Publisher Description
Celebrate the joys of Black boyhood with stories from seventeen bestselling, critically acclaimed Black authors--including Jason Reynolds (the Track series), Jerry Craft (New Kid), and Kwame Mbalia (the Tristan Strong series)! Black boy joy is… Picking out a fresh first-day-of-school outfit. Saving the universe in an epic intergalactic race. Finding your voice—and your rhymes—during tough times. Flying on your skateboard like nobody’s watching. And more! From seventeen acclaimed Black male and non-binary authors comes a vibrant collection of stories and poems about the power of joy and the wonders of Black boyhood. Contributors include: B. B. Alston, Dean Atta, P. Djèlí Clark, Jay Coles, Jerry Craft, Lamar Giles, Don P. Hooper, George M. Johnson, Varian Johnson, Kwame Mbalia, Suyi Davies Okungbowa, Tochi Onyebuchi, Julian Randall, Jason Reynolds, Justin Reynolds, DaVaun Sanders, and Julian Winters Cover illustration by Kadir Nelson
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“"In a world where Black boys' stories are often tragedies, statistics, and stereotypes, this work surely reclaims ownership over the boldness, creativity, and wholeness they possess.”
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Booklist (starred review)
About the Authors
Kwame Mbalia is a husband, father, writer, New York Times bestselling author, and former pharmaceutical metrologist, in that order. He is the author of the Tristan Strong trilogy, The Last Gate of the Emperor duology, and Black Boy Joy—an anthology of 17 stories celebrating Black boyhood. His work has received numerous starred reviews and a Coretta Scott King honor. A Howard University graduate and a Midwesterner now in North Carolina, he survives on dad jokes and Cheez-Its.
Varian Johnson is the author of several novels for children and young adults, including The Parker Inheritance, for which he won a Coretta Scott King Honor award; The Great Greene Heist, which was an ALA Notable Children’s Book, a Kirkus Reviews Best Book of 2014, and a Texas Library Association Lone Star List selection; and To Catch a Cheat, a Kids’ Indie Next List pick. You can find him online at varianjohnson.com.
Jason Reynolds is a #1 New York Times bestselling author, a Newbery Award Honoree, a Printz Award Honoree, a two-time National Book Award finalist, a Kirkus Award winner, a Carnegie Medal winner, a two-time Walter Dean Myers Award winner, an NAACP Image Award Winner, and the recipient of multiple Coretta Scott King honors. He is also the 2020–2021 National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature. His many books include Long Way Down, which received a Newbery Honor, a Printz Honor, and a Coretta Scott King Honor. You can find his ramblings at JasonWritesBooks.com.
Colleen Delany has
been a sparkling jewel in the crown of Washington’s vastly talented acting
community for thirty-seven days now and will confidently challenge to a fierce
best out of three in “paper-rock-scissors” anyone wishing to topple her from
that lofty perch. Primarily a stage actress,—having played roles at Shakespeare
Theatre Company, Goodman Theatre, Arena Stage, Signature Theatre, Folger
Shakespeare Library, Studio Theatre, Olney Theatre, Woolly Mammoth, Theater J,
Washington Stage Guild, Theater of the First Amendment, and Source Theatre,
among others—Ms. Delany does a you-name-it of various acting jobs, including
audiobook narration.
Jerry Craft is the author books for children, including bestselling graphic novel New Kid, which won the Newbery Medal, the Coretta Scott King Author Award, and the Kirkus Prize. He has worked on numerous picture books, graphic novels, and middle grade novels. He is the creator of Mama’s Boyz, an award-winning syndicated comic strip. He has won five African American Literary Awards, and he is a cofounder of the Schomburg Center’s Annual Black Comic Book Festival. He received his BFA from the School of Visual Arts. Visit him online at www.jerrycraft.com.