Best
Books
of
2019
To celebrate the best in fiction, poetry, and nonfiction of 2019, the editors of Auburn Avenue picked their favorite books of the year. While our list is not exhaustive, it features a segment of the most exceptional releases from writers of color.
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See our picks below (in chronological order by date of publication).
Black is the Body: Stories from My Grandmother's Time, My Mother's Time, and Mine
by Emily Bernard
Publication Date: January 29, 2019
Publisher: Knopf
Genre: Nonfiction
We Cast a Shadow
by Maurice Carlos Ruffin
Publication Date: January 29, 2019
Publisher: One World
Genre: Fiction
The Tradition
by Jericho Brown
Publication Date: April 2, 2019
Publisher: Copper Canyon Press
Genre: Poetry
Ugly Music
by Diannely Antigua
Publication Date: May 15, 2019
Publisher: YesYes Books
Genre: Poetry
In West Mills
by De'Shawn Charles Winslow
Publication Date: June 4, 2019
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Genre: Fiction
The Nickel Boys
by Colson Whitehead
Publication Date: July 16, 2019
Publisher: Doubleday
Genre: Fiction
A Particular Kind of Black Man
by Tope Folarin
Publication Date: August 6, 2019
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Genre: Fiction
The Yellow House
by Sarah M. Broom
Publication Date: August 13, 2019
Publisher: Grove Press
Genre: Nonfiction
PEN America Best Debut Short Stories 2019
Stories selected by Danielle Evans, Alice Sola Kim, and Carmen Maria Machado
Publication Date: August 20, 2019
Publisher: Catapult
Genre: Fiction
The Black Shoals:
Offshore Formations of Black and Native Studies
by Tiffany Lethabo King
Publication Date: August 23, 2019
Publisher: Duke University Press
Genre: Nonfiction
Eyes Bottle Dark with a Mouthful of Flowers
by Jake Skeets
Publication Date: September 10, 2019
Publisher: Milkweed Editions
Genre: Poetry
Hull
by Xandria Phillips
Publication Date: October 8, 2019
Publisher: Nightboat Books
Genre: Poetry
Mistress
by Chet'la Sebree
Publication Date: October 16, 2018
Publisher: New Issues Poetry and Prose
Genre: Poetry
In the Dream House
by Carmen Maria Machado
Publication Date: November 5, 2019
Publisher: Graywolf Press
Genre: Nonfiction
Progressive Dystopia: Abolition, Antiblackness & Schooling
in San Francisco
by Savannah Shange
Publication Date: November 23, 2019
Publisher: Duke University Press
Genre: Nonfiction