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May 2023 Children’s & YA New Releases

Get ready for some fun summer reading, because this May list is hot—over 50 books by Black authors! Here are some of the topics you’ll find: several “daddy” books, more Juneteenth stories, picture book biographies, magic, fantasy, romance, and so much more. Check them out for yourself. If we missed any, please leave a comment below.

BCBA is an Amazon and Bookshop Affiliate. Clicking on the book links will direct you away from this site, and BCBA may earn a small percentage on purchases.


Picture Books



The Rainbow Park (Sunday Adventures)

Harold Green III | DeAnn Wiley | Running Press Kids | May 2, 2023 | BdBk | Amazon | Bookshop


The Numbers Store (Sunday Adventures)

Harold Green III | DeAnn Wiley | Running Press Kids | May 2, 2023 | BdBk | Amazon | Bookshop


Big Kids Don’t Get Butterflies 

Ceece Kelley | Sawyer Cloud | Soaring Kite Books | May 2, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


Daddy & Me, Side by Side

Pierce Freelon | Nadia Fisher | Little, Brown BYR | May 2, 2023 | PB |  Amazon | Bookshop



Repeat After Me: Big Things to Say Every Day

Jazmyn Simon | Dulé Hill | Shamar Knight-Justice | Random House BYR | May 2, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


What My Daddy Loves

Raissa Figueroa | HarpersCollins | May 2, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


Unstoppable: How Bayard Rustin Organized the 1963 March on Washington

Michael G. Long | Bea Jackson | little bee books | May 2, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


Malaika, Carnival Queen (The Malaika Series, Bk. 4)

Nadia L. Hohn | Irene Luxbacher | Groundwood Books | May 2, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop



My Dad Is a DJ 

Kathryn Erskine | Keith Henry Brown | Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR) | May 2, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


Little Troublemaker Makes a Mess

Luvvie Ajayi Jones | Joey Spiotto | Philomel Books | May 2, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


The Night Before Freedom: A Juneteenth Story

Glenda Armand | Corey Barksdale | Crown BYR | May 2, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


Big

Vashti Harrison | Little, Brown | May 2, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop



Jayylen’s Juneteenth Surprise

Lavaille Lavette | David Wilkerson | Golden Books | May 2, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


Simone Biles: A Little Golden Book Biography

JaNay Brown-Wood | Kim Holt | Golden Books | May 2, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


Looking for Happy

Ty Chapman | Keenon Ferrell | Beaming Books | May 2, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


Juneteenth 

Van G. Garrett | Reginald C. Adams | Samson Bimbo Adenugba  | Versify | May 2, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop



Granny Came Here on the Empire Windrush

Patrice Lawrence | Camilla Sucre | Nosy Crow | May 2, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


Maurice

Jessixa Bagley | Chronicle | May 9, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


Every Body: A First Conversation About Bodies

Megan Madison | Jessica Ralli | Tequitia Andrews | Rise x Penguin Workshop | May 9, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


A Day With No Words

Tiffany Hammond | Kate Cosgrove | Wheat Penny Press | May 9, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop



A Family Prayer 

Shay Youngblood | Kristina Swarner | Convergent Books | May 9, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


I Know Who I Am: A Joyful Affirmation of Your God-Given Identity

Dorena Williamson | Dana SanMar | WaterBrook | May 16, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


The Noisy Classroom Goes to the Museum (The Noisy Classroom, Bk. 2)

Angela Shanté | Alison Hawkins | West Margin Press | May 16, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


Boy Dad

Sean Williams | Jay Davis | HarperCollins | May 16, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop



Jackie Ormes Draws the Future: The Remarkable Life of a Pioneering Cartoonist

Liz Montague | Random House Studio | May 16, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


All Good in the Hood

Dwayne Reed | Gladys Jose | Little, Brown BYR | May 23, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


Good Night, Little Man 

Daniel Bernstrom | Heidi Woodward Sheffield | HarperCollins | May 23, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop


Hello, Mister Blue 

Daria Peoples | Greenwillow Books | May 30, 2023 | PB | Amazon | Bookshop 


Early Readers, Chapter, & Middle-Grade



The Gray Day (Rainbow Days, Bk. 1)

Valerie Bolling | Kai Robinson | Scholastic  | May 2, 2023 | Early Reader | Amazon | Bookshop


How to Love a Pony

Michelle Meadows | Nneka Myers | Random House BYR | May 2, 2023 | Early Reader | Amazon | Bookshop


Ellie Engle Saves Herself

Leah Johnson | Disney Hyperion | May 2, 2023 | MG | Amazon | Bookshop 


Charmed Life (Wildseed Witch, Bk. 2)

Marti Dumas | Amulet Books | May 2, 2023| MG | Amazon | Bookshop


The Golden Frog Games (Witchlings 2) 

Claribel A. Ortega | Scholastic Press | May 2, 2023 | MG | Amazon | Bookshop



It’s Not Bragging If It’s True: How to Be Awesome at Life

Zaila Avant-garde | Marti Dumas | Random House BYR | May 2, 2023 | MG | Amazon | Bookshop


Voice for Refuge

Zaynab Abdi | Achraf Attar | Green Card Voices | May 2, 2023 | MG | Amazon | Bookshop


Camp-Out (Ty’s Travels Comics)

Kelly Starling Lyons | Niña Mata | HarperAlley | May 9, 2023 | Early Reader | Amazon | Bookshop


Epic Ellisons: Cosmos Camp 

Lamar Giles | Morgan Bissant | Versify | May 9, 2023 | MG | Amazon | Bookshop


Grounded

S.K. Ali | Huda Al-Marashi | Aisha Saeed | Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow | Amulet | May 9, 2023 | MG | Amazon | Bookshop



There Flies the Witch

Mayonn Paasewe-Valchev | Greenwillow Books | May 16, 2023 | MG | Amazon | Bookshop


CROWNED: Magical Folk and Fairy Tales from the Diaspora

Kahran Bethencourt | Regis Bethencourt | May 23, 2023 | MG | Amazon | Bookshop


Save the…Polar Bears

Christine Taylor-Butler | Philomel Books | May 30, 2023 | Chp Bk | Amazon | Bookshop


Onyeka and the Rise of the Rebels

Tolá Okogwu | Margaret K. McElderry Books | May 30, 2023 | MG | Amazon | Bookshop


Young Adult



We Don’t Swim Here 

Vincent Tirado | Sourcebooks Fire | May 2, 2023 | YA | Amazon | Bookshop


Miles Morales Suspended: A Spider-Man Novel

Jason Reynolds | Zeke Peña | Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books | May 2, 2023 | YA | Amazon | Bookshop


Charisma’s Turn: A Story of Girls and Their Gifts

Monique Couvson | Amanda Jones | The New Press | May 2, 2023 | YA | Amazon | Bookshop


I’m Not Supposed to Be in the Dark 

Riss M. Neilson | Henry Holt and Co. (BYR) | May 9, 2023 | YA | Amazon | Bookshop



Nigeria Jones

Ibi Zoboi | Balzer + Bray | May 9, 2023 | YA | Amazon | Bookshop 


The Vibes You Feel: What I’ve Learned about Life and Relationships through the Holy Spirit

Kierra Sheard-Kelly | Zonderkidz | YA | Amazon | Bookshop


As Long As We’re Together

Brianna Peppins | Scholastic Press | May 16, 2023 | YA | Amazon | Bookshop


Last Canto of the Dead (Outlaw Saints, Bk. 2)*

Daniel Older | Rick Riordan Presents | May 16, 2023| YA | Amazon | Bookshop



Transmogrify!: 14 Fantastical Tales of Trans Magic

g. haron davis | HarperTeen | May 16, 2023 | YA | Amazon | Bookshop


Forever Is Now

Mariama J. Lockington | Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR) | May 23, 2023 | YA | Amazon | Bookshop


On This Day in Black History

Christin Farley | Bushel & Peck Books | May 23, 2023 |  YA | Amazon | Bookshop


The Melancholy of Summer 

Louisa Onome | Feiwel & Friends | May 30, 2023 | YA | Amazon | Bookshop



When the Vibe Is Right

Sarah Dass | Balzer + Bray | May 30, 2023 | YA | Amazon | Bookshop


You Bet Your Heart

Danielle Parker | Joy Revolution | May 30, 2023 | YA | Amazon | Bookshop


Rhythm & Muse

India Hill Brown | Quill Tree | May 30, 2023 | YA | Amazon | Bookshop


Her Good Side

Rebekah Weatherspoon | Razorbill | May 30, 2023 | YA | Amazon | Bookshop


*It was believed that Daniel José Older is Afro-Latino. He is not a Black author, therefore Older’s titles will not be included in future posts.

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2 Comments

  1. Karina says:

    Daniel Jose Older is not a Black author.

    • Staff says:

      You are correct! I thought that Daniel José Older was Afro-Latino. Thanks so much❤️