Black Authors

Afropessimism

By: Frank Wilderson, III

Narrated by: Frank Wilderson, III

Length: 13 hours 39 minutes

Abridged: No

Combining trenchant philosophy with lyrical memoir, Afropessimism is an unparalleled account of Blackness.Why does race seem to color almost every feature of our moral and political universe? Why does a perpetual cycle of slavery?in all its political, intellectual, and cultural forms?continue to define the Black experience? And why is anti-Black... Read more

Conjure Women

By: Afia Atakora

Narrated by: Adenrele Ojo

Length: 13 hours 58 minutes

Abridged: No

A mother and daughter with a shared talent for healing—and for the conjuring of curses—are at the heart of this dazzling first novel
 
WINNER OF THE SOCIETY OF AMERICAN HISTORIANS PRIZE • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The New York Times • NPR • Parade • Book Riot • PopMatters

“Lush, irresistible . . . It took me into the hearts of... Read more

I Don't Want to Die Poor

By: Michael Arceneaux

Narrated by: Michael Arceneaux

Length: 7 hours

Abridged: No

One of NPR’s Best Books of 2020
One of Time’s 100 Must-Read Books of 2020

From the New York Times bestselling author of I Can’t Date Jesus, which Vogue called “a piece of personal and cultural storytelling that is as fun as it is illuminating,” comes a wry and insightful essay collection that explores the financial and emotional cost of chasing... Read more

The Sword and the Shield

By: Peniel E. Joseph

Narrated by: Zeno Robinson

Length: 11 hours 49 minutes

Abridged: No

This "landmark" (Ibram X. Kendi, New York Times–bestselling author of How to Be an Antiracist) dual biography of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King upends longstanding preconceptions to transform our understanding of the twentieth century's most iconic African American leaders   To most Americans, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. represent... Read more

Across the Way

By: Mary Monroe

Narrated by: Kentra Lynn, Beresford Bennett, James Shippy & ...

Length: TBA

Abridged: No

Neighborhood tensions reach a breaking point in the finale of New York Timesbestselling author Mary Monroe's captivating series that sweeps readers back to 1930s Alabama and into the lives of two neighboring couples whose deceitful friendships and imperfect marriages are just the beginning of their troubles...In this captivating Depression-era... Read more

It's Not All Downhill From Here

By: Terry McMillan

Narrated by: Terry McMillan

Length: 10 hours 8 minutes

Abridged: No

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • After a sudden change of plans, a remarkable woman and her loyal group of friends try to figure out what she’s going to do with the rest of her life—from Terry McMillan, the bestselling author of How Stella Got Her Groove Back and Waiting to Exhale
 
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY MARIE CLAIRE AND GOOD... Read more

Hollywood Homicide

By: Kellye Garrett

Narrated by: Bahni Turpin

Length: 10 hours 4 minutes

Abridged: No

Dayna Anderson doesn't set out to solve a murder. All the semi-famous, mega-broke actress wants is to help her parents keep their house. So after witnessing a deadly hit-and-run, she pursues the fifteen-grand reward. But Dayna soon finds herself doing a full-on investigation, wanting more than just money—she wants justice for the victim. She... Read more

Hollywood Ending

By: Kellye Garrett

Narrated by: Bahni Turpin

Length: 10 hours 19 minutes

Abridged: No

Tinseltown's awards season is in full swing, and everyone is obsessed with dressing up, scoring free swag, and getting invited to the biggest awards shows of the year. But when celebrity publicist Lyla Davis is killed, the festive mood comes to an abrupt halt. Apprentice private eye Dayna Anderson thinks she's uncovered the killer.... Read more

When You Were Everything

By: Ashley Woodfolk

Narrated by: Imani Parks

Length: 10 hours 17 minutes

Abridged: No

For fans of Nina LaCour's We Are Okay and Adam Silvera's History Is All You Left Me, this heartfelt and ultimately uplifting novel follows one sixteen-year-old girl's friend breakup through two concurrent timelines--ultimately proving that even endings can lead to new beginnings.

"Stunning." --Nic Stone, bestselling author of Dear Martin and Odd... Read more

Self Made

By: A'Lelia Bundles

Narrated by: A'Lelia Bundles

Length: 16 hours 23 minutes

Abridged: No

Now a Netflix series starring Octavia Spencer, Self Made (formerly titled On Her Own Ground) is the first full-scale biography of “one of the great success stories of American history” (The Philadelphia Inquirer), Madam C.J. Walker—the legendary African American entrepreneur and philanthropist—by her great-great-granddaughter, A’Lelia... Read more

Driving While Black

By: Gretchen Sorin

Narrated by: Janina Edwards & Gretchen Sorin

Length: 9 hours 8 minutes

Abridged: No

How the automobile fundamentally changed African American life—the true history beyond the Best Picture–winning movie.



The ultimate symbol of independence and possibility, the automobile has shaped this country from the moment the first Model T rolled off Henry Ford's assembly line. Yet cars have always held distinct importance for African... Read more

a fire like you

By: Upile Chisala

Narrated by: Upile Chisala

Length: 47 minutes

Abridged: No

A fierce and lyrical collection of poetry celebrating the moments of triumph and beauty in our lives, as well as the moments of despair—recasting them as opportunities for growth.
 
In this never-before-published collection, poet Upile Chisala grapples with themes of love, loss, and desire. Throughout this third book, she explores her identity as... Read more

As Soft as Fire: Collected Poems

By: Upile Chisala

Narrated by: Upile Chisala

Length: 2 hours 16 minutes

Abridged: No

As Soft as Fire collects Upile Chisala’s three acclaimed poetry books -- soft magic, nectar, and a fire like you -- in audiobook form, complete with the author’s reflections on her inspiration and process. 
soft magic, Chisala’s debut collection, explores themes of survival and healing; nectar expands on the topics of growth and renewal despite... Read more

Meine Schwester, die Serienmörderin (Gekürzt) - Abridged

By: Oyinkan Braithwaite

Narrated by: Sabina Godec

Length: 4 hours 25 minutes

Abridged: Yes

Zwei Schwestern, die unterschiedlicher nicht sein könnten: Ayoola ist das Lieblingskind, unglaublich schön - und sie hat die Angewohnheit, ihre Männer umzubringen. Korede ist eher praktisch veranlagt und dafür zuständig hinter ihrer Schwester aufzuräumen: die Krankenschwester kennt die besten Tricks, um Blut zu entfernen, und ihr Kofferraum ist... Read more

On the Corner of Hope and Main

By: Beverly Jenkins

Narrated by: Lynnette R. Freeman

Length: 9 hours 30 minutes

Abridged: No

NAACP nominee and USA Today bestselling author Beverly Jenkins celebrates her beloved Blessings series with a heartwarming novel set in Henry Adams, Kansas.“If you haven’t yet gotten your hands on [this] author’s work, you should do so immediately.”—Shondaland

Citizens of Henry Adams, Kansas, know there’s never a dull moment in their small... Read more

These Ghosts are Family

By: Maisy Card

Narrated by: Karl O’Brian Williams

Length: 9 hours 55 minutes

Abridged: No

PEN/Hemingway Award For Debut Novel Finalist​
Shortlisted for the 2020 Center for Fiction First Novel Prize

A “rich, ambitious debut novel” (The New York Times Book Review) that reveals the ways in which a Jamaican family forms and fractures over generations, in the tradition of Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi.

Stanford Solomon’s shocking,... Read more

Fledgling

By: Octavia E. Butler

Narrated by: Adenrele Ojo

Length: 12 hours 22 minutes

Abridged: No

Shori is a mystery. Found alone in the woods, she appears to be a little black girl with traumatic amnesia and near-fatal wounds. But Shori is a fifty-three-year-old vampire with a ravenous hunger for blood, the lost child of anancient species of near-immortals who live in dark symbiosis with humanity. Genetically modified to be able to walk in... Read more

Black Brother, Black Brother

By: Jewell Parker Rhodes

Narrated by: Barrie Buckner

Length: 4 hours 36 minutes

Abridged: No

From award-winning and bestselling author, Jewell Parker Rhodes comes a powerful coming-of-age story about two brothers, one who presents as white, the other as black, and the complex ways in which they are forced to navigate the world, all while training for a fencing competition.
Framed. Bullied. Disliked. But I know I can still be the best.

... Read more

Living in Color

By: Tommy Davidson

Narrated by: Tommy Davidson

Length: 6 hours 34 minutes

Abridged: No

Abandoned as an infant on the streets of Greenville, Mississippi, and rescued by a loving white family, Tommy Davidson spent most of his childhood unaware that he was different from his brother and sister. All that changed as he came of age in a society of racial barriers—ones that he was soon to help break. On a fledgling network, Tommy joined... Read more

Trouble is What I Do

By: Walter Mosley

Narrated by: Dion Graham

Length: 3 hours 33 minutes

Abridged: No

Morally ambiguous P.I. Leonid McGill is back -- and investigating crimes against society's most downtrodden -- in this installment of the beloved detective series from an Edgar Award-winning and bestselling crime novelist.

Leonid McGill's spent a lifetime building up his reputation in the New York investigative scene. His seemingly infallible... Read more

The Sound of Stars

By: Alechia Dow

Narrated by: Joy Sunday & Christian Barillas

Length: 12 hours 23 minutes

Abridged: No

“This debut has it all: music, books, aliens, adventure, resistance, queerness, and a bold heroine tying it all together. ”—Ms. Magazine

Can a girl who risks her life for books and an Ilori who loves pop music work together to save humanity?

When a rebel librarian meets an Ilori commander…

Two years ago, a misunderstanding between the leaders of... Read more

Conversations in Black

By: Ed Gordon

Narrated by: Ed Gordon, Tracey Leigh, Zeno Robinson, Kamali ...

Length: 9 hours

Abridged: No

An award-winning journalist envisions the future of leadership, excellence, and prosperity in Black America with this "urgent and pathbreaking" work (Marc Lamont Hill).

Hard-hitting, thought-provoking, and inspiring, Conversations in Black offers sage wisdom for navigating race in a radically divisive America, and, with help from his mighty team... Read more

The Black Man on the Titanic

By: Serge Bilé

Narrated by: Mirron Willis

Length: 4 hours 55 minutes

Abridged: No

Joseph Laroche was an anomaly among the passengers of the Titanic. He was exceptionally well-educated in a time when few black men had access to an education―and when even fewer were able to travel on a luxurious ship in first or second class. When his family arrived in the United States without him after the Titanic’s tragic crash, they were... Read more

The Last Negroes at Harvard

By: Jeanne Ellsworth & Kent Garrett

Narrated by: Peter Jay Fernandez

Length: 10 hours 43 minutes

Abridged: No

The untold story of the Harvard class of '63, whose Black students fought to create their own identities on the cusp between integration and affirmative action. In the fall of 1959, Harvard recruited eighteen "Negro" boys as an early form of affirmative action. Four years later they would graduate as African Americans. Some fifty years later,... Read more