2022 BIPOC Audiobooks

Violeta [English Edition]

“Violeta was born in 1920 during a pandemic and is dying in 2020 during another. In between is her rich, event-filled life. In her long life in a South American nation, she has witnessed and been affected by political upheavals, wars, social unrest and change, and technological advances. She has suffered excruciating loss, endured hardship and abuse, and experienced great passion and undying love. Through it all, she has been intensely independent and strong, always paving her own way. Allende reveals the details of Violeta’s life and character through her final letter to one she loves dearly. Using this technique and her beautiful prose, Allende grants us an intimate view of this fierce and inspiring woman.”

Nancy, Raven Book Store

Read by the author.

When you breathe in all the grace available to you and release everything that is outside of your control, you'll discover peace that surpasses your circumstances. All it takes is practice.

If you feel overwhelmed with anxiety about the future, you're far from alone. For many of us, when we're not worrying about what is to...

Racism and social justice are important topics kids are dealing with today. In this adaptation of How to Fight Racism for young readers ages 8-12, Dr. Jemar Tisby helps kids understand how everyday prejudice affects them and what they can do to create social change. In this book, he explains the history of racism in America and why it is so...

A candid, witty, and inspiring collection of essays from The Bachelor’s first Black Bachelorette, exploring everything from relationships and love to politics and race
 
“The Bachelor gave me an opportunity, but I created my own happy ending.”

ONE OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS OF 2022—Essence, She Reads

Rachel Lindsay rose to prominence as The... Read more »

“A thoroughly satisfying love story with a big, beating heart.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
 
“This book is emotional, steamy and sweet—a triple threat! De Cadenet tackles mental health, gender stereotypes, and interracial romance with care and creativity. I loved it!”—Chantel Guertin, author of Instamom

Khalil Sarda went through a rough... Read more »

A spellbinding debut novel tracing three generations of a Southern Black family and one daughter’s discovery that she has the power to change her family’s legacy.

ONE OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS OF 2022—Oprah Daily, Essence, Glamour, Business Insider, Marie Claire, The Millions, She Reads, Book Riot

Summer 1995: Ten-year-old Joan, her mother,... Read more »

In this moving debut novel, two estranged siblings must set aside their differences to deal with their mother’s death and her hidden past—a journey of discovery that takes them from the Caribbean to London to California and ends with her famous black cake.

“At turns delightfully juicy and then stunningly wise, Black Cake is a winner.”—Taylor... Read more »

The New York Times bestselling author of Writing My Wrongs invites men everywhere on a journey of honesty and healing through this book of moving letters to his sons—one whom he is raising and the other whose childhood took place during Senghor's nineteen-year incarceration.
 
“A visceral and visual journey for the ages . . . the perfect road... Read more »

A mythic love story set in Trinidad, Ayanna Lloyd Banwo's radiant debut introduces two unforgettable outsiders brought together by their connection with the dead.
 
"A searing symphony of magic and loss, love and hope, where in the middle of death, love comes shiny, sparkling and alive. This book might just heal you."—Marlon James, New York Times... Read more »

A riveting page-turner about a Black classical musician’s desperate quest to recover his lost violin on the eve of the most prestigious musical competition in the world

“[A] galvanizing blend of thriller, coming-of-age drama, and probing portrait of racism ... This flawless debut will do for classical music what The Queen's Gambit did for... Read more »

“A deeply generous and honest gift to the world.”
—Elliot Page
 
The author of I’m Afraid of Men lets readers in on the secrets to a life of reinvention.

Vivek Shraya knows this to be true: people change. We change our haircuts and our outfits and our minds. We change names, titles, labels. We attempt to blend in or to stand out. We outgrow... Read more »

Anime master Hayao Miyazaki's favorite childhood book and a beloved Japanese classic, this uplifting coming-of-age story brings philosophy, history and wonder together, available in English for the first time.

The streets of Tokyo swarm below fifteen-year-old Copper as he gazes out into the city of his childhood. Struck by the thought of the... Read more »

A wry comic novel with an acerbic wit, A Hero of Our Time is a vicious takedown of superficial diversity initiatives and tech culture, with a beating heart of broken sincerity.

Osman Shah is a pitstop on his white colleague Olivia Robinson’s quest for corporate domination at AAP, an edutech startup determined to automate higher education.
Osman,... Read more »

Inspired by the life and quotations of former first lady Michelle Obama, Opening My Eyes Underwater is a collection of essays penned by bestselling author Ashley Woodfolk.

Essays of bullying, heartbreak, racism, and confidence, Ashley taps into her own past and shares those stories that made her who she is today as she seamlessly weaves in...

Uphill by Jemele Hill is a forthcoming audiobook from Henry Holt and Company. Read more »

A breakdown of the economic and social injustices facing Black people and other marginalized citizens inspired by political activist Kimberly Jones' viral video, “How Can We Win.”

“So if I played four hundred rounds of Monopoly with you and I had to play and give you every dime that I made, and then for fifty years, every time that I played, if...

This program is read by Taye Diggs. It contains sound design.

A conversation about race.

"Daddy?"
"Yes, my sweet boy."
"Why are those people shouting?"
"Our people are shouting because we need to be heard. We need to be heard."

Why? is a question asked by children daily, and in this stirking and timely story, it begins a straightforward and...

Discover a new middle-grade fantasy saga from Melissa de la Cruz, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Descendants series, with Never After: The Stolen Slippers, where real life and fairy tales collide!

Tossed back into the not-so-familiar fairy-tale world of Never After, Filomena Jefferson-Cho and her friends set off on another...

A stunning YA fantasy inspired by ancient Mesoamerica, this gripping debut introduces us to a lineage of seers defiantly resisting the shifting patriarchal state that would see them destroyed—perfect for fans of Tomi Adeyemi and Sabaa Tahir.

Indir is a Dreamer, descended from a long line of seers; able to see beyond reality, she carries the rare...

This program is read by the author.

“A love letter to our people—full of fury and passion."
— José Olivarez, award-winning poet and author of Citizen Illegal

"If you could take Rodolfo Gonzales epic poem 'I Am Joaquin' and explain it through compelling, personal narrative in twenty-first century America, You Sound Like A White Girl would be it.”
—...