“If you possess enough courage to speak out what you are, you will find you are not alone.”― Richard Wright, Black Boy

​Dear Black Boy, by Ebony Lewis, gives young Black males permission to be who they are. To understand and recognize their emotions, and to counter the narrative oftentimes thrust upon them.This book is a good mirror/window book to have critical conversations about Black male identity and recognizing the social-emotional issues young Black males need to grapple with. It's a good book to give background knowledge for Richard Wright's Black Boy.
Son, You Matter! by Derrick Jakolby Washington, is a story about a Dad who affirms his son's identity daily, but an incident happens to question, yet reaffirm the Dad's message. This book works well with topics around Black Lives Mattering.
Lewis, Ebony., and Grant, Jasmine, illustrator. Dear Black Boy, It's Ok to Cry. Waukesha, WI: Orange Hat Publishing, 2019. Print.
Washington, Derrick Jakolby, and Sheana, India, illustrator. Son, You Matter! Jenkinstown PA]: Pen Legacy, 2020. Print.