Children’s Books for Black History Month

February is Black History Month. The annual observance promotes celebrations of diversity and inclusion while acknowledging the achievements of African Americans who have left a lasting impact on our communities and nation’s history.

Each year, Black History Month provides an excellent opportunity to highlight difference-makers in many fields who have influenced history, culture, and heritage. Celebrate identity and embrace individual uniqueness by exploring these timely books with your child:

Books for Infants, Toddlers, and Twos

• Shades of Black: A Celebration of Our Children by Sandra L. Pinkney Real-life photography celebrates a variety of skin tones, hair textures, and eye colors to show how beautiful it is to be perfectly unique.
• A Little Bit of Soul Food by Amy Wilson Sanger Enjoy interesting, quilt-like illustrations that celebrate different cultures and foods.
• Shades of People by Shelley Rotner and Sheila M. Kelly A simple picture book using real photography to highlight all types of children and families from all over the world—each with a bright smile! 

Books for Early Preschool and Up

• Bein’ with You This Way by W. Nikola-Lisa A simple picture book about friends playing together for an afternoon and celebrating each other’s differences.
• Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry Zuri’s hair has a mind of its own! She and her dad work together to come up with fun hairstyles to make Zuri feel beautiful.
• Happy in Our Skin by Fran Manushkin A sweet book highlighting many different types of people in our community to show how wonderful it is to be exactly who you are.
• The Colors of Us by Karen Katz Lena and her mom want to paint a self-portrait but need just the right colors. They take a walk through the neighborhood to discover there are many different colors in the world that celebrate the differences in all people.