60 Picture Books for Black History Month

Black History Month (BHM) is a time for remembrance and celebration. The sixty selections featured are wonderful picture books that tell the stories of past and present-day events and people. Some are historical fiction, but most are nonfiction. Carter G. Woodson, the “Father of Black History,” believed “If a race has no history, if it has no worthwhile tradition, it becomes a negligible factor in the thought of the world, and it stands in danger of being exterminated.” Woodson’s biography, a story of courage, determination, and hope for future generations, is told in James A. Haskins’s picture book, Carter G. Woodson: The Man Who Put “Black” in American History. The books are educational and inspirational, and hopefully will encourage further reading on the various events and people presented. For more historical fiction and nonfiction picture, middle, and young adult books, go here. Picture books are great for all ages, so Happy Reading to all!

Fearless Mary: The True Adventures of Mary Fields… | Tami Charles | Claire Almo | Whitman, 2019

The Journey of York: The Unsung Hero of the Lewis and Clark Expedition | Hasan Davis | Alleanna Harris | Capstone, 2019

A Song for Gwendolyn Brooks | Alice Faye Duncan | Xia Gordon | Sterling Children’s Books, 2019

Brave Ballerina: The Story of Janet Collins | Michelle Meadows | Henry Holt and Co. BYR, 2019

The Roots of Rap: 16 Bars on the 4 Pillars of Hip-Hop | Carole Boston Weatherford | Frank Morrison | little bee books, 2019

Young, Gifted and Black: Meet 52 Black Heroes from Past and Present | Jamia Wilson | Andrea Pippins | Wide Eyed, 2018

Game Changers: The Story of Venus and Serena Williams | Lesa Cline-Ransome | James E. Ransome | Paula Wiseman, 2018

A Child’s Introduction to African American History | Jabari Asim | Lynn Gaines | Black Dog & Leventhal, 2018

Hammering for Freedom | Rita Lorraine Hubbard | John Holyfield | Lee & Low, 2018

No Small Potatoes: Junius G. Groves and His Kingdom in Kansas | Tonya Bolden | Knopf BYR, 2018 

The Vast Wonder of the World: Biologist Ernest Everett Just | Mélina Mangal | Luisa Uribe | Millbrook, 2018

Hidden Figures | Margot Lee Shetterly | Laura Freeman | HarperCollins, 2018

Mae Among the Stars | Roda Ahmed | Stasia Burrington | HarperCollins, 2018

Black Women Who Dared | Naomi M. Moyer | Second Story Press, 2018

Take a Picture of Me, James Van Der Zee! | Andrea J. Loney | Keith Mallett | Lee & Low, 2017

If You Were a Kid During the Civil Rights Movement | Gwendolyn Hooks | Kelly Kennedy | C. Press/F. Watts, 2017

Schomburg: The Man Who Built a Library | Carole Boston Weatherford | Eric Velasquez | Candlewick, 2017

Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History | Vashti Harrison | Little, Brown BYR, 2017

Frederick Douglass: The Lion Who Wrote History | Walter Dean Myers | Floyd Cooper | HarperCollins, 2017

The Legendary Miss Lena Horne | Carole Boston Weatherford | Elizabeth Zunon | Atheneum BYR, 2017

Radiant Child: The Story of Young Artist Jean-Michel Basquiat | Javaka Steptoe | Little, Brown BYR, 2016

Preaching to the Chickens | Jabari Asim | E. B. Lewis | Nancy Paulsen Books, 2016

Ticktock Banneker’s Clock | Shana Keller | David C. Gardner | Sleeping Bear Press, 2016

Tiny Stitches: The Life of Medical Pioneer Vivien Thomas | Gwendolyn Hooks | Colin Bootman | Lee & Low, 2016

Just a Lucky So and So: The Story of Louis Armstrong | Lesa Cline-Ransome | James E. Ransome | Holiday House, 2016

Freedom in Congo Square | Carole Boston Weatherford | R. Gregory Christie | little bee books, 2016

Freedom’s School | Lesa Cline-Ransome | James E. Ransome | Jump at The Sun, 2015

28 Days: Moments in Black History That Changed the World | Charles R. Smith Jr. | Shane W. Evans | Roaring Brook, 2015

The Book Itch: Freedom, Truth, and Harlem’s Greatest Bookstore | Vaunda Nelson | R. Gregory Christie | Carolrhoda, 2015

Poet: The Remarkable Story of George Moses Horton | Don Tate | Peachtree Publishing, 2015

Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer | Carole Boston Weatherford | Ekua Holmes | Candlewick, 2015

Granddaddy’s Turn: A Journey to the Ballot Box | Michael S. Bandy | Eric Stein | James E. Ransome | Candlewick, 2015

Jake Makes a World: Jacob Lawrence, a Young Artist in Harlem | Sharifa Rhodes-Pitts | Christopher Myers | MoMA, 2015 

Jalani and the Lock | Lorenzo Pace | Windmill Books, 2015

Gordon Parks: How the Photographer Captured…America | Carole Boston Weatherford | Jamey Christoph | Whitman, 2015

Malcolm Little: The Boy Who Grew Up to Become Malcolm X | Ilyasah Shabazz | AG Ford | Atheneum BYR, 2014

This Is the Rope: A Story from the Great Migration | Jacqueline Woodson | James Ransome | Nancy Paulsen Books, 2013

Harlem’s Little Blackbird: The Story of Florence Mills | Renee Watson | Christian Robinson | Random House BYR, 2012

We March | Shane W. Evans | Roaring Brook Press, 2012

Before There Was Mozart | Lesa Cline-Ransome | James E. Ransome | Schwartz & Wade, 2011

Ruth and the Green Book | Calvin Alexander Ramsey | Gwen Strauss | Floyd Cooper | Carolrhoda, 2010

Twelve Rounds to Glory: The Story of Muhammad Ali | Charles R. Smith Jr. | Bryan Collier | Candlewick, 2010

Paul Robeson | Eloise Greenfield | George Ford | Lee & Low, 2009

Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves | Vaunda Nelson | R. Gregory Christie | Carolrhoda, 2009

Child of the Civil Rights Movement | Paula Young Shelton | Raul Colon | Schwartz & Wade, 2009

Sojourner Truth’s Step-Stomp Stride | Andrea Davis Pinkney | Brian Pinkney | Jump At The Sun, 2009

Ida B. Wells: Let the Truth Be Told | Walter Dean Myers | Bonnie Christensen | Amistad, 2008

Before John Was a Jazz Giant: A Song of John Coltrane | Carole Boston Weatherford | Sean Qualls | Henry Holt BYR, 2008

Delivering Justice: W.W. Law and the Fight for Civil Rights | Jim Haskins | Benny Andrews | Candlewick, 2008

Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra | Andrea Davis Pinkney | Brian Pinkney | Paw Prints, 2007

Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom | Carole Boston Weatherford | Kadir Nelson | Hyperion, 2006

Visiting Langston | Willie Perdomo | Bryan Collier | Perfection Learning, 2005

A Sweet Smell of Roses | Angela Johnson | Eric Velasquez | Simon & Schuster BYR, 2005

Me and Uncle Romie: A Story Inspired by the Life and Art of Romare Beardon | Claire Hartfield | J. Lagarrigue | Dial, 2002

If A Bus Could Talk: The Story of Rosa Parks | Faith Ringgold | Simon & Schuster BYR, 1999

Fly, Bessie, Fly | Lynn Joseph | Yvonne Buchanan | Simon & Schuster, 1998

The Great Migration: An American Story | Jacob Lawrence | Perfection Learning, 1995

Mary McLeod Bethune | Eloise Greenfield | Jerry Pinkney | Perfection Learning, 1994

Alvin Ailey | Andrea Pinkney | Brian Pinkney | Disney-Hyperion 1993

Zora Neale Hurston: Writer and Storyteller | Patricia & Frederick McKissack | Michael Bryant | Enslow, 1992

Do you plan to read or use any of the books listed in your home, classroom, or community center? For educational or leisure reading? Leave us a comment below.

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