Sirleaf

Talk about a powerhouse of a woman! In 2006, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf became the First Woman President of Liberia and entered into a Republic that was broken, disheartened, and filled with people struggling to believe that greater days would come. Although this honor came with many challenges, only a woman like Sirleaf was fit for the position. In this memoir, Africa’s First Woman President, details how life’s challenges and the journey we are faced to travel, prepares us to be great leaders, strengthens our hope, and has the ability to transform lives, communities, and the world...when we carry strong determination and belief in ourselves.
The Big Book of Soul x The Ultimate Guide to the African American Spirit x Stephanie Rose Bird

A book filled with resources that will help women thrive in different phases of life. From childbirth, spa treatments, beauty regimens, recipes, and life-isms, each page provides guidance on how our ancestors approached self-care. This book will infuse the reader with cultural norms that helped those before us successfully win in these areas of their lives. If you are entering these phases of your life or aim to do so one day, grab The Big Book of Soul and be guided in African history and culture on the effective use of traditional and modern practices rooted in ancient spiritual wisdom.
The Wealth Choice: Success Secrets of Black Millionaire x Dennis Kimbro

The best way to attain financial success is to follow those who have attained and consistently maintain it. In The Wealth Choice, Dennis Kimbro details how business leaders, entrepreneurs, and celebrities have paved their way to success. He takes the time to detail their successes and failures to help the reader develop a holistic understanding of what it means to be wealthy and how to achieve and keep it.
Daughters of Africa x Margaret Busby

Daughters of Africa is a unique and influential anthology; representing the diversity and extraordinary literary achievements of Black women writers. Showcasing key figures, popular contemporaries, overlooked historical authors and today’s new and emerging writers. Genres in this book include: autobiography, memoirs, oral history, letters, diaries, short stories, novels, poetry, drama, humour, politics, journalism, essays and speeches.

WE HOPE YOU ENJOY OUR RECOMMENDATIONS! STAND BLACK & PROUD IN THE HISTORY, KNOWLEDGE, AND THESE CAPTIVATING STORIES TO ENRICH YOUR JOURNEY THROUGH LIFE. 

Let us know which one is your favorite.  

With Love,  For Your Inner G

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