AALBC Search
Essence Atkins: The “Are We There Yet?” Interview
Essence Atkins: The “Are We There Yet?” Interview Kam Williams Article Essence Atkins was born in New York City on February 7, 1972. Between her innate sense of comedy and girl-next-door ch...
Help Keep the Country's Oldest Black-owned Bookstore Open
Help Keep the Country's Oldest Black-owned Bookstore Open Troy Johnson Article Editor's Note (posted May 8th 2014): Marcus Books of San Francisco Evicted Sign the petition to help save the sto...
Only 54 Black Owned Bookstores Remain in America
Only 54 Black Owned Bookstores Remain in America Troy Johnson Article This is a follow up to an article, “Death of the Black Owned, Independent, Book...
A Tribute to AALBC.com's 10th Anniversary
A Tribute to AALBC.com's 10th Anniversary Troy Johnson Article Presented ToTROY JOHNSONIn Appreciation For YourDedication, Professionalism,Guidance, And IntegrityIn the Publishing IndustryThanks You ...
“Would You Stop Buying Books from Amazon.com to Save the Black Book Industry?”
“Would You Stop Buying Books from Amazon.com to Save the Black Book Industry?” Troy Johnson Article Exploring The Feasibility Boycotting Amazon’s Bookstore In the following video, Ruth J. Morrison, ...
Are Reading Rates Declining in the African American Community?
Are Reading Rates Declining in the African American Community? Troy Johnson Article Frequent AALBC.com visitors may already know I consider search results biased toward large corporate sites t...
The ESSENCE Brand—Where Black Women Come First—NOT!
The ESSENCE Brand—Where Black Women Come First—NOT! Troy Johnson Article A few weeks ago, I visited Essence Magazine’s website to learn which Black owned bookstore they were going to use as the books...
Marcus Books of San Francisco Evicted—Should We Care?
Marcus Books of San Francisco Evicted—Should We Care? Troy Johnson Article Back in the the summer of 2013, I joined the fight to help save Marcus Books. My motivation was not solely limited to savin...
Death of the Black Owned, Independent, Bookstore
Death of the Black Owned, Independent, Bookstore Troy Johnson Article Editor's Note: We published an update of our bookstores in March of 2014. One of the very first things I put on AA...
Publishing Consultant
Publishing Consultant Troy Johnson Article Under construction.... Earl Cox started his career in publishing nearly eighteen years ago as a shipping and receiving clerk at the Baruch College Books...
Book Review <em>The Emperor of Ocean Park</em> by Stephen L. Carter
Book Review The Emperor of Ocean Park by Stephen L. Carter Linda Watkins Article ADD TO CART Buy the Audiobook Selected for 1 Book Club’s Reading List2003 BCALA Literary AwardPub...
How to Share Your Book Information with AALBC
How to Share Your Book Information with AALBC Troy Johnson Article Below is the information you need to provide AALBC to have your book considered for inclusion in AALBC’s online bookstore. Ple...
★ AALBC Now Sells Audiobooks and Accomplishes a First
★ AALBC Now Sells Audiobooks and Accomplishes a First Troy Johnson Article 12 Audiobooks You’ll ♥ Libro.fm Helps AALBC Sell Digital Audiobooks Membership Supports AALBC$14.99 m...
Would You Stop Buying Books from Amazon.com to Save the Book Industry?
Would You Stop Buying Books from Amazon.com to Save the Book Industry? Troy Johnson Article Boycotting Amazon’s bookstore might mean, at least initially, that you’ll have pay a little more for books,...
2 Ways Google is Killing Online Booksellers & How You Can Help
2 Ways Google is Killing Online Booksellers & How You Can Help Troy Johnson Article (1) Google Uses its Dominance in Search to Hijack Traffic from Websites Google does this by placing content, it ha...
New Books Worth Checking Out - July 2013
New Books Worth Checking Out - July 2013 Troy Johnson Article At least once a month, on my Blog, I will share information about new books that I think you will enjoy. If you subscribe to my blog, v...
AALBC.com Clients Make the NY Times Best Sellers List!
AALBC.com Clients Make the NY Times Best Sellers List! Troy Johnson Article [caption id="" align="alignleft" width="250"] #13 NY Times Best Seller, Hardcover Fiction May 20, 2012[/caption] I start...
Their Eyes Were Reading Smut
Their Eyes Were Reading Smut Nick Chiles Article Last month I happened to go into the Borders Books store at the Stonecrest mall in Lithonia, Ga., about a half-hour from my house here. To my surprise...
8 Ways Bookstores Can Engage the eReading Community
8 Ways Bookstores Can Engage the eReading Community Shawneda Marks Article Here are 8 ways brick and mortar stores can welcome indie and eBook authors. Introduce readers to indie authors...
Top Ten Reasons Why African American Bookstores Are Closing
Top Ten Reasons Why African American Bookstores Are Closing Gwen Richardson Article Editor’s Note: On March 25, 2012 we published our new bookstore database. At the same time we also publ...
AA Book Stores
AA Book Stores Troy Johnson Article Click Here for New Black Owned, Independent Bookstore Database
African Amer. Images
African Amer. Images Troy Johnson Article http://www.africanamericanimages.com/ African American Images 1909 W 95th Street Chicago IL. 60643 1-800-552-1991 fax 773-445-9844 President, D...
C&B Books Distribution
C&B Books Distribution Troy Johnson Article http://www.cbbooksdistribution.com/ C&B Books Distribution started out as an online bookstore. Our mission was to sell books at a discount p...
Gifted Voices
Gifted Voices Troy Johnson Article Gifted Voices is a nationally distributed, monthly publication whose sole purpose is to promote the literary talents of emerging and established African Ame...
Publishers Indemnity Insurance: What is it, and how do you get it?
Publishers Indemnity Insurance: What is it, and how do you get it? Troy Johnson Article "One of the key components necessary for self-published authors to get their book into Bla...
A Tale of Two Countries
A Tale of Two Countries Anthony Browder Article This is a tale of two countries and their treatment of two African American men named Michael Brown. This is also a tale about the best of times ...
Black Book Websites Need Love Too
Black Book Websites Need Love Too Troy Johnson Article Over the last decade there has been a great deal of lamenting over the closing of Black owned, independent brick and mortar book stores. Recent...
“...what, he think he live in a white neighborhood or sumptin?!”
“...what, he think he live in a white neighborhood or sumptin?!” Troy Johnson Article I'll never understand, why people feel it is okay to litter. I can go outside, right now and watch an adult fini...
Jazzy Pen Communications
Jazzy Pen Communications Troy Johnson Article Jazzy Pen Communications provides a wide range of professional editing services. For literary clients, Jazzy Pen specializes in African American...
Troy Johnson: Literary Activist of the Year 2017
Troy Johnson: Literary Activist of the Year 2017 Troy Johnson Article On June 10, 2017, I had the fortune of being honored with the Literary Activist of the Year Award, which was presented to me ...
2015 Year End Thank You!
2015 Year End Thank You! Troy Johnson Article Coming in the New Year The biggest news for the new year is our website upgrade. We are redesigning AALBC.com from scratch, and we have the benefit of 1...
Happy New Year From AALBC.com’s Troy Johnson
Happy New Year From AALBC.com’s Troy Johnson Troy Johnson Article 2013, what a year! With so many great new books and films last year, there was a lot to celebrate. We also extended our reach through...
Susan Taylor Baker King’s Memoir
Susan Taylor Baker King’s Memoir Susie King Taylor Article An Excerpt from Susan Taylor Baker King’s Memoir:Reminiscences of My Life in Camp with the 33rd US Colored Troops, Late 1st S.C. Vol...
Dark Matter II
Dark Matter II Troy Johnson Article The Call for submission has ended DARK MATTER II : Speculative Fiction from the African Diaspora Edited by Sheree R. Thomas GUIDELINES FOR SUBMISSION...
Get a Jump Start on Black History Month with 100+ Terrific Books
Get a Jump Start on Black History Month with 100+ Terrific Books Troy Johnson Article 86 African-American History Books Every year I’m asked what are you gonna do for African American Hi...
AA Cultural Expo 2000
AA Cultural Expo 2000 Troy Johnson Article This was the AALBC.com's second year at the National African American Cultural Expo, which is held every year at the Philadelphia Convention Center. 20...
2004's List
2004's List Troy Johnson Article Making the Best of the World Wide Web or Troy's Top 10 Web Resources (October 2004) by Troy Johnson, Founder AALBC.com The World Wide Web (WWW) continues ...
How is African American Literature Really Doing?
How is African American Literature Really Doing? Troy Johnson Article For those in the business of Black books in America, this is a common question; “How is African American Literature Doing?” Some...
June 2016 Newsletter Celebrating the Best in Black Literature
June 2016 Newsletter Celebrating the Best in Black Literature Troy Johnson Article Subscribe to AALBC.com’s eNewsletter Carter G. Woodson Award Winning Books The National Council for the Social...
The Lit Bit Celebrates Women’s History Month
The Lit Bit Celebrates Women’s History Month Charisse Carney-Nunes Article Welcome to Women’s History Month! So often we African Americans complain that the preceding month of February, Bla...
AA LIT. CONFERENCE 2001
AA LIT. CONFERENCE 2001 Troy Johnson Article 2nd Annual African American Literature Conference Saturday, April 7,2001 at the Nyumburu Cultural Center on the University of Maryland College Park ...
Prince Among Slaves - Abdul Rahman Sori’s Story
Prince Among Slaves - Abdul Rahman Sori’s Story Troy Johnson Article With the recent popularity of the film 12 Years a Slave and focus on Solomon Northup’s the tragic story story, we tend to forget ...
What Happened to the Best African American Literary Magazines?
What Happened to the Best African American Literary Magazines? Troy Johnson Article I'm a collector. My family calls it hoarding. While I'm a big proponent of electronic books, I still love to sur...
Obama Rises, Old Guard Civil Rights Leaders Scowl
Obama Rises, Old Guard Civil Rights Leaders Scowl William Jelani Cobb Article President Elect, Barack Obama, D-Ill. Speaks during the groundbreaking ceremony for the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memori...
Child’s Play: A Poem
Child’s Play: A Poem Frederick K. Foote, Jr. Article Another young Black man knocked unconscious, lying motionless on the fake grass His fellow players move around him in hushed groups radiating fea...
Ghost Boys, a Powerful New Novel, for Young Readers, from Jewell Parker Rhodes
Ghost Boys, a Powerful New Novel, for Young Readers, from Jewell Parker Rhodes Troy Johnson Article The #1 Kids’ Indie Next Pick A heartbreaking and powerful story about a black boy killed by a po...
May 2017 Newsletter: Bestselling Books, New Books, Author Info, and Much More
May 2017 Newsletter: Bestselling Books, New Books, Author Info, and Much More Troy Johnson Article Our May Newsletter is Generously Sponsored by Amistad Bestselling Books Bestselling Books: M...
Please Pardon the Appearence of My Blog
Please Pardon the Appearence of My Blog Troy Johnson Article Earlier in the year Google made a change in their Blogger application which forced me to relocate my Blog to Google's servers. This chang...
Troy still has a few tricks
Troy still has a few tricks Troy Johnson Article Last year I started working out again. As I lost weight and got a little stronger, I started doing some of my old gymnastics moves in the gym during m...
Two Years Ago - Black New Yorkers: Booklover hopes to profit from his passion
Two Years Ago - Black New Yorkers: Booklover hopes to profit from his passion Troy Johnson Article Black New Yorkers: Booklover hopes to profit from his passionby Tanangachi Mfuni, Amsterdam News Sta...
Author Martha Southgate Reflects on the State of African American Fiction
Author Martha Southgate Reflects on the State of African American Fiction Troy Johnson Article This article was brought to my attention by author Eisa Ulen (www.EisaUlen.com/blog).Author Martha South...
Can I Get An Amen?
Can I Get An Amen? Ruth C. Taylor Article This article was originally published on now defunct, but historically significant, The Black World Today website and is shared here for archival purposes....
Thumper’s Picks
Thumper’s Picks Thumper Article It’s been a while but I’m back with a whole new set of books that I have fallen in love with, passed around, and will sing the praises of at the drop of ...
Back to (Mysteries) School
Back to (Mysteries) School Mel Hopkins Article Is the oldest storytelling format, the monomyth, also known as The Hero’s Journey, one of the templates used for awakening the human consciousness...
Take Your Pleasure Where You Find It<em> (2nd review)</em>
Take Your Pleasure Where You Find It (2nd review) Thumper Article I am usually excited when I get to read a new J. D. Mason novel. Over the years, she has become one of my favorite authors. When I ...
★ Award Winning Titles, Book Reviews and More - April Newsletter
★ Award Winning Titles, Book Reviews and More - April Newsletter Troy Johnson Article NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Literary Work This year the NAACP celebrates the 50th anniversary of ...
Mary Monroe’s New Book, REMEMBRANCE, "A Cozy Holiday Read!"
Mary Monroe’s New Book, REMEMBRANCE, "A Cozy Holiday Read!" Troy Johnson Article It’s the most wonderful time of the year and Kensington’s got you covered when it comes to cozy holiday reads! In t...
Black Writers Dominate the 2017 Pulitzer Prizes
Black Writers Dominate the 2017 Pulitzer Prizes Troy Johnson Article Back in January of this year, I took the time to try to figure out how many Black writers have won Pulitzer Prizes in the six ...
December 2016 Newsletter - Great New Books, Best Film of the Year, and More
December 2016 Newsletter - Great New Books, Best Film of the Year, and More Troy Johnson Article Cerece Rennie Murphy – Our eNewsletter Sponsor for December Experience The Love of A Lifetime ~ T...
Top 50 Authors, Bestselling Books, and More
Top 50 Authors, Bestselling Books, and More Troy Johnson Article 50 Favorite African-American Authors of the 20th Century 1,826 readers cast votes, back in 2001, for their favorite African-Ameri...
The 2016 Black Pack Party: A Wonderful Celebration!
The 2016 Black Pack Party: A Wonderful Celebration! Troy Johnson Article The 10th Black Pack Party, like all the others, was a wonderful celebration. Hosted during Book Expo America each year, the B...
Terrific Books Coming in May, Beyond Adichie, and More!
Terrific Books Coming in May, Beyond Adichie, and More! Troy Johnson Article Terrific New Books Coming in May Former U.S. Poet Laureate, Rita Dove will publish a collection of her poetry from the 30...
36 African-American Nominees for National Book Awards
36 African-American Nominees for National Book Awards Troy Johnson Article November 11, 2015 Update: A complete list of National Book Award Honorees, of African descent, is now available. The mi...
Taking Over Wall Street with Books by Charisse Carney-Nunes
Taking Over Wall Street with Books by Charisse Carney-Nunes Charisse Carney-Nunes Article The Lit Bit Wall Street is in for another invasion… no, not just more protestors armed with ...
Genesis Press Inc.
Genesis Press Inc. Troy Johnson Article Genesis Press Inc. is the home of Indigo Romance, the nation's leading line of African-American romance novels. Genesis is a pioneer in publishing dive...
7 Free Tools Guaranteed to Make Your Website Better!
7 Free Tools Guaranteed to Make Your Website Better! Troy Johnson Article Managing a large website can be a difficult, requiring a wide variety of skills. As the sole developer of AALBC.c...
Rappers Delight – Jay Z’s new book and the RZA interviewed
Rappers Delight – Jay Z’s new book and the RZA interviewed Troy Johnson Article “My life after childhood has two main stories: the story of the hustler and the story of the rapper, and the two ov...
Playing Around With My New Blog
Playing Around With My New Blog Troy Johnson Article It really is a misnomer to call WordPress "blogging software" it is much more powerful and feature rich than most what most websites provide and c...
Can Black People Go 5 Minutes Without Music?
Can Black People Go 5 Minutes Without Music? Troy Johnson Article ...or rather why do we have to blast the music during every gathering? Having been back in Harlem now for about 4 years -- after bein...
Remembering Ossie Davis, With Love
Remembering Ossie Davis, With Love Jamie Walker Article “In the light of Africa, there is Ossie Davis.” —Attallah Shabazz
Seven Reasons Why Grant Proposals Fail to get Funded
Seven Reasons Why Grant Proposals Fail to get Funded Gina Wilson Beckles Article Gina Wilson Beckles, Ph.D. Program Evaluation Services, Inc. Life is about opportunities. They are ever present ...
Ivan Van Sertima: My Historical Guide and Mentor
Ivan Van Sertima: My Historical Guide and Mentor Joel A. Freeman Article My interest in Black history was launched in earnest about 42+ years ago in 1980 when some Black pro athletes asked me questio...
Need Inspiration to Write? Begin Within
Need Inspiration to Write? Begin Within Troy Johnson Article Need Inspiration to Write? Begin Within by Leah Mullen It was a beautifully cool late summer evening, and I was walking down M...
On-line Writers Workshop
On-line Writers Workshop Troy Johnson Article WANTED: Black Writers with balls and ovaries of teflon and steel who can put up with heat waves, flashbacks, old lovers and word processors who c...
Up & Coming Magazine
Up & Coming Magazine Troy Johnson Article Editor's Note (13 Jan 2013): We bleieve this magazine may be out of print. Their old domain has be claimed by a diiferent magazine with the same name....
History of our Annual Black Pack Party
History of our Annual Black Pack Party Troy Johnson Article The Black Pack Party is a gathering of professionals across the Black book ecosystem. It was originally held annually during Book Expo Amer...
National Book Awards Honors IBPA Members’ Impact
National Book Awards Honors IBPA Members’ Impact Troy Johnson Article This article was originally published in the April 2025 issue of the IBPA Independent magazine, the magazine for members of the I...
Troy Now “Blogs” on AALBC's Discussion Forum
Troy Now “Blogs” on AALBC's Discussion Forum Troy Johnson Article AALBC’s Founder and Webmaster, Troy Johnson I’m not ending the sharing of my information, ideas, and opinions — I’m...
Bing Site Search is a Great Alternative, to Google Site Search, for a Website’s Search Engine
Bing Site Search is a Great Alternative, to Google Site Search, for a Website’s Search Engine Troy Johnson Article If you are reading this article, which has nothing to do with the primary focus of ...
AALBC.com Celebrates 20 Years!
AALBC.com Celebrates 20 Years! Troy Johnson Article Website Upgrade Nearing Completion I’m just a few months away from completing AALBC’s most recent upgrade. It has been a two year ...
Book Club Picks - $10 Classics from HarperCollins - Plus More in AALBC’s eNewsletter
Book Club Picks - $10 Classics from HarperCollins - Plus More in AALBC’s eNewsletter Troy Johnson Article Books a Few Book Clubs are Enjoying this Month The Tea’s October Selection – We Shou...
Amazon‘s Echo Look: Exploiting Our Inner Narcissist
Amazon‘s Echo Look: Exploiting Our Inner Narcissist Troy Johnson Article The depth to which a corporation will sink to exploit our insecurities and separate us from our money knows no bounds. ...
Video: Update on The Premier Website for Black Books
Video: Update on The Premier Website for Black Books Troy Johnson Article AALBC.com is a massive, feature rich, website. Many visitors don't appreciate the site's size and scope, so I created this v...
AAFCA Honored MOONLIGHT as Top Film & QUEEN SUGAR as the Top TV Show
AAFCA Honored MOONLIGHT as Top Film & QUEEN SUGAR as the Top TV Show Troy Johnson Article FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: AFRICAN AMERICAN FILM CRITICS ASSOCIATION (AAFCA) HONORED MOONLIGHT AS THE TOP ...
Black Books Galore! AALBC.com's November 2016 eNewsletter
Black Books Galore! AALBC.com's November 2016 eNewsletter Troy Johnson Article Picador USA – Our eNewsletter Sponsor for November Read one of the year’s most highly lauded – and highly provocative...
How Bloggers Can Help Each Other
How Bloggers Can Help Each Other Troy Johnson Article A few years ago I created a website, Huria Search, to showcase and highlight the websites of Black content providers, including magazines, ne...
There is a Lack of Unity Among Black Websites
There is a Lack of Unity Among Black Websites Troy Johnson Article Over the last year, I’ve invested a lot of effort informing the public about the adverse impact of the corporate take over of the we...
My Favorite Readings from the 2013 National Book Award Finalists
My Favorite Readings from the 2013 National Book Award Finalists Troy Johnson Article I covered this year's National Book Foundation's National Book Awards Finalists Reading for AALBC.com. The readin...
The 100 Best Films of 2012
The 100 Best Films of 2012 Troy Johnson Article Kam Williams’ Annual Assessment of the Cream of the Cinematic Crop It’s impossible for me to limit my favorite films of 2012 to just 10 of the year’s ...
Blacktrospective 2012 - Annual Assessment of the Best in Black Film
Blacktrospective 2012 - Annual Assessment of the Best in Black Film Troy Johnson Article Each year we publish our annual list of the best in Black cinema. This list is unique in that it assesses...
AALBC.com eNewsletter – November 30th 2012 – Issue #196
AALBC.com eNewsletter – November 30th 2012 – Issue #196 Troy Johnson Article AALBC.com would like to thank all of you for being loyal readers of our eNewsletter. We are proud to have continuously...
AALBC.com eNewsletter - August 1st 2012 - #193
AALBC.com eNewsletter - August 1st 2012 - #193 Troy Johnson Article Subscribe to this eNewsletter Read our eNewsletter Archives Read Our eNewsletter on Your Kindle Help AALBC.com support our...
AALBC.com Thanks YOU for Your Support!
AALBC.com Thanks YOU for Your Support! Troy Johnson Article I did not want the year to end without expressing my sincere thanks to all of AALBC.com's supporters.
Huria Search - Search the Global Black Community
Huria Search - Search the Global Black Community Troy Johnson Article Editors Note: As of March 2016, after a 5 year run, Huria Search's run as a standalone site has ended. The Search engine and the...
Random Thoughts About Facebook
Random Thoughts About Facebook Troy Johnson Article I originally wrote this post in March of 2011, over 4½ years later, a life time in WWW years, I decided to revisit this article. My November 2015 ...
Iyanla's Vanzant's Book Now a #1 New York Times Best Seller
Iyanla's Vanzant's Book Now a #1 New York Times Best Seller Troy Johnson Article In 1998, Iyanla Vanzant was AALBC.com's first #1 best selling author. Vanzant had three titles on our 1998 Best Selle...
Visitor’s day at Camp Grant – Research & Share Your Family History (Part 3)
Visitor’s day at Camp Grant – Research & Share Your Family History (Part 3) Troy Johnson Article The author of the next installment of "Research & Share Your History" is my virtual friend Connie ...
Bestselling eBooks for 2010
Bestselling eBooks for 2010 Troy Johnson Article Check Out AALBC.com's bestselling eBooks for all of 2010. http://bit.ly/top10ebooks This our first eBook bestsellers list was derived from Kindle eB...
African Rhytms: The Autobiography of Randy Weston - Read This Book
African Rhytms: The Autobiography of Randy Weston - Read This Book Troy Johnson Article [caption id="attachment_316" align="alignnone" width="572" caption="Randy Weston performs at the Brooklyn Museu...
Tavis Smiley is no good for Black folks!
Tavis Smiley is no good for Black folks! Troy Johnson Article Actually, I believe the exact opposite, strongly. I used the provocative title to draw attention to this blog post. My hope is that y...