Explore the vibrant tapestry of the African diaspora! Uncover a collection of myths, timeless folktales, and captivating fantasy stories that celebrate rich cultural heritage and imaginative traditions.
Fiction
Glory / NoViolet Bulawayo
In a fictional African nation ruled by animals, the fall of a long-time dictator ignites a revolution that exposes the greed, chaos, and hope of a country struggling for freedom. Told through a chorus of animal voices, the story mirrors Zimbabwe’s political upheaval and explores the nature of power, resistance, and survival. Amid the turmoil, Destiny returns from exile to witness the uprising and uncover the hidden influence of the women who shaped it. Blending satire, folklore, and sharp political insight, the novel captures a nation’s pain, resilience, and unyielding drive toward liberation.
The Water Dancer / Ta-Nehisi Coates
Born into slavery and haunted by the loss of his mother, Hiram Walker possesses a mysterious power that saves him from near-drowning and propels him toward rebellion. Guided by his chosen family and a love interest, he embarks on a perilous journey through plantations, guerrilla resistance, and Northern utopias, determined to free those left behind. As he navigates the underground war against slavery, Hiram must master his gift and confront his past. Blending magic, history, and adventure, the story explores the struggle for freedom, memory, and truth in a vividly imagined, brutal, and beautiful America.
Other formats: large print, ebook and audio (Libby)
Masquerade / O. O. Sangoyomi
After her city falls to the warrior king of Yorùbáland, a blacksmith named Òdòdó is taken from hardship to sudden luxury when the conqueror chooses her as his wife. Thrust into a world of power, intrigue, and deceit, she must navigate a treacherous royal court where alliances shift, and danger lurks behind every smile. As political tensions rise and her husband’s cruelty deepens, Òdòdó learns to wield her intelligence and defiance as weapons, determined to forge her own destiny before betrayal and ambition destroy her.
The Deep / Rivers Solomon
Yetu, the designated historian for her people—descendants of pregnant African slave women thrown overboard—bears the collective memories of their traumatic past. Overwhelmed by the weight of remembering both pain and wonder, she flees to the surface, seeking escape from her responsibilities. There, she discovers the world her people abandoned and uncovers truths about her own past. To ensure her community’s survival, Yetu must confront the memories she carries, reclaim her people’s history, and embrace their identity, learning that understanding the past is essential for shaping their future.
Other format: ebook (Libby)
Queen of the Conquered / Kacen Callender
In a Caribbean-inspired world scarred by colonization, a young woman with the power to control minds seeks vengeance for her family’s murder. As the king prepares to name an heir, she manipulates her way into the ranks of the ruling elite to seize power. But when nobles begin dying mysteriously, she becomes both suspect and target. To survive and claim her revenge, she must uncover the killer and navigate treacherous alliances amid a deadly struggle for the throne, confronting the corrupting force of power and privilege.
The Nightward / R. S. A. Garcia
Garcia’s sci-fi debut novel—the first in a duology—in which Caribbean mythology meets “The Witcher”, introduces a world where women warrior-magicians rule, and a child princess and her bodyguard must flee an attempted coup and evade the wave of darkness sent to kill her.
Other formats: ebook and audio (hoopla)
Blackheart Man / Nalo Hopkinson
A fantasy novel set on the magical island of Chynchin, which faces threats from both invading foreign ships and a supernatural, internal danger. The story follows Veycosi, an aspiring griot (historian/musician) whose arrogant and foolish actions cause a series of catastrophic events. His personal blunders are soon overshadowed by the emergence of the Blackheart Man, a demon who leads an ancient army frozen in tar statues, which is now reawakening to terrorize the island.
Black Leopard, Red Wolf / Marlon James
In a richly imagined world inspired by African myth and history, a skilled mercenary known as Tracker is hired to find a missing child who vanished years ago. Breaking his rule to work alone, he joins a band of unpredictable companions, including a shape-shifting Leopard. Their perilous journey across kingdoms and wild lands reveals dark magic, brutal secrets, and shifting loyalties. As Tracker questions who to trust and what is real, the search for the boy becomes a quest for truth itself—an epic exploration of power, storytelling, and the blurred lines between myth and reality.
Other formats: large print, audio (Libby)
Shadow Speaker / Nnedi Okorafor
In a transformed Niger of 2074, where physics and reality itself have shifted, 15-year-old Ejii Ugabe grapples with the legacy of her cruel politician father, whose death she witnessed as a child. Manifesting mysterious abilities granted by the altered Earth, Ejii sets out to confront the person responsible for her father’s demise. Torn between revenge and other, deeper motivations, her journey unfolds in a world where technology, mysticism, and morality collide, challenging her understanding of power, justice, and the forces that shape her destiny.
Other format: audio (hoopla)
River Mumma / Zalika Reid-Benta
When the Jamaican water deity, River Mumma, tells her she has 24 hours to find her missing comb, Alicia, forms a strange connection with two co-workers who help her fight off malevolent spirits. She is led on a journey through time to discover herself and what the river carries.
Other formats: ebook and audio (hoopla)
A Song of Wraiths and Ruin / Roseanne A. Brown
A refugee and a princess find their fates entwined during the Solstasia festival in the city of Ziran. Malik must kill Karina to save his sister; she must claim a king’s heart to resurrect her mother. As they navigate betrayal, duty, and forbidden attraction, their opposing quests reveal the deep magic and political forces shaping their world, forcing both to question what they are willing to sacrifice for love, family, and survival.
Other formats: ebook and audio (hoopla)
So Let Them Burn / Kamilah Cole
After her sister Elara forms an unbreakable bond with an enemy dragon, seventeen-year-old Faron, who once wielded the magic of the gods to save her island from those same dragon-riding colonizers, must find a way to save her sister and the fate of their world in the face of impossible odds.
Other formats: ebook and audio (Libby)
Blood Scion / Deborah Falaye
Fifteen-year-old Sloane can incinerate an enemy at will—she is a Scion, a descendant of the ancient Orisha gods. Under the Lucis’ brutal rule, her identity means her death if her powers are discovered. But when she is forcibly conscripted into the Lucis army on her fifteenth birthday, Sloane sees a new opportunity: to overcome the bloody challenges of Lucis training and destroy them from within.
Other formats: ebook and audio (hoopla)
Midnight Robber / Nalo Hopkinson
It is Carnival time, and the Caribbean-colonized planet of Toussaint is celebrating with music, dance, and pageantry. Masked “Midnight Robbers” waylay revelers with brandished weapons and spellbinding words. But to young Tan-Tan, the Robber Queen is simply a favorite costume to wear at the festival—until her power-corrupted father commits an unforgivable crime. Suddenly, both father and daughter are thrust into the brutal world of New Half-Way Tree. Here monstrous creatures from folklore are real, and the humans are violent outcasts in the wilds.
Other format: ebook (Libby)
Nonfiction
The Black Cloth: A Collection of African Folktales / Bernard Binlin Dadié
Traditional stories by Bernard Binlin Dadié, originally published in France in 1955. The book, translated by Karen C. Hatch, is a way for Dadié to explore African identity, oral traditions, and the tensions of post-colonial independence. The stories feature common folktale elements like trickster characters (such as Anansi the spider), the persecution of orphans, and moral lessons, presented in vivid, rhythmic prose that reflects their oral origins.
The Book of Negro Folklore / Langston Hughes
An anthology co-edited by Langston Hughes and Arna Bontemps, compiling various forms of folklore from the African American experience. It includes stories, folktales, and other expressions of Black culture from the early 20th century, reflecting a deep sense of history, humor, and resilience. The book explores the traditions, dialect, and unique rhythms of Black life, drawing from the authors’ extensive knowledge and archival research.
African American Folktales: Stories From Black Traditions in the New World / Roger Abrahams
107 tales from the antebellum South, the Caribbean, and urban America celebrates the resilience, humor, and cultural richness of the Black diaspora. Featuring trickster stories, origin tales, moral fables, and ghostly narratives, many draw from African-American slave experiences and African oral traditions. Gathered from historical records, Zora Neale Hurston’s collections, and Roger Abrahams’ recordings, the stories highlight a vibrant storytelling tradition used to preserve identity, navigate hardship, and affirm community across generations.
The Annotated African American Folktales / Henry Louis Gates Jr.
A collection edited by Henry Louis Gates Jr. and Maria Tatar that compiles and provides extensive annotations for African American and related African folktales, reclaiming them as a significant cultural and literary tradition. The book includes introductory essays, nearly 150 African American stories (such as Brer Rabbit tales, tales of flying Africans, and stories collected during slavery), and foundational African tales, all aimed at preserving and redefining this vibrant history for modern audiences.
From My People: 400 Years of African American Folklore / Daryl Cumber Dance
An anthology edited by Daryl Cumber Dance that collects a wide range of oral traditions, including proverbs, folk songs, recipes, and stories like those of the trickster figure Brer Rabbit. The book showcases the heart and soul of African American culture, preserving history and wisdom passed down through generations, especially during the era of slavery when literacy was denied. It includes work from notable figures like Paul Laurence Dunbar and Zora Neale Hurston, and features sections on folk art such as quilts and sculptures, as well as unique cultural styles.
Favorite African Folktales / Nelson Mandela
A collection of 32 traditional African tales selected by Nelson Mandela to be passed down to future generations. The stories feature a variety of themes, including creation myths, animal fables, and tales about clever tricksters and mythical creatures, with many originating from South Africa and other sub-Saharan countries. These narratives often contain moral lessons about perseverance, obedience, and cooperation, presented through wise animals and monstrous figures.
The Orphan Girl and Other Stories: West African Folk Tales / Buchi Offodile
The book includes a variety of tales, such as myths, origin stories, and trickster tales, and is organized by country with accompanying maps and factual information. The title story, “The Orphan Girl,” is an Igbo folk tale about a young girl named Chika who is mistreated by her stepmother and forced to fetch water from the river on a day of ghosts.
Folklore, Memoirs, and Other Writings / Zora Neale Hurston
A Library of America collection of Zora Neale Hurston’s lesser-known works, this volume highlights her ethnographic and autobiographical writing. It includes “Mules and Men,” her autobiography, and essays on race, religion, and culture, as well as studies of Haitian and Jamaican religious practices. Together, these writings highlight Hurston’s dedication to preserving African American culture, folklore, and thought, offering a comprehensive view of her contributions beyond her celebrated fiction.
