This is a repost from July 2020. The article includes minor edits and four additional books have been added to the list.
Bebe Moore Campbell was an author, educator, and advocate for mental health awareness, especially in the Black community. Her advocacy journey began after finally accepting the diagnosis that a family member had a mental illness. She states in this talk that she was initially “ashamed, embarrassed, and…didn’t want to talk about it.” Campbell’s immense contribution toward destigmatizing mental illness includes helping to organize the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Urban Los Angeles Chapter. She also wrote the picture book, Sometimes My Mommy Gets Angry (Putnam, E. B. Lewis, 2003) and the adult novel 72 Hour Hold (Knopf, 2005). In both books, a character suffers from bipolar disorder. In 2008 the U.S. House of Representatives recognized her work and designated July as Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month. One of the goals was to “improve access to mental health treatment and services and promote public awareness of mental illness.”
Instead of using the term “minority” in the name of the monthly observance, some mental health organizations are using BIPOC, which stands for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. Find out why here. However, let’s continue to honor and appreciate Bebe Moore Campbell’s tireless efforts to educate the Black community about mental illness issues. The stories listed for BIPOC Mental Health Awareness Month are all fiction and include a character (not always the main character) who suffers from some form of mental illness–depression, anxiety, etc. Hopefully, the stories and the links included in this article will lead someone to seek support for themselves or a loved one.
Also, enjoy this “What’s Your Story?” feature of self-published author, Dr. Melissa Munro Boyd, author of B is for Breathe: The ABCs of Coping with Fussy & Frustrating Feelings.
1. Off the Record
Camryn Garrett | Alfred A. Knopf BYR | 2021 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
2. The Cost of Knowing
Brittney Morris | Simon & Schuster BYR | 2021 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
3. Some Other Now
Sarah Everett | HMH Books for Young Readers | 2021 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
4. Before the Ever After
Jacqueline Woodson | Nancy Paulsen Books | 2020 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
5. Black Girl Unlimited: The Remarkable Story of a Teenage Wizard
Echo Brown | Henry Holt and Co. BYR | 2020 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
6. Home Home
Lisa Allen-Agostini | Delacorte Press | 2020 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
7. Who Put This Song On?
Morgan Parker | Delacorte Press | 2019 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
8. The Voice in My Head
Dana L. Davis | Inkyard Press | 2019 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
9. When the Stars Lead to You
Ronni Davis | Little, Brown BYR | 2019 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
10. The Beauty That Remains
Ashley Woodfolk | Delacorte Press | 2018 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
11. Black Beach
Glynis Guevara | Inanna Publications | 2018 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
12. Little & Lion
Brandy Colbert | Little, Brown BYR | 2017 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
13. Charm & Strange
Stephanie Kuehn | St. Martin’s Griffin | 2013 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
14. Hush
Jacqueline Woodson | Perfection Learning | 2010 | Amazon | Bookshop | IndieBound
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