Magical Middle Grade Fantasy by Black Authors
By Kamilla Benko
By Kamilla Benko
A list of books for fantasy lovers 8 - 14 written by Black authors and starring Black protagonists.
Authors' Twitter links are linked below so you can keep up with all their latest news!
- Tracey Baptiste
- Rena Barron
- Kacen Callender
- Marti Dumas
- Nicky Drayden
- J.Elle
- Zetta Elliott
- Eve L. Ewing
- Lamar Giles
- Leah Henderson
- Daka Hermon
- Kwame Mbalia
- Tamera Mowry-Housley
- Tia Mowry
- Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu
- Jewell Parker Rhodes
- Jamar J. Perry
- Jason Reynolds
- Eden Royce
- Ronald L. Smith
- Nic Stone
All proceeds earned by this bookshop's lists will be donated to ACLU WISCONSIN. Please also consider ordering from Black owned bookshops:
The Lit. Bar (sales via Bookshop)
Semicolon Bookstore and Gallery (sales via Bookshop)
The Jumbies
Tracey Baptiste
$7.95 $7.39If you like LAND OF STORIES by Chris Colfer, you'll love this series about Corinne La Mer who must use her extraordinary bravery--and a bit of magic--to save her island home from jumbies.
Bayou Magic
Jewell Parker Rhodes
$7.99 $7.43If you enjoy books like TUMBLE & BLUE by Cassie Beasley (author of CIRCUS MIRANDUS) and a hint of mermaids, you'll this book!
Dragons in a Bag
Zetta Elliott and Geneva B.
$7.99 $7.43A fan of JERMEY THATCHER, DRAGON HATCHER by Bruce Coville? Take a look at this story!
Rick Riordan Presents Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky
Kwame Mbalia
$17.99 $16.73Fans of Percy Jackson will love this series--and Rick Riordan agrees!
Rick Riordan Presents Tristan Strong Destroys the World (a Tristan Strong Novel, Book 2)
Kwame Mbalia
$17.99 $16.73The second book in the beloved Tristan Strong series!
Miles Morales: Spider-Man
Jason Reynolds and Kadir Nelson
$17.99 $16.73Love action packed books like ALEX RIDER by Anthony Horowitz? Try this story! (And if you're a Marvel fan and haven't read this book yet--what are you waiting for?!)
Shuri: A Black Panther Novel (Marvel): Volume 1
Nic Stone
$17.99 $16.73Like your princesses smart like Cimorene in DEALING WITH DRAGONS? Then meet the brilliant Shuri. (And, obviously, if you're a fan of Marvel, read this ASAP!)
Zahrah the Windseeker
Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu
$8.99 $8.36If you enjoy quests like THE HOBBIT and want a book to replace THE JUNGLE BOOK on your shelf, then this is the book for you! (And if you're intrigued by the trailer for 2021 the JUNGLE CRUISE movie, definitely take a look at this book!)
Maya and the Rising Dark
Rena Barron
$16.99 $15.80Another book fantastic for fans of PERCY JACKSON by Rick Riordan and KEEPER OF THE LOST CITIES by Shannon Messenger.
Gloom Town
Ronald L. Smith
$16.99 $15.80If you enjoyed Lemony Snicket's SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS, you'll enjoy this book with a fantastical twist.
The Magic in Changing Your Stars
Leah Henderson
$16.95When you were younger, did you love books that took you back in time like MAGIC TREE HOUSE, RANGER IN TIME, and I SURVIVED? Then try this tale!
Hurricane Child
Kacen Callender
$7.99 $7.43Magical realism at its finest, pick up this book if you loved ORPHAN ISLAND by Laurel Snyder!
Hide and Seeker
Daka Hermon
$17.99 $16.73If you love GOOSEBUMPS and STRANGER THINGS or THE DARKDEEP by Ally Condie and Brendan Reichs, this is the next read for you!
Ikenga
Nnedi Okorafor
$16.99 $15.80Publishes August 18, 2020 - If you like books where a magical object bestows great power like THE MONSTER'S RING by Bruce Coville or an action story packed with magic, like ARTEMIS FOWEL by Eoin Colfer, be sure to check out this book!
The Last Last-Day-Of-Summer
Lamar Giles and Dapo Adeola
$16.99 $15.80Looking for a modern PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH? Look no further than this tale and its sequel, THE LAST MIRROR ON THE LEFT.
The Phoenix on Barkley Street
Zetta Elliott
$7.00This is a perfect read for anyone who loved THE BOGGART by Susan Cooper or THE PHOENIX AND THE CARPET by E. Nesbit.
The Ghosts in the Castle
Zetta Elliott and Charity Russell
$7.00If you read any of the THE ROYAL DIARIES books or TANGLED IN TIME by Katherine Lasky, be sure to read this book!
Black Panther: The Young Prince
Ronald Smith
$7.99 $7.43Excellent for anyone who loves Marvel and Rick Riordan's TRIALS OF APOLLO series!
The Owls Have Come to Take Us Away
Ronald L. Smith
$7.99If you're in the mood for something delightfully ominous like WAIT TILL HELEN COMES by Mary Downing Hahn, this is the book for you!
Hoodoo
Ronald L. Smith
$7.99 $7.43This is a great read for anyone who loved SAVVY by Ingrid Law and enjoys a dash of spine tingles.
The Mesmerist
Ronald L. Smith
$7.99If you loved Neil Patrick Harris's MAGIC MISFITS series, then this book is the perfect fit for you.
In addition to those books listed above, here are a few upcoming titles to keep an eye on. Click on the titles to learn more!
MAYA AND THE ROBOT (2020) by Eve L. Ewing: The story follows a precocious fifth-grader and her robot sidekick, whose friendship helps her navigate a difficult start to the school year and the legacy of a tragedy in her Chicago neighborhood.
A TASTE OF MAGIC (2022) by J.Elle: Stars twelve-year-old Kyana, a Black girl who enrolls in an inner-city magical academy hidden in the back of a beauty shop and must fight to keep it open after redistricting and gentrification threaten to close it down.
CAMERON BATTLE AND THE LEGEND OF CHIDANI (2022) by Jamar J. Perry: a middle grade fantasy adventure story, inspired by West African and Igbo mythology, stars a Black boy who discovers magic in a book passed through his family over generations and realizes it might be up to his and his friends to bridge the barrier between worlds to save a hidden kingdom.
THE MARVELLERS (2022) by NYT-bestselling author Dhonielle Clayton: A fantasy series set in a magic school in the sky where students from around the world come together to practice their cultural marvels. Ella Durand, the first Conjuror to attend the Arcanum Training Institute, must overcome Ant-Conjuror prejudice to track down a missing teacher and protect the school from a magical threat.