15 Bestselling Nonfiction Books for July/August - 2021

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

Sales for this period also include sales from AAALBC’s Black Wall Street Book Store, a pop-up bookstore which began operating on Black Wall Street, in Tulsa OK, in August of 2021.

Fiction: Sales this period were dominated by writers with decades of experience, including contemporary authors Jewel Parker Rhodes and Terry McMillan and venerable writers, no longer with us, like John Oliver Killens and Donald Goines.

Nonfiction: There was a excellent mix of classic titles from Black writers and important new books from non-Black writers like Richard Rothstein whose research on how governments deliberately imposed racial segregation on metropolitan areas nationwide adversely impacting Black Americans.

Children’s Books: Children’s books were strongly influenced by our Black Wall Street Bookstore’s sales which focused on Oklahoma related stories including the top three selling books, Unspeakable, Opal’s Greenwood Oasis, and Papa’s Free Day Party

Poetry: The impressive anthology of Black poetry, African American Poetry: 250 Years of Struggle & Song, which includes poetry from the colonial period to the present, make our list for the second time this year.

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

#3

Book cover of Social Action, Advocacy and Agents of Change by Ruby M. Gourdine and Annie W. Brown

Social Action, Advocacy and Agents of Change

by Ruby M. Gourdine and Annie W. Brown

Add to Cart

#7

Book cover of The ISIS Papers: The Keys to the Colors by Frances Cress Welsing

The ISIS Papers

by Frances Cress Welsing

Add to Cart

#8

Book cover of Black Fatigue: How Racism Erodes the Mind, Body, and Spirit by Mary-Frances Winters

Black Fatigue

by Mary-Frances Winters

Add to Cart

#10

Book cover of The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America by Richard Rothstein

The Color of Law

by Richard Rothstein

Add to Cart

#11

Book cover of Great Negroes: Past and Present: Volume Two by Jawanza Kunjufu, Erica Myles, and Nichelle Wilson

Great Negroes

by Jawanza Kunjufu, et al.

Add to Cart

#12

Book cover of Rice: A Savor the South Cookbook by Michael W. Twitty

Rice

by Michael W. Twitty

Add to Cart

#13

Book cover of The Original Black Elite: Daniel Murray and the Story of a Forgotten Era by Elizabeth Dowling Taylor

The Original Black Elite

by Elizabeth Dowling Taylor

Add to Cart

#14

Book cover of Stolen Legacy: Greek Philosophy Is Stolen Egyptian Philosophy by George G. M. James

Stolen Legacy

by George G. M. James

Add to Cart

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