Debut You 2022: K. Ibura: When the World Turned Upside Down
January 25, 2022
Black History Month: Part 3: 8 Children’s Books on Voting Rights!
February 1, 2022
Show all

Black History Month: Part 2: Picture Books about Family, Food, and Friends!

“You must give your own story to the world.”-Carter G. Woodson

Earlier this week, artist C.G. Esperanza won a 2022 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Award for Soul Food Sunday, written by  Winsome Bingham! Booklist’s starred review states, “Esperanza’s vibrant illustrations are awash in saturated colors, photo-realistic facial expressions, and pronounced outlines, and they positively radiate this family’s joy and love for one another.” What a wonderful review of a book that features a Black family’s traditions, smiles, laughter, intergenerational sharing and caring, and good food. For Black History Month, Part 2, more of that is on the menu as this book list features stories about families, food, and friendship. These are much-needed picture book stories that show wide-ranging views, reflections, and experiences of Black life to the world. Happy Black History Month!

See Black History Month: Part 1: 10 Black Lives Matter Books for more book selections.



1. Daddy Speaks Love

Leah Henderson | E. B. Lewis | Nancy Paulsen Books, 2022 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


2. Who Are Your People?

Bakari Sellers | Reggie Brown | Quill Tree Books, 2022 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


3. Fly

Brittany J. Thurman | Anna Cunha | Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy, 2022 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


4. Dream Street

Tricia Elam Walker | Ekua Holmes | Anne Schwartz Books,  2021 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


5. The Get-Together 

Christine Taylor Butler | Lonnie Ollivierre | Reycraft Books, 2021 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound



6. Soul Food Sunday

Winsome Bingham | Charles G. Esperanza | Abrams BYR, 2021 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


7. Better Together, Cinderella

Ashley Franklin | Ebony Glenn | HarperCollins, 2021 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


8. Shhh! The Baby’s Asleep

JaNay Brown-Wood | Elissambura | Charlesbridge, 2021 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


9. A Day with the Panye

Tami Charles | Sara Palacios | Candlewick, 2021 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


10. Chef Toussaint

David Miller | C J Love | Dare To Be King Project, 2021 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound



11. Sundays Are the Best

Portia Perkins | Shereen Said Clarendon Publishing, 2020 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


12. Rocket Says Clean Up!

Nathan Bryon | Dapo Adeola | Random House BYR, 2020 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


13. Me & Mama

Cozbi A. Cabrera | Denene Millner Books/S&S BYR, 2020 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


14. Nana Akua Goes to School

Patricia Elam Walker | April Harrison | Schwartz & Wade, 2020 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


15. Ruby’s Reunion Day Dinner  

Angela Dalton | Jestenia Southerland | HarperCollins, 2020 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound



16. Family Reunion

Chad And Dad Richardson | Ashleigh Corrin | Barefoot Books, 2020 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


17. When My Cousins Come to Town

Angela Shanté | Keisha Morris | West Margin Press, 2020 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


18. Bedtime Bonnet

Nancy Redd | Random House BYR, 2020 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


19. Just Like a Mama

Alice Faye Duncan | Charnelle Pinkney Barlow | Denene Millner/S&S BYR, 2020 | Amazon |Bookshop | IndieBound


20. Brown Baby Lullaby

Tameka Fryer Brown | A.G. Ford | Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR), 2020 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound



21. Bedtime for Sweet Creatures

Nikki Grimes | Elizabeth Zunon | Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, 2020 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


22. The Old Truck

Jerome Pumphrey | Jarrett Pumphrey | Norton Young Readers, 2020 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


23. Octopus Stew

Eric Velasquez | Holiday House, 2019 | Amazon | IndieBound | Bookshop


24. I Can Write the World

Joshunda Sanders | Charly Palmer | Six Foot Press, 2019 | Amazon |BookshopIndieBound


25. Grandpa Cacao: A Tale of Chocolate, from Farm to Family 

Elizabeth Zunon | Bloomsbury Children’s Books, 2019 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound



26. The King of Kindergarten

Derrick Barnes | Vanessa Brantley-Newton | Nancy Paulsen, 2019 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


27. Going Down Home with Daddy 

Kelly Starling Lyons | Daniel Minter | Peachtree Publishing, 2019 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


28. Parker Looks Up: An Extraordinary Moment

Parker Curry | Jessica Curry | Brittany Jackson | Aladdin, 2019 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


29. Thank You, OMU!

Oge Mora | Little, Brown BYR, 2018 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


30. Mommy’s Khimar

Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow | Ebony Glenn | Salaam Reads / S & S, 2018 | Amazon | IndieBound



31. The Big Bed

Bunmi Laditan | Tom Knight | Farrar, Straus and Giroux BYR, 2018 | Amazon | BookshopIndieBound


32. Grandma’s Tiny House

JaNay Brown-Wood | Priscilla Burris | Charlesbridge Publishing, 2017 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound 


33. Mr. Okra Sells Fresh Fruits and Vegetables

Lashon Daley | Emile Henriquez | Pelican, 2016 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound

34. My Caribbean Grandma

Sandra Campbell-Notice | Anura Srinath | Brer Anancy Press, 2016 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


35. Don’t Let Auntie Mabel Bless the Table

Vanessa Newton | Blue Apple Books, 2010 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound



36. The Electric Slide and Kai

Kelly J. Baptist | Darnell Johnson | Lee & Low Books, 2021 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


37. We Chose You: A Book About Adoption, Family, and Forever Love  

Tony Dungy | Lauren Dungy | Guy Wolek | Harvest House Publishers, 2019 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


38. I Am Perfectly Designed 

Karamo Brown | Jason “Rachel” Brown | Anoosha Syed | Henry Holt and Co BYR, 2019 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


39. Nighttime Symphony

Timbaland | Christopher Myers | Kaa Illustration  | Atheneum BYR, 2019 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


40. My Brother Charlie

Holly Robinson Peete | Shane Evans | Ryan Elizabeth Peete | Scholastic Press, 2010 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound


If you believe BCBA provides a valuable service, please take a few minutes to donate and support our mission to promote awareness of children’s and young adult literature by Black authors.

Amazon/Bookshop/IndieBound Disclosure: BCBA is a participant in the Amazon, Bookshop, and IndieBound Affiliate Programs. The affiliate programs offer participants the opportunity to earn fees by linking to Amazon, Bookshop, and IndieBound websites. Clicking on the book links will direct you away from bcbooksandauthors.com. Thank you!

Comments are closed.