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The Montclair Public Library joins in supporting the statement of the Black Caucus of the American Library Association (BCALA) in condemning violence and racism towards Black people and all People of Color. Black Americans are two-and-a-half times as likely as white Americans to be killed by the police. We cannot tolerate or allow prejudice, ignorance, and hatred in our society.
We pledge to continue educating our community by providing programming and resources that address the issues of race and inequality.
“There is no finish line to being antiracist; we should be striving in each moment to be antiracist.” Jason Reynolds
On May 27, 2020, School Library Journal (SLJ) hosted a virtual version of “Day of Dialog” where publishers, authors, illustrators, librarians, and teachers get together and learn. The opening keynote to the conference was Jason Reynolds and Dr. Ibram X. Kendi who spoke about their book, “Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You” (audiobook; eBook). Recent events have highlighted the necessity for books and discussions which, in the words of Jason Reynolds, act as “a type of vaccine” for the virus of racism which infects us in ways that we don’t always see.
We have put together a list of fiction and non-fiction books for all ages to help us understand and examine the hows and whys society is structured as it is and how we can change ourselves and our policies to the benefit of all.
CBS Interview with Dr. Ibram X. Kendi and Jason Reynolds
SLJ’s: Stamped Educator’s Guide
by Robin DiAngelo
Nonfiction
In this in-depth exploration, DiAngelo explores how white fragility develops, how it protects racial inequality, and what we can do to engage more constructively.
Book: BCCLS
eBook: Libby/OverDrive
Audiobook: Libby/OverDrive
by Layla F. Said
Nonfiction
Me and White Supremacy teaches readers how to dismantle the privilege within themselves so that they can stop (often unconsciously) inflicting damage on people of color, and in turn, help other white people do better, too.
Book: BCCLS
eBook: Libby/OverDrive
Audiobook: Libby/OverDrive
by Ijeoma Oluo
Nonfiction
A current, constructive, and actionable exploration of today’s racial landscape, offering straightforward clarity that readers of all races need to contribute to the dismantling of the racial divide.
Book: BCCLS
eBook: Libby/OverDrive
Audiobook: Libby/OverDrive, hoopla
by Ruby Hamad
Nonfiction
White Tears/Brown Scars tells a charged story of white women’s active participation in campaigns of oppression. It offers a long overdue validation of the experiences of women of color.
Book: BCCLS
eBook: Libby/OverDrive
Audiobook:
by Ta-Nahisi Coates
Nonfiction
In a profound work that pivots from the biggest questions about American history and ideals to the most intimate concerns of a father for his son, Ta-Nehisi Coates offers a powerful new framework for understanding our nation’s history and current crisis.
Book: BCCLS
eBook: Libby/OverDrive
Audiobook: Libby/OverDrive
by Reni Eddo-Lodge
Nonfiction
In 2014, award-winning journalist Reni Eddo-Lodge wrote on her blog about her frustration with the way that discussions of race and racism in Britain were being led by those who weren’t affected by it. Her words hit a nerve.
Book: BCCLS
eBook: Libby/OverDrive
by Heather McGhee
Nonfiction
A political strategist argues that our nation’s financial woes—including unemployment, rising student debt and collapsing public infrastructure—are directly related to racism, affecting both Blacks and Whites. In places of worship and work, McGhee finds proof of what she calls the Solidarity Dividend: when people come together across race, we can accomplish so much more.
Book: BCCLS
eBook: Libby/OverDrive
Audiobook: Libby/OverDrive
by Ibram X. Kendi
Nonfiction
In How to Be an Antiracist, Kendi asks us to think about what an antiracist society might look like, and how we can play an active role in building it. In this book, Kendi weaves an electrifying combination of ethics, history, law, and science, bringing it all together with an engaging personal narrative of his own awakening to antiracism.
Book: BCCLS
eBook: Libby/OverDrive
by Sophie Williams
Nonfiction
In this essential guide, Sophie Williams, goes beyond her popular Instagram @officialmillennialblack, providing sharp, simple, and insightful steps anyone can take to be a better ally in the fight against racism. While the book’s focus is on race, it also touches on sexism, classism, ableism, oppression, and white supremacy.
Book: BCCLS
eBook:
Audiobook:
by Ijeoma Oluo
Nonfiction
A history of American white male identity by the author of “So You Want to Talk About Race” imagines a merit-based, non-discriminating model while exposing the actual costs of successes defined by racial and sexual dominance
Book: BCCLS
eBook: Libby/OverDrive
Audiobook: Libby/OverDrive
Non-Fiction
“Something Happened in Our Town: A Child’s Story About Racial Injustice” by Marianne Celano and Leslie Green
Audiobook
“Enough! 20 Protesters Who Changed America” by Emily Easton and Ziyue Chen
eBook
“A is for Activist” by Innosanto Nagara
eBook
“The Undefeated” by Kwame Alexander, Kadir Nelson
eBook
“Martin Rising: Requiem For a King” by Andrea Davis Pinkney and Brian Pinkney
eBook
“Malcolm Little: The Boy Who Grew Up to Become Malcolm X” by Ilyasah Shabazz
eBook
“28 Days: Moments in Black History That Changed the World” by Charles R. Smith, Jr.
Audiobook
“Schomburg: The Man Who Built a Library” by Carole Boston Weatherford
Audiobook
Fiction
“I Am Enough” by Grace Byers (Picture book)
Read-a-long
eBook
Audiobook
“The Mighty Miss Malone” by Christopher Paul Curtis (Chapter book)
eBook
Audiobook
“AntiRacist Baby” by Ibram X. Kendi (Release date: June 15, 2020)
eBook
“Finding Langston” by Lesa Cline-Ransome (Chapter book)
eBook
“The Story of Ruby Bridges” by Robert Coles and George Ford (Picture book)
eBook
“Skin Again” by bell hooks (Picture book)
eBook
“The Parker Inheritance” by Varian Johnson (Chapter book)
eBook
Audiobook
“Ruth and the Green Book” by Calvin Alexander Ramsey (Picture book)
eBook
“Betty Before X” by Ilyasah Shabazz (Chapter book)
Audiobook
Non-Fiction
“Dark Sky Rising: Reconstruction and the Dawn of Jim Crow” by Henry Louis Gates Jr. and Tonya Bolden
eBook
“March” (series) by John Lewis
Book 1
Book 2
Book 3
Available as eBooks:
Book 1
Book 2
Book 3
“On the Other Side of Freedom: The Case for Hope” by DeRay Mckesson (adult title recommended for older teens)
eBook
Audiobook
“Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You A Remix of the National Book Award-winning Stamped from the Beginning” by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
eBook
Audiobook
“Just Mercy: A True Story of the Fight for Justice” (adapted for young adults) by Bryan A. Stevenson
eBook
Audiobook
Fiction
“Tyler Johnson Was Here” by Jay Coles
eBook
Audiobook
“All American Boys” by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely
eBook
Audiobook
“X: A Novel” by Ilyasah Shabazz and Kekla Magoon
eBook
“Dear Martin” by Nic Stone
eBook
Audiobook
“The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas
eBook
Audiobook
“Piecing Me Together” by Renee Watson
eBook
“Watch Us Rise” by Renee Watson and Ellen Hagan
eBook
“Black Enough: Stories of Being Young & Black in America” edited by Ibi Zoboi
eBook
Audiobook