15 Bestselling Fiction Books for November/December - 2021

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

Fiction: The Zora Neale Hurston Boxed Set was an AALBC bestseller even before its publication date. The 10-book boxed set features the best of Hurston’s fiction and nonfiction in one impressive package.

Nonfiction: Nikole Hannah-Jones’ The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story was the #1 bestselling book across all genres this period. This does not include the many copies of the book sold as a result of our collaboration with Bookshop.org to support the New York based not-for-profit organization, The Literary Freedom Project.

Children’s Books: Born on the Water, which is also part of The 1619 Project was our top selling children’s book. Illustrated by Nikkolas Smith and written by Nikole Hannah-Jones and Renée Watson, Born on the Water was one also of our most popular books of the year.

Poetry: Amanda Gorman’ Call Us What We Carry: Poems helps make Gorman one of AALBC’s all-time bestselling authors.

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 While Justice Sleeps by Stacey Abrams aka Selena Montgomery

While Justice Sleeps

by Stacey Abrams aka Selena Montgomery

Add to Cart

#4

Book cover of The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates

The Water Dancer

by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Add to Cart

#5

Book cover of Palmares by Gayl Jones

Palmares

by Gayl Jones

Add to Cart

#6

Book cover of Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison

Invisible Man

by Ralph Ellison

Add to Cart

#7

Book cover of Voices of the Harlem Renaissance: Originally Published as The New Negro an Interpretation by Alain Locke and Introduction by Troy Johnson

Voices of the Harlem Renaissance

by Alain Locke and Introduction by Troy Johnson

Add to Cart

#8

Book cover of Dopefiend by Donald Goines

Dopefiend

by Donald Goines

Add to Cart

#9

Book cover of Noor by Nnedi Okorafor

Noor

by Nnedi Okorafor

Add to Cart

#10

Book cover of In Every Mirror She’s Black by Lolá Ákínmádé Åkerström

In Every Mirror She’s Black

by Lolá Ákínmádé Åkerström

Add to Cart

#12

Book cover of Rosie’s Curl and Weave by Rochelle Alers, Donna Hill, Felicia Mason, and Francis Ray

Rosie’s Curl and Weave

by Rochelle Alers, et al.

Add to Cart

#13

Book cover of Mothership: Tales From Afrofuturism And Beyond by Bill Campbell and Edward Austin Hall

Mothership

by Bill Campbell and Edward Austin Hall

Add to Cart

#15

Book cover of Another Country by James Baldwin

Another Country

by James Baldwin

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