As American’s delve into raw conversations about race, it can be beneficial to reflect on the stories and experiences of authors who confront antiracism and social justice today. OverDrive has provided libraries with some titles available for simultaneous use - no waits, no holds. Titles include The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander, The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas and Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor by Layla F Saad.

“The titles included in our Black Lives Matter: Community Read program are focused on #ownvoices and are intended to help patrons read, listen, learn and grow as they expand their knowledge of race relations.”

More about these titles:

Monday, June 15 – July 15

The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander
Audiobook simultaneous use
Named one of the Most Influential Books of the Last 20 Years by the Chronicle of Higher Education and winner of the NAACP Image Award for Nonfiction, Alexander’s critically acclaimed book examines racial disparities through the lens of mass incarceration.

NEW: Monday, June 22 – July 12

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
Ebook and audiobook simultaneous use
This bestselling young adult novel follows Starr, a Black teenager caught between the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these two worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her unarmed best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer.

NEW: Monday, June 22 – July 19

Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor by Layla F Saad
Ebook simultaneous use
This New York Times bestseller published in January 2020 is based on the viral #meandwhitesupremacy Instagram challenge and provides a framework for readers to dismantle the privilege within themselves.

Coming Soon:  Friday, June 26

So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijemoa Oluo
Audiobook simultaneous use
Ijeoma Oluo guides readers of all races through subjects ranging from intersectionality and affirmative action to “model minorities” in an attempt to make the seemingly impossible possible: honest conversations about race and racism, and how they exist in almost every aspect of American life.