100+ African-American Writers (Mostly Fiction)
The list starts with the author, then his or her primary style, and then the best book to start with.
- Rochelle Alers -- Romance; Welcome to Leo’s
- Maya Angelou -- Memoirs, Poetry; I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
- Tina McElroy-Ansa -- Magic Realism; Baby of the Family
- Michael Baisden --Contemporary/Erotic; God’s Gift to Women
- James Baldwin -- Biographical Novels;Go Tell It on the Mountain
- Toni Cade Bambara -- Short Stories; Gorilla, My Love
- Paul Beatty -- Contemporary Humor; The White Boy Shuffle
- Bertice Berry -- Contemporary Fiction; Redemption Song
- Venise Berry -- Contemporary Fiction; All of Me: a Voluptuous Tale
- Eleanor Taylor Bland -- Mystery; Dead Time
- Michele Andrea Bowen -- Contemporary Religious Life; Church Folk
- Connie Briscoe -- Contemporary Fiction; Big Girls Don’t Cry
- Gwendolyn Brooks -- Poetry; Contemporary; Maud Martha (novel)
- Anita R. Bunkley -- Various; Black Gold
- Octavia Butler -- Science Fiction; Parable of the Sower
- Tajuana Butler -- Contemporary Young Women; Hand-Me-Down Heartache
- Bebe Moore Campbell -- Literary Fiction; Your Blues Ain’t Like Mine
- Lorene Cary -- Literary Fiction; The Price of a Child
- Barbara Chase-Riboud -- Historical Fiction; Sally Hemings: a Novel
- Maxine Clair -- Literary Fiction; October Suite
- Pearl Cleage -- Contemporary Fiction; What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day
- J. California Cooper -- Short Stories; Homemade Love
- Edwidge Danticat -- Literary Fiction; Breath, Eyes, Memory
- Christopher Darden -- Legal Thrillers; The Last Defense
- Virginia DeBerry -- Contemporary Fiction; Tryin’ to Sleep in the Bed You Made
- Samuel R. Delaney -- Science Fiction; Dhalgren
- Nora DeLoach -- Mystery; Mama Traps a Killer
- Eric Jerome Dickey -- Contemporary Fiction; Sister, Sister
- Rita Dove -- Poetry; Selected Poems
- Tananarive Due -- Horror; My Soul to Keep
- Ralph Ellison -- Literary Fiction; Invisible Man
- Lynn Emery -- Romance; Tell Me Something Good
- Percival Everett -- Literary Fiction; Erasure
- Lolita Files -- Contemporary Fiction; Scenes From a Sistah
- Gwynne Forster -- Romance; Against the Wind
- Sharon Ewell Foster -- Contemporary Christian; Passing By Samaria
- Ernest Gaines -- Literary Fiction; A Prayer Before Dying
- Nelson George -- Urban Romance, Hip Hop; Night Work
- Donald Goines -- Urban Thrillers; Black Girl Lost
- Alex Haley -- Family Sagas; Roots
- Gary Hardwick -- Mystery; Cold Medina
- E. Lynn Harris -- Literary Romance; Gay Culture; Invisible Life
- Gar Anthony Haywood -- Hard Boiled Mysteries; Going Nowhere Fast
- Donna Hill -- Romance; Contemporary; Rhythms
- Chester Himes -- Hard Boiled Mysteries; Cotton Comes to Harlem
- Shannon Holmes -- Contemporary Fiction; B-More Careful
- Hugh Holton -- Mystery; Presumed Dead
- Nalo Hopkinson -- Caribbean Sci-Fi and Fantasy; Midnight Robber
- Langston Hughes -- Poetry; Short Stories; The Big Sea (Autobiography)
- Zora Neale Hurston -- Literary Fiction;Their Eyes Were Watching God
- Sheneska Jackson -- Contemporary Fiction; Lil’ Mama’s Rules
- Yolanda Joe -- Literary Fiction; The Hatwearer’s Lesson
- Charles Johnson -- Literary Fiction; Middle Passage
- Darlene Johnson -- Contemporary Fiction; Dream in Color
- Guy Johnson -- Historical Fiction; Standing at the Scratch Line
- R.M. Johnson -- Contemporary Fiction; Dating Games
- Margaret Johnson-Hodge -- Urban Romance; Butterscotch Blues
- Gayl Jones -- Literary Fiction; Corregidora
- Jamaica Kincaid -- Literary Fiction; Annie John
- Sandra Kitt -- Romance; Suddenly
- Kristin Hunter Lattany -- Literary Romance; Kinfolks
- Benilde Little -- Contemporary Fiction; Good Hair
- Marcus Major -- Urban Romance; Good Peoples
- Paule Marshall -- Literary Fiction; The Chosen Place, The Timeless People
- Timmothy B. McCann -- Contemporary Fiction; Forever
- Bernice L. McFadden -- Literary Fiction; Sugar
- Terry McMillan -- Contemporary Fiction; Waiting to Exhale
- Penny Mickelbury -- Mystery; One Must Wait
- Karen E. Quinones Miller -- Contemporary Fiction; Satin Doll
- Mary Monroe -- Contemporary Fiction; The Upper Room
- Marissa Monteilh -- Urban Romance; May December Souls
- Mary B. Morrison -- Contemporary Fiction; He’s Just a Friend
- Toni Morrison -- Literary Fiction; Song of Solomon
- Walter Mosley -- Mystery; Devil in a Blue Dress
- Gloria Naylor -- Literary Fiction; The Women of Brewster Place
- Barbara Neely -- Mystery; Blanche on the Lam
- Alexs D. Pate -- Literary Fiction; Finding Makeba
- Kayla Perrin -- Romance; The Best Man
- Ann Petry -- Literary Fiction; The Narrows
- Ishmael Reed -- Satire; The Terrible Twos
- Maryann Reid -- Urban Romance; Use Me or Lose Me
- Patty Rice -- Contemporary Fiction; Somethin’ Extra
- C. Kelly Robinson -- Contemporary Fiction; Between Brothers
- Kimberla Lawson Roby -- Contemporary Fiction; Casting the First Stone
- Dori Sanders -- Young Women; Clover
- April Sinclair -- Contemporary Fiction; Coffee Will Make You Black
- Camika Spencer -- Contemporary Fiction; When All Hell Breaks Loose
- Susan Straight -- Contemporary Fiction; I Been in Sorrow’s Kitchen and Licked Out All the Pots
- Trisha Thomas -- Contemporary Fiction; Nappily Ever After
- Wallace Thurman -- Literary Fiction; The Blacker the Berry…
- Jean Toomer -- Literary Fiction; Cane
- Omar Tyree -- Contemporary Fiction; Flyy Girl
- Alice Walker -- Literary Fiction; The Color Purple
- Carl Weber -- Urban Romance; Baby Momma Drama
- John Edgar Wideman -- Literary Fiction; Philadelphia Fire
- Valerie Wilson Wesley -- Mystery; When Death Comes Stealing
- Colson Whitehead -- Literary Fiction; The Intuitionist
- Van Whitfield -- Contemporary Humor; Something’s Wrong With Your Scale!
- August Wilson -- Plays; Fences
- Paula L. Woods -- Mystery; Inner City Blues
- Richard Wright -- Literary Fiction; Native Son
- Shay Youngblood -- Contemporary Fiction; Soul Kiss
- Zane -- Urban Romance, Erotica, Addicted
