4 Bestselling Poetry Books
Period: September/October - 2023
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:
Voices of the Harlem Renaissance makes our bestsellers list for the 19th time! Only 7 other books have accomplished this feat.
Nonfiction:
Edited by Jericho Brown How We Do It: Black Writers on Craft, Practice, and Skill; debuted on at #3 on our list and now tops the nonfiction list.
Children’s Books:
Jelani’s Key by D. Amari Jackson was the top selling book of all titles this period, largely on the strength of sales during a book signing at Sankofa Bookstore and Cafe on October 28th.
Poetry:
Poetry sales were topped by Life On Mars: Poems by Tracy K. Smith, the 12-year-old collection of poems won the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry.
