WASHINGTON – February 6, 2019 – In honor of Black History Month, Howard University has released a “Hot 15” list of books published by professors, students, staff and alumni. The list consists of 15 books that range in subject matter and are perfect for various audiences, including children. All books listed were published in 2018 or will be released early this year.

Check out the list of books by our Howard University community:

Black Joy and Resistance 

By Adreinne Waheed, alumna

Summary: Black Joy and Resistance is a photo book by Adreinne Waheed, featuring written contributions by Rhea L. Combs, Karen Good Marable, Jamel Shabazz and more. This gorgeous coffee table book of images reveals an intimate glimpse of Black Joy and how we resist.  The images were shot from 2012 - 2018 at various social, cultural and political events including AFROPUNK, Million Man March 2015, Dance Africa and the Fees Must Fall student protest in South Africa. 

Exodus Preaching:  Crafting Sermons about Justice and Hope

By Reverend Kenyatta R. Gilbert, Ph.D., professor of Homiletics

Summary: This practical companion is an exploration of the African American prophetic rhetorical traditions in a manner that makes features of these traditions relevant to a broad audience beyond the African American traditions.  It provides readers a composite picture of nature, meaning, and relevance of prophetic preaching as spoken Word of justice and hope in a society of growing pluralism and the world-shaping phenomenon of racial, economic, and cultural diversity.

Entertainment Power Player 6th Edition

By: Dackeyia Sterling, alumna

Summary:An exclusive database of acting and casting resources, animation companies,  associations and organizations, choreography and dance resources, fashion designers, film festivals, film financing , footwear companies , halls of fame & museums, music apps and charts, radio stations, record labels, screenwriting resources, songwriting resources, streaming platforms, studio tours, training programs, writing labs, programs and workshops and much more.

Freedom! The Untold Story of Benkos Bioho and the World’s First Maroons: A True Story 

By Kmt Shockley, Ph.D., associate professor of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, and Kofi LeNiles, a Ph.D. student

Summary: This children’s book showcases the true story of Captain Benkos Bioho, a man who was born into a royal family and lived during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. He was captured by slave traders and sold into slavery, yet managed to escape along with other slaves to create the land Palenque in 1603.

Henry's Going to an HBCU!

By Kyle McMurtry, a rising junior

Summary: Join brother and sister duo, Henry and Hope, as Historically Black Colleges and Universities are explained in a delightful children’s narrative. My sincere hope is that this book encourages future generations to become HBCU scholars! Henry's Going to an HBCU is a children's book for elementary school students that explains the importance of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)! Written and illustrated by current HBCU students.

History Dances: Chronicling the History of Traditional Mandinka Dance

By Ofosuwa Abiola, Ph.D., professor of Africana Dance and Performance History

Summary: History Dances: Chronicling the History of Traditional Mandinka Dance argues that a wealth of information is housed within traditional Mandinka dance and, consequently, the dances can be used as an African-derived primary source for writing African history. Ofosuwa M. Abiola highlights the overall value of studying Mandinka dance history specifically, and African dance history generally, as well as addressing the issue of scarcity with regard to primary sources for writing African history. History Dances proves to be a vital read for both undergraduate students and scholars in the fields of dance history, African history, performance studies, and cultural anthropology.

Howard University in the World Wars: Men and Women Serving the Nation

By Lopez D. Matthews, Jr., Ph.D., digital production librarian, and history subject specialist of the Digital Production Center, Howard University Libraries and The Moorland-Spingarn Research Center

Summary: Despite African Americans' lack of political, social and economic equality in the United States, the students of Howard University answered the call to service in both world wars. Howard supported its men and women in the quest to serve their nation. The university started an army training program during the First World War, and Howard faculty, staff, and students pushed the War Department to begin an officer training school for African Americans. The university organized a Reserve Officer Training program in the interwar years, the first at an HBCU. Many of the famed Tuskegee Airmen of World War II were trained first at Howard. Based on a collection of letters sent by Howard students and alumni to the university, historian and archivist Lopez D. Matthews illuminates their wartime experiences.

Illusions of Emancipation: The Pursuit of Freedom and Equality in the Twilight of Slavery

By Joseph P. Reidy, Ph.D., emeritus professor of History

Summary: In this sweeping reappraisal of slavery's end during the Civil War era, Joseph P. Reidy employs the lenses of time, space, and individuals' sense of personal and social belonging to understand how participants and witnesses coped with drastic change, its erratic pace, and its unforeseeable consequences. Emancipation disrupted everyday habits, causing sensations of disorientation that sometimes intensified the experience of reality and sometimes muddled it. While these illusions of emancipation often mixed disappointment with hope, through periods of even intense frustration they sustained the promise that the struggle for freedom would result in victory.

Malia the Merfairy and the Lucky Rainbow Cake

By Jamie Triplin, communications and development director of The Graduate School

Summary: Malia the Merfairy™ takes the young reader on a journey through her life in the World of Lucky. The first book "Malia and the Lucky Rainbow Cake" tackles what it's like being "different" in a world where everyone else looks the same. This book is perfect for children who come from the African Diaspora, have a mixed heritage, difficulty fitting in, and/or feel they are "too different." This book also helps non-children of color embrace diversity. Exposing children to diverse content at a young age teaches them to interact with individuals from all sorts of backgrounds as they mature through their various life stages. This book will boost confidence, encourage an empowering and supportive environment, and be a positive reinforcement in the home.

No BS (Bad Stats): Black People Need People Who Believe in Black People Enough Not to Believe Every Bad Thing They Hear About Black People

By Ivory Toldson, Ph.D., professor of Counseling Psychology

Summary: In No BS, Ivory A. Toldson uses data analysis, anecdotes, and powerful commentary to dispel common myths and challenge conventional beliefs about educating Black children. With provocative, engaging, and at times humorous prose, Toldson teaches educators, parents, advocates, and students how to avoid BS, raise expectations, and create an educational agenda for Black children that is based on good data, thoughtful analysis, and compassion. No BS helps people understand why Black people need people who believe in Black people enough not to believe every bad thing they hear about Black people.

Policing in Natural Disasters: Stress, Resilience, and the Challenges of Emergency Management

By Terri Adams-Fuller, Ph.D., associate professor of Sociology and Criminology, and the deputy director for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Center for Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology (NCAS-M) at Howard University. Leigh Anderson, alumna, and chief performance analyst in the Public Safety Section of the City of Chicago Office of Inspector General

Summary: Policing in Natural Disasters was inspired by the personal accounts of triumph and tragedy shared by first responders. It provides an understanding of first-responder behaviors during disasters, as well as the preparedness, mitigation, response and recovery policy implications for first responders and emergency managers. As first responders must frequently cope with stress, uncertainty, and threats to their health and safety during high-consequence events, Adams and Anderson provide lessons from first-hand experiences of police officers that can lead to better management in times of crisis.

The Adventures of Grandma V

By Morgan Cruise, alumna 

Summary: Pies keep disappearing! Grandma V says it’s magic, but Juliana knows there is no such thing. However, strange things happen when Grandma V makes her fried peach pies. The only way for Juliana to figure out this mystery is to put away her cellphone, roll up her sleeves, and get her hands messy!

Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Black Boy

By Tony Medina, Ph.D., professor of Creative Writing 

Summary: Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Black Boy by Tony Medina offers a fresh perspective of young men of color by depicting thirteen views of everyday life: young boys dressed in their Sunday best, running to catch a bus, and growing up to be teachers, and much more. Each of Tony Medina’s tanka is matched with a different artist―including recent Caldecott and Coretta Scott King Award recipients.

Training School for Negro Girls 

By Camille Acker, alumna

Summary: When you're black and female in America, society's rules were never meant to make you safe or free. Camille Acker's relatable yet unexpected characters break down the walls of respectability politics, showing that the only way for black women to be free is to be themselves.

Word Warrior: Richard Durham, Radio, and Freedom

By: Sonja Williams, professor of Media, Journalism, and Film

Summary: In Word Warrior, award-winning radio producer Sonja D. Williams draws on archives and hard-to-access family records, as well as interviews with family and colleagues like Studs Terkel and Toni Morrison, to illuminate Durham’s astounding career. Durham paved the way for black journalists as a dramatist and a star investigative reporter and editor for the pioneering black newspapers the Chicago Defender and Muhammed Speaks. Talented and versatile, he also created the acclaimed radio series Destination Freedom and Here Comes Tomorrow and wrote for popular radio fare like The Lone Ranger. Incredibly, his energies extended still further—to community and labor organizing, advising Chicago mayoral hopeful Harold Washington, and mentoring generations of activists. Incisive and in-depth, Word Warrior tells the story of a tireless champion of African American freedom, equality, and justice during an epoch that forever changed a nation.