The Soundtrack to Black History
While February is widely celebrated as Black History Month, the powerful soundtrack of that history deserves its own spotlight—which it finds every June during Black Music Month. First enacted in 1979 to recognize the profound impact of Black artists on global culture, this June, the CBC has curated a list of new and backlist books that highlight great moments in Black music history and just a few of the influential musicians through the years.
When I Hear Spirituals, by Cheryl Willis Hudson; illustrated by London Ladd (Holiday House). Ages 3–7.
Your spirit will soar! A girl connects with heritage, history, and a higher power through the lyrics of twelve beloved spirituals and four seminal events in African American history.
A beautiful keepsake to be shared by multiple generations.
Journey through Black history and music in this layered picture book.
Book Themes: BIPOC Characters and Creators, Art / Performing Arts, Cultural Diversity, Religion / Spirituality.
Becoming Billie Holiday, by Carole Boston Weatherford; illustrated by Floyd Cooper (Astra Books for Young Readers / Wordsong). Ages Teen (12+).
The stunning voice and hard life of legendary jazz singer Billie Holiday is revealed through evocative, accessible poetry written by Children’s Literature Legacy Award winner Carole Boston Weatherford.
Book Themes: Biography / Memoir, Art / Performing Arts, BIPOC Characters and Creators, History.
Blues Boy: The B. B. King Story, by Alice Faye Duncan; illustrated by Carl Joe Williams (HarperCollins / Greenwillow Books). Ages 5–9.
From his childhood in the Jim Crow South to his triumphant reign as the King of Blues, Blues Boy tells the aspirational story of American music icon B.B. King. For readers of Trombone Shorty, When Marian Sang, and Drum Dream Girl.
Book Themes: Biography / Memoir, Art / Performing Arts, BIPOC Characters and Creators, History.
Bridges Instead of Walls: The Story of Mavis Staples, by Mavis Staples, Carole Boston Weatherford; illustrated by Steffi Walthall (Penguin Young Readers / Rocky Pond Books). Ages 5–9.
Legendary singer and Civil Rights activist Mavis Staples has teamed with an award-winning children’s poet to share her rousing life story in this spectacular picture book.
Book Themes: Biography / Memoir, Art / Performing Arts, BIPOC Characters and Creators.
Charley’s Honky-Tonk Mission: The Story of America’s First Black Country Music Superstar, by Beatrice Winifred Iker; illustrated by Miguelina Milien (Penguin Young Readers / Kokila). Ages 5–9.
With expressive rhyming verse by debut children’s book author Beatrice Winifred Iker and glowing illustrations by debut illustrator Miguelina Milien, this inspiring picture book biography celebrates a figure who paved the way for many, from Tanner Adell, Darius Rucker, and Mickey Guyton to Shaboozey and Beyoncé.
Book Themes: BIPOC Characters and Creators, Biography / Memoir, Art / Performing Arts, History.
Classical Composers: Florence Price, by Joanne Mattern; illustrated by Marilena Perilli (Red Chair Press / Red Chair Press Books for Young Readers). Ages 7–12.
Florence Price (1887-1953), an American composer and pianist, was a trailblazer as the first African-American woman to gain recognition in classical music. Her compositions, blending traditional Western styles with African-American influences, include symphonies, chamber works, and the acclaimed Symphony No. 1.
Book Themes: Biography / Memoir, Art / Performing Arts, BIPOC Characters and Creators, History.
Color Me Country: A Celebration of Black Women Who Shaped Country Music, edited by Kelly McCartney & Rissi Palmer; illustrated by Rhiannon Giddens (Candlewick Press / Candlewick Studio). Ages 9–12+.
Multitalented Grammy Award winner Rhiannon Giddens paints women of color up-front and center-stage in this vibrant homage to some of country music’s first and finest. Featuring a coloring sheet on the back of the jacket!
Book Themes: Biography / Memoir, Art / Performing Arts, BIPOC Characters and Creators, History.
The Green Piano: How Little Me Found Music, by Roberta Flack, Tonya Bolden; illustrated by Hayden Goodman (Random House Children’s Books / Anne Schwartz Books). Ages 5–9.
This autobiographical picture book by the multiple Grammy Award-winning singer Roberta Flack recounts her childhood in a home surrounded by music and love: it all started with a beat-up piano that her father found in a junkyard, repaired, and painted green.
Book Themes: Biography / Memoir, Art / Performing Arts, BIPOC Characters and Creators, Family / Community.
How Sweet the Sound, by Kwame Alexander; illustrated by Charly Palmer (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers). Ages 3–7.
Featuring artists ranging from Miles Davis to Kendrick Lamar, dive into this stunningly illustrated celebration of the history of Black music in America by the award-winning author of The Undefeated.
Book Themes: Art / Performing Arts, BIPOC Characters and Creators, Cultural Diversity, History.
Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker, by Patricia Hruby Powell; illustrated by Christian Robinson (Chronicle Books). Ages 7–12.
In exuberant verse and stirring pictures, Patricia Hruby Powell and Christian Robinson create an extraordinary portrait for young people of the passionate performer and civil rights advocate Josephine Baker, the woman who worked her way from the slums of St. Louis to the grandest stages in the world.
Book Themes: Biography / Memoir, Art / Performing Arts, BIPOC Characters and Creators.
Just Like Tina: Inspired by the Life of Tina Turner, by Ebony Lynn Mudd; forward by Erwin Bach; illustrated by Maruga Koops (Penguin Young Readers / Penguin Workshop). Ages 3–7.
With moving text from Ebony Lynn Mudd and heartwarming illustrations from Maruga Koops, Just Like Tina encourages readers to find the balance between celebrating their favorite performers while staying true to themselves, using that inspiration to forge their own paths. This story honors Tina Turner and strives to keep her memory alive for many generations of readers to come, while reminding readers that being themselves is simply the best.
Book Themes: BIPOC Characters and Creators, Art / Performing Arts, Social Emotional Learning, Biography / Memoir,
Little Melba and Her Big Trombone, by Katheryn Russell-Brown; illustrated by Frank Morrison (Lee & Low Books). Ages 7–12.
Brimming with ebullience and the joy of making music, Little Melba and Her Big Trombone is a fitting tribute to a trailblazing musician and a great unsung hero of jazz.
Book Themes: Biography / Memoir, Art / Performing Arts, BIPOC Characters and Creators, History.
Little People Big Dreams: Stevie Wonder, by Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara; illustrated by Melissa Lee Johnson (The Quarto Group / Frances Lincoln Children’s Books). Ages 5–9.
At just 8 years old, it was clear that Steveland Judkins was going to be a star. Renamed Stevie Wonder for his astonishing talent on the piano and other instruments, he wrote and performed some of the biggest hits of the 1970s, becoming known for his inventiveness, his soulful voice, and the social commentary in his lyrics.
Book Themes: Biography / Memoir, BIPOC Characters and Creators, Art / Performing Arts, Disabilities.
Little Rosetta and the Talking Guitar: The Musical Story of Sister Rosetta Tharpe, the Woman Who Invented Rock and Roll, written & illustrated by Charnelle Pinkney Barlow (Penguin Young Readers / Doubleday Books for Young Readers). Ages 3–7.
Author / illustrator Charnelle Pinkney Barlow imagines the childhood of Sister Rosetta Tharpe, whose rural roots inspired and helped create the music we still hear today. In this warm, inspiring tale, young readers will glimpse a life filled with music, community, and a drive to succeed.
Book Themes: Biography / Memoir, Art / Performing Arts, BIPOC Characters and Creators, History
Nina: A Story of Nina Simone, by Traci N. Todd; illustrated by Christian Robinson (Penguin Young Readers / G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers). Ages 5–9.
This luminous, defining picture book biography, illustrated by Caldecott Honoree Christian Robinson, tells the remarkable and inspiring story of acclaimed singer Nina Simone and her bold, defiant, and exultant legacy.
Book Themes: Biography / Memoir, Art / Performing Arts, BIPOC Characters and Creators, Social Activism / Equality / Feminism.
Ordinary Days: The Seeds, Sound, and City That Grew Prince Rogers Nelson, by Angela Joy; illustrated by Jacqueline Alcántara (Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group / Roaring Brook Press). Ages 5–7, 7–9.
Author Angela Joy’s exquisite words harmonize with acclaimed illustrator Jacqueline Alcántara’s sweeping art to create a tender, profound look into music icon Prince’s early life and the moments that shaped him.
Book Themes: Biography / Memoir, BIPOC Characters and Creators, Art / Performing Arts, History.
Put Your Records On, by Corinne Bailey Rae; illustrated by Gillian Eilidh O’Mara (Penguin Young Readers / Rocky Pond Books). Ages 3–5, 5–7, 7–9.
Inspired by Corinne Bailey Rae’s award-winning hit song, this picture book celebrates music’s unique power to soothe or energize us when we need it most.
Book Themes: Art / Performing Arts, BIPOC Characters and Creators, Family / Community, Social Emotional Learning.
Songbird in the Light: A Picture Book, by Billy Porter, with Chris Clarkson; illustrated by Charly Palmer (ABRAMS / Abrams Books for Young Readers). Ages 3–7.
From beloved Broadway icon Billy Porter, rising-star author Chris Clarkson, and award-winning illustrator Charly Palmer comes a beautiful picture book about the power of finding your voice.
Book Themes: BIPOC Characters and Creators, Art / Performing Arts, Social Emotional Learning, LGBTQIA+.
Sonny Rollins Plays the Bridge, by Gary Golio; illustrated by James Ransome (Penguin Young Readers / Nancy Paulsen Books). Ages 3–7.
James Ransome’s glorious art celebrates jazz icon Sonny Rollins and how he found an inspired spot to practice his saxophone when his neighbors complained.
Book Themes: Biography / Memoir, BIPOC Characters and Creators, Art / Performing Arts.
Soulful Struttin’, by Julia Pierre Hammond; illustrated by Ana Latese (Free Spirit Publishing). Ages 5–9.
Soulful Struttin’ is a joyful story about a father-daughter relationship full of humor and love. Inspired by her childhood with her Black father from New Orleans and Brazilian mother, author Julia Pierre Hammond has written a story that appeals to all the senses, using music, food, vivid visuals, rhythm, noises, dancing, and language.
Book Themes: BIPOC Characters and Creators, Art / Performing Arts, Family / Community, Imagination / Play.
That Swingin’ Sound!: The Musical Friendship of Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong, by Rekha S. Rajan; illustrated by Ken Daley (Simon & Schuster / Beach Lane Books). Ages 3–5, 5–7.
This true story about world-renowned jazz artists Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong’s musical partnership is a testament to the power of dreams, music, and friendship to help us all keep playing on.
Book Themes: BIPOC Characters and Creators, Biography / Memoir, Art / Performing Arts, History.
A Voice Named Aretha, by Katheryn Russell-Brown; illustrated by Laura Freeman (Bloomsbury / Bloomsbury Children’s Books). Ages 5–7, 7–9.
In this stirring biography of a true artistic and social icon, award-winning creators Katheryn Russell-Brown and Laura Freeman show young readers how Aretha’s talent, intelligence, and perseverance made her a star who will shine on for generations to come.
Book Themes: Biography / Memoir, Art / Performing Arts, BIPOC Characters and Creators, Social Activism / Equality / Feminism.
Just Like Tina: Inspired by the Life of Tina Turner, by Ebony Lynn Mudd; forward by Erwin Bach; illustrated by Maruga Koops (Penguin Young Readers / Penguin Workshop). Ages 3–7.
Every family will relate to this universal story of a boy who won’t let anything get him down, as long as he has the help of three special little birds.
Book Themes: BIPOC Characters and Creators, Art / Performing Arts, Social Emotional Learning, Biography / Memoir.
When Marian Sang: The True Recital of Marian Anderson, by Pam Muñoz Ryan; illustrated by Brian Selznick (Scholastic / Scholastic Press). Ages 7–12.
A harmonious introduction to one of our country’s most important singers and role models—as envisioned by Newbery Honoree Pam Muñoz Ryan and Caldecott Medalist Brian Selznick.
Book Themes: Art / Performing Arts, BIPOC Characters and Creators, Biography / Memoir, History.
When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop, by Laban Carrick Hill; illustrated by Theodore Taylor III (Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group / Roaring Brook Press). Ages 7–12.
From his childhood in Jamaica to his youth in the Bronx, Laban Carrick Hill’s book tells how Kool Herc came to be a DJ, how kids in gangs stopped fighting in order to breakdance, and how the music he invented went on to define a culture and transform the world.
Book Themes: Art / Performing Arts, History, BIPOC Characters and Creators, Biography / Memoir.
Check out our Inclusivity booklists for more diverse reads!
