12 Bestselling Children’s Books

Period: January/February - 2020

AALBC Bestseller Seal

Celebrating books written by or about Black people, the African American Literature Book Club’s Bestsellers List has been published continuously since 1998. In 2026, we began publishing our list quarterly, focusing on The BLK Bestsellers.

Fiction: Fiction sales were led by the two-time AALBC bestseller The Confessions of Frannie Langton by Sara Collins, which was also a Go On Girl! Book Club selection for January 2020. Read what the ladies had to say about this book.

Nonfiction: The Source of Self-Regard: Selected Essays, Speeches, and Meditations by Toni Morrison topped all sales in the Nonfiction category. In addition to being a two-time AALBC Bestseller, Morrison’s book is the winner of a 2020 NAACP Image Award for Nonfiction.

Children’s Books: Children’s Books dominated sales of all genres this period. Sales were led by Epoca: The Tree of Ecrof by Ivy Claire, which was created by Kobe Bryant and his publishing company Granity Studios.

Poetry: We did not sell enough poetry books to compile a list this period. However editor choices include, A Bound Woman Is a Dangerous Thing: The Incarceration of African American Women from Harriet Tubman to Sandra Bland by Damaris B. Hill and Mistress by Chet’la Sebree

1
Epoca: The Tree of Ecrof

Epoca

by Ivy Claire Pochoda
Add to Cart
3
Sing to the Moon

Sing to the Moon

by Nansubuga Nagadya Isdahl
Add to Cart
4
Sulwe

Sulwe

by Lupita Nyong’o
Add to Cart
5
Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race

Hidden Figures

by Margot Lee Shetterly
Add to Cart
6
Genesis Begins Again

Genesis Begins Again

by Alicia D. Williams
Add to Cart
7
Hair Love

Hair Love

by Matthew A. Cherry
Add to Cart
8
Black Enough: Stories of Being Young & Black in America

Black Enough

by Ibi Zoboi
Add to Cart
10
Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela

by Kadir Nelson
Add to Cart
12
Jambo Means Hello: Swahili Alphabet Book

Jambo Means Hello

by Muriel Feelings
Add to Cart