Books for Adults
Below is a list of recommendations, a jumping off point towards creating a change in mindset and your reading list. EOU may stock these books, but we highly suggest you follow the links below to support various Black owned bookstores. Remember to leave reviews for the books you read, these authors voices are amplified when we share our connections and reflections to their books in person and online.
- And Still I Rise by Maya Angelou
- ain’t i a woman?: black women and feminism by bell hooks
- Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay
- Becoming by Michelle Obama
- Beloved by Toni Morrison
- Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
- Freedom is a Constant Struggle by Angela Davis
- Hood Feminism by Mikki Kendall
- How to be an Anti-Racist by Ibram X. Kendi
- If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin
- Me and White Supremacy by Layla F. Saad
- Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams
- Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde
- So You Want to Talk About Race by Oluo Ijeoma
- The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
- “They Can’t Kill Us All”: Ferguson, Baltimore, and a New Era in America’s Racial Justice Movement by Wesley Lowery
- You Can’t Touch My Hair: And Other Things I Still Have to Explain by Phoebe Robinson
Books for Kiddos and Teens
Same rule as above, even though we carry these books at EOU, please follow the link and support a Black owned bookstore. These books are intended to support tiny ones on their journey to becoming anti-racists while creating more representation for kids.
- A is for Activist by Innosanto Nagara
- A Kids Book about Racism by Jelani Memory
- All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brandan Kiely
- Antiracist Baby! By Ibram X. Kendi
- I Am Enough by Grace Byers
- If You’re Going to a March by Martha Freeman
- My N.C. from A to Z by Michelle Lanier
- Say Her Name by Zetta Elliot
- Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down by Andrea Davis Pinkey
- Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
- Sulwe by Lupita Nyong’o
- The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
- The Undefeated by Kwame Alexander
- This Book Is Anti-Racist: 20 Lessons on How to Wake Up, Take Action, and Do The Work by Tiffany Jewell
- We Rise, We Resist, We Raise Our Voices by Wade Hudson and Cheryl Willis Hudson
- What Can a Citizen Do? By Dave Eggers
TV & Film
A teeny tiny list of TV series and films showcasing Black experiences, lives, and stories. If you have never watched an Ava DuVernay or a Spike Lee film… then you should start your visual history there. Remember these lists are just jumping off points! This is NOT an expansive list by any means, just a place to begin and expand.
- 4 Little Girls (Film)
- 12 Years A Slave (Film)
- 13th (Film)
- 16 Shots (Film)
- American Son (Film)
- Chi-Raq (Film)
- Dear White People (Series & Film)
- Do the Right Thing (Film)
- Fruitvale Station (Film)
- I Am Not Your Negro (Film)
- Insecure (Series)
- (In)visible Portraits (Film)
- Just Mercy (Film)
- Malcolm X (Film)
- Moonlight (Film)
- Pose (Series)
- The Hate U Give (Film)
- Selma (Film)
- Watchmen (Series)
- When They See Us (Series)
Podcasts
Maybe listening is more your thing? Frist, consider a book from above in audiobook format. But also, check out these great podcasts that range from telling Black stories to discussing how we can continue to work towards sustainable change for future generations of BIPOC.
- 1619
- About Race with Reni Eddo-Lodge
- Blackbelt
- Code Switch
- Ear Hustle
- Natal
- Pod for the Cause
- The Stoop
NC History
Very brief examples of the neglected, ignored, and oppressed history of Black businesses, politicians, and North Carolinians. It is important to know the entrepreneurs who came before you and paved the way. Yet, most of these stories have been deleted or omitted from school textbooks. Here are only a few, geographically specific resources for both cities where our stores reside.
Wilmington
- Assata: An Autobiography by Assata Shakur
- Wilmington Lies: The Murderous Coup of 1898 and the Rise of White Supremacy by David Zucchino
Raleigh/Durham
- The Best of Enemies: Race and Redemption in the New South by Osha Gray Davidson
- The Past, Present, and Future of Druham’s Black Wall Street by Amanda Magnus, Dana Terry, and Frank Stasio
- Upbuilding Black Durham: Gender, Class, and Black Community Development in the Jim Crow South by Leslie Brown
TedTalk Videos
Below is TedTalk’s dedication to telling Black stories and the Black experience. This playlist is intended to “help you understand racism in America”.
https://www.ted.com/playlists/250/talks_to_help_you_understand_r
The Socialization and Comfortableness of Microaggressions by Andrea Boyle
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YR8jNtV4BE
Coming to Terms with Racism’s Inertia: Ancestral Accountability by Rachel Cargle
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgufOtRq488
The Danger of a Single Story by Chimamanda Adichie
We would like to say a big thank you to our friend, Keva Kreeger for putting this resource guide together for us!