Over 250 years of black American literature in a “breathtaking anthology celebrating the power of the written word to forge change” (O, The Oprah Magazine).
Throughout American history, black people are the only group to have been forbidden by law to learn to read. This expansive collection seeks to shed light on that injustice, putting some of America’s most cherished voices in a conversation in one magnificent volume that presents reading as an act of resistance.
Organized into three sections—the Peril, the Power, and the Pleasure—and featuring a vast array of contributors both classic and contemporary, Black Ink presents the brilliant diversity of black thought in America while solidifying the importance of these writers within the greater context of the American literary tradition.
“This electric and electrifying collection of voices serves to open a much-needed window onto the freedom struggle of black literature. It’s a marvel, and a genuine gift for readers everywhere.” —Wil Haygood, author of The Butler: A Witness to History
“A well-chosen selection . . . Revelatory, often moving essays by impressive writers.” —Kirkus Reviews
Contributors include: Frederick Douglass * Solomon Northup * Booker T. Washington * W.E.B. Du Bois * Zora Neale Hurston * Langston Hughes * James Baldwin * Malcolm X * Maya Angelou * Martin Luther King, Jr. * Toni Morrison * Walter Dean Myers * Stokely Carmichael (Kwame Ture) * Alice Walker * Jamaica Kincaid * Henry Louis Gates, Jr. * Terry McMillan * Junot Diaz * Edwidge Danticat * Marlon James * Roxane Gay * Ta-Nehisi Coates * Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie * Colson Whitehead
Includes a bonus in-depth interview with President Barack Obama

Standing in the Need of Prayer