I love reading all kinds of stories to my children, but I especially love reading books that feature African American characters, because I know that it affirms them. I previously wrote about books that affirm African American girls that I love to read to my daughter. Now, I would like to share some books that I have read to my son that he really enjoys, as well as books that I plan on reading with him as he gets older. These books feature African American boys as the main character, and include some historical figures, but mainly are stories about every day happenings that boys are sure to enjoy! What better way to begin fostering a young boy’s love of reading than reading stories that he can relate to, with the added bonus of having characters that are a reflection of him.
Preschool age group (2-5):
Daddy Calls Me Man by Angela Johnson
Bippity Bop Barbershop by Natasha Anastasia Tarpley
Peter’s Chair by Ezra Jack Keats
Whose Knees are These? by Jabari Asim
When I Am Old With You by Angela Johnson
A Beach Tail by Karen Williams
Max and the Tag Along Moon by Floyd Cooper
A Child is Born by Margaret Wise Brown/illustrated by Floyd Cooper
Age 4-7
Windflyers by Angela Johnson
Salt in His Shoes by Deloris Jordan
You Can Do It by Tony Dungy
Brothers of the Night by Debbie Allen
Big Jabe by Jerdine Nolen
Hewitt Anderson’s Great Big Life by Jerdine Nolen/Kadir Nelson
Knock Knock: My Dad’s Dream for Me by Daniel Beaty
Testing the Ice: A True Story About Jackie Robinson by Sharon Robinson
Not Norman: A Goldfish Story by Kelly Bennett
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind by William Kamkwamba
Age 8-12
Barber Game Time Books by Tiki and Ronde Barber
Static Shock series- chapter books by Tracey West. Adapted from the comic series by Scott McDaniel.
STAT: Standing Tall and Talented series by Amare Stoudemire
Malcolm Little: The Boy Who Grew Up to Become Malcolm X by Ilyasah Shabbazz
Kid Caramel series by Dwayne Ferguson
Clubhouse Mysteries series by Sharon Draper
Julian series by Ann Cameron
Miami Jackson series by Patricia McKissack
The Toothpaste Millionaire by Jean Merrill
Donovan’s Word Jar and Donovan’s Double Trouble by Monalisa DeGross
Ladies, what books would you add to this list? What do you read to your sons?
