Black History Month 2026: Honouring Our Communities
This year’s national theme for Black History Month is all about the importance of community.
What better way to celebrate our Black communities in Hackney than by putting together a list of books for all ages – including seminal texts, librarians’ favourites, books about (and by) activists who shaped the intellectual landscape, and books by authors whom we’re proud to call our friends?
Back to Black
Kehinde Andrews
Author of numerous groundbreaking books, Kehinde Andrews is the first Black Studies professor in the UK. In Back to Black he traces back the history of Black radicalism, the people and the movements, and reflects on what it might mean today.
Confetti
Dean Atta
This picture book is pure joy! Hackney Libraries’ friends Dean Atta and Alea Marley take us on a journey with little Ari, who, through a handful of confetti, discovers the magic and power of celebrating our communities in this luminous, unapologetically positive tale.
The Heart of the Race
Beverley Bryan, Stella Dadzie, Suzanne Scafe
Bryan, Dadzie and Scafe rewrite the collective history of Black women in Britain and their relationship with the British state, setting the record straight on their systemic exclusion, agency and resilience in this landmark text from 1985.
Part of the Story
Margaret Busby
The first Black woman publisher in the UK, Busby dedicated her life to culture, politics and literature by championing others’ stories. In Part of the Story we shift the focus to her own writing as she walks us through the places, people and experiences that informed her as an intellectual and an activist.
Part of a Story That Started Before Me
George the Poet
This classic YA anthology collected by George the Poet features lots of incredible authors to build a bridge from past to future, reflecting on the diaspora and shedding light on Black British history through the medium of poetry. It will inspire readers of all ages.
The Black Atlantic
Paul Gilroy
A fundamental read for anyone interested in understanding contemporary culture in relation to ethnicity and nationality. This groundbreaking book is a deep dive on Black Transatlantic identity and its role in the formation of modernism in art, music and literature.
What We Leave We Carry
Colin Grant
An exploration of British identity seen through the stories of generations of immigrants who left their homelands to build a new life. It collects stories that reflect on the sense of belonging and the emotional and material cost of moving away.
Familiar Stranger
Stuart Hall
This posthumous memoir of pioneer and activist Stuart Hall has been described as ‘the story of an age’. Hackney Libraries have collaborated with the Stuart Hall Foundation on a reading list in support of their Reading the Crisis programme, which you can explore here.
Growing Up Black In Britain
Stuart Lawrence
This collection of interviews by Stuart Lawrence, Youth Engagement specialist and brother of Stephen Lawrence, explores the childhoods of seven inpirational people of Black or Black dual heritage to inspire, educate and empower.
Unending Journey
John La Rose
Founder of the legendary New Beacon Books and celebrated political activist, John La Rose was an advocate for the power of social creativity. This anthology covers over 40 years of history and is a testament to his intellectual range and clear style.