25 Bestselling Children’s Books for Full Year - 2023

AALBC’s Bestselling Book SealOur bestsellers list has been published continuously since 1998. Learn More ▶

These books are the bestsellers of all our bestselling books for entire year! The newest book considered was Only for the Brave at Heart: Essays Rethinking Race, Crime, and Justice by Leon E. Pettiway (Dec 14, 2023). The oldest was No Place to be Somebody: A Black-black Comedy (1969) by Charles Gordone.

View a printer-friendly version and a collage of the book covers. Also, check out links to more great books. Enjoy

#1

Book cover of Jelani’s Key by D. Amari Jackson

Jelani’s Key

by D. Amari Jackson

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#4

Book cover of Repeat After Me: Big Things to Say Every Day by Jazmyn Simon and Dulé Hill

Repeat After Me

by Jazmyn Simon and Dulé Hill

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#5

Book cover of Treasure Island: Runaway Gold by Jewell Parker Rhodes

Treasure Island

by Jewell Parker Rhodes

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#7

Book cover of Black Girls by Dominique Furukawa

Black Girls

by Dominique Furukawa

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#8

Book cover of Black Mother Goose Book by Elizabeth Murphy Oliver

Black Mother Goose Book

by Elizabeth Murphy Oliver

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#10

Book cover of The Making of Butterflies by Zora Neale Hurston and Adapted by Ibram X. Kendi

The Making of Butterflies

by Zora Neale Hurston and Adapted by Ibram X. Kendi

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#12

Book cover of Cornrows (2023) by Camille Yarbrough

Cornrows (2023)

by Camille Yarbrough

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#13

Book cover of Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson

Brown Girl Dreaming

by Jacqueline Woodson

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#16

Book cover of C is for Curly by Markita Staples-Green

C is for Curly

by Markita Staples-Green

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#20

Book cover of Bright Eyes, Brown Skin by Cheryl Willis Hudson and Bernette Ford

Bright Eyes, Brown Skin

by Cheryl Willis Hudson and Bernette Ford

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#25

Book cover of Remember Us by Jacqueline Woodson

Remember Us

by Jacqueline Woodson

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More About our Bestsellers List


You will learn about books selling well, in the Black community, that may never show up on lists published by corporate entities. Spread the word about our list; don’t let one or two lists, which we don’t control, determine which books are important.

We collect our bestselling titles from all our sales channels. The majority of our sales come from this website and our in-person events. We also include sales generated through our affiliate relationships, including Bookshop.org, Libro.fm (audiobooks), Black History 365 Education, and Amazon.com*.

We aggregate all formats of a book sold (print, ebook, and audio) into one format, usually the most popular print format

*For a few years, we actively boycotted Amazon but have discontinued this practice, as many of our authors have made their books exclusively available from Amazon. While we discourage giving Amazon the exclusive right to sell a book, we do not want this to be a reason to exclude an author from our site. Amazon also has an effective monopoly on eBooks and out-of-print books, which we highlight on this site.


The Most Critically Acclaimed Books

Bestselling Books By Year May be Found Here

Our All-Time Bestselling Books May be Found Here