20 Bestselling Fiction Books

Period: September/October - 2021

AALBC Bestseller Seal

The African American Literature Book Club’s Bestsellers List has been published continuously since 1998. It celebrates the bestselling titles from our curated selection of books written by or about Black people. Learn More below.

★ New: The BLK Bestsellers: America’s Bestselling Books

Fiction: Number one in fiction is Voices of the Harlem Renaissance: Originally Published as The New Negro an Interpretation, was edited by Alain Locke and featuring a new introduction by AALBC’s Founder, Troy Johnson. This classic title was republished in hardcover by Konecky & Konecky, in March of 2020, and has made our bestsellers list seven times. In 1999, QBR: The Black Book Review included the book on their list of “100 Essential Black Books.”

Nonfiction: Topping our nonfiction category is Chasing Me to My Grave which tells the hearth wrenching, yet inspiring, story of Winfred Rembert who was arrested after fleeing a demonstration, survived a near-lynching at the hands of law enforcement, and spent seven years on chain gangs. Years later, at the age of fifty-one, he started drawing and painting scenes from his youth using leather tooling skills he learned in prison.

Children’s Books: Our #1 bestselling children’s book is Gabrielle Union’s 2020 picture book, Welcome to the Party made our bestsellers list for the second time this year. Union has really made her mark on the literary scene, as she has also penned her 2nd memoir this year, You Got Anything Stronger?

Poetry: Two titles, Vice: New and Selected Poems by Ai Ogawa and Second Line Home: New Orleans Poems by Mona Lisa Saloy, were popular with readers this period. Discover more excellent poetry books.

1
Cover for Voices of the Harlem Renaissance: Originally Published as The New Negro an Interpretation

Voices of the Harlem Renaissance

by Alain Locke and Introduction by Troy Johnson
Add to Cart
2
Cover for Alice in Dreamland

Alice in Dreamland

by Roland S. Jefferson
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5
Cover for Palmares

Palmares

by Gayl Jones
Add to Cart
7
Cover for The Nickel Boys: A Novel

The Nickel Boys

by Colson Whitehead
Add to Cart
9
Cover for Animal

Animal

by K’wan
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11
Cover for The Between

The Between

by Tananarive Due
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12
Cover for The Prophets

The Prophets

by Robert Jones, et al.
Add to Cart
14
Cover for A Death in Harlem: A Novel

A Death in Harlem

by Karla FC Holloway
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15
Cover for The Personal Librarian

The Personal Librarian

by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray
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16
Cover for Corregidora

Corregidora

by Gayl Jones
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17
Cover for Kindred

Kindred

by Octavia E. Butler
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18
Cover for Gone Missing in Harlem

Gone Missing in Harlem

by Karla FC Holloway
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19
Cover for Milk Blood Heat

Milk Blood Heat

by Dantiel W. Moniz
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20
Cover for My Monticello: Fiction

My Monticello

by Jocelyn Nicole Johnson
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More About our Bestsellers List

View a printer-friendly version or a collage of the book covers.

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), and Amazon.com*.

*For a few years, we actively boycotted Amazon but have discontinued this practice to ensure we do not exclude authors who are exclusive to that platform. We still discourage exclusivity but support all Black authors.