Honest. Unfiltered. Unapologetically Black and woman.
Our essays open a window into our inner worlds — reflections on memory, culture, joy, sorrow, self-love, and the experiences we carry. Writing that speaks plainly and powerfully, with truth at its center.
Each piece is chosen for its insight, voice, and emotional resonance, capturing the breadth and brilliance of Black women’s nonfiction across the diaspora.
Sometimes tender, sometimes sharp, always real.
The smell of bergamot grease and hot iron always brings it back—the sticky, humid pulse
“…you build a life where you can shine in the world and still be eager,
I am seventy years old. Seventy. The number itself feels solid, a hard-back bounded volume,
When I’ve told the story about my cousin’s wedding on a plantation to other Black
I wiped your ass before you knew you had one. I didn’t say one mumbling
I met God at a strip mall conjunction of a liquor store-jazz club-Baptist church. Well,
“Have you eaten? “Do you have money?” “How are you getting home?” “Do you say
As a child, I used to wear pants on my head. I mean that quite
There are 25 passages in Paris. They’re easy to miss if you don’t know where
In my reading of The Seven Daughters of Dupree, there’s a prayer on page 79,
She won’t let go until I do. Like jazz. Reaffirming that I am beloved, she
I arranged a reading with a Santería priestess per my sister’s advice. Our ancestors had
For this edition of “Black Book People,” we are spotlighting Helena James of @helenabythebook. James
Nine Black women writers from across the U.S., the Caribbean, Africa, and Europe share unforgettable
The sky is milky-eye gray over Paramount, Los Angeles. LA has been hurting since the
