This is a corpus of best selling books by Black authors from 2004 through September, 2021. The database includes backlist titles published earlier, but the sales data is from 2004 to September 2021. This was created as a part of an assignment to create a LibGuide for the Pratt Library and Information Studies program.
We defined "best selling" - which is a subjective term in publishing - as books that have sold over fifty-thousand (50,000) copies. We compiled book titles from a combination of best-sellers lists (e.g., The New York Times), publically available lists of books by Black authors from a variety of literary organizations, and by searching the sales of well-known Black authors on NPD Bookscan.
We're sure that we missed some best-selling books by Black authors but to our knowledge this is the first collection of high selling books by Black authors based on actual sales. We hope this will be used as a resource by writers, publishers, marketers, librarians, and anyone interested in the history and legacy of successful Black writers in book publishing.
Note: RTD means 'Retail Sales To Date', and YTD means 'Yearly Sales To Date.' Each column can be sorted by ascending or descending order, or by category, including gender (female or male), type of book (fiction, non-fiction, or poetry), publisher, author, format, imprint, etc.
Imprint
Type
- Fiction 9
- Non-fiction 9
Publisher
- Harpercollins Publishers · 18 ✖
Format
- Trade Paperback · 18 ✖
ISBN ▼ | Title | Type | Author | Gender | Publisher | Format | Publication Date | Imprint | RTD Sales | YTD Sales |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
9780060557553 | The Known World | Fiction | Edward P. Jones | Male | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2004-05-25 | Amistad Press | 832398 | 1145 |
9780060646912 | A Testament of Hope: the Essential Writings and Speeches | Non-fiction | Martin Luther King | Male | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2003-04-29 | Harperone | 56703 | 3794 |
9780060837563 | Native Son | Fiction | Richard Wright | Male | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2005-08-02 | Harper Perennial | 258904 | 9643 |
9780060838676 | Their Eyes Were Watching God | Fiction | Zora Neale Hurston | Female | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2006-01-01 | Amistad Press | 1032274 | 30208 |
9780060959470 | All About Love: New Visions | Non-fiction | Bell Hooks | Female | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2018-01-30 | William Morrow & Company | 271804 | 48866 |
9780061130243 | Black Boy | Fiction | Richard Wright | Male | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2007-03-27 | Harper Perennial | 203292 | 58 |
9780061357909 | The Measure of a Man | Non-fiction | Sidney Poitier | Male | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2007-01-26 | Harperone | 625216 | 787 |
9780062282712 | Bad Feminist | Non-fiction | Roxane Gay | Female | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2014-08-05 | Harper Perennial | 281311 | 9575 |
9780062363602 | Hidden Figures: the American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race | Non-fiction | Margot Lee Shetterly | Female | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2016-12-06 | William Morrow & Company | 554496 | 15128 |
9780062505521 | I Have a Dream - Special Anniversary Edition: Writings and Speeches That Changed the World | Non-fiction | Martin Luther King | Male | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2003-04-29 | Harperone | 52205 | 2545 |
9780062662378 | Hidden Figures Young Readers' Edition | Non-fiction | Margot Lee Shetterly | Female | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2016-11-29 | Harpercollins | 279046 | 34782 |
9780062691194 | New Kid | Fiction | Jerry Craft | Male | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2019-02-05 | Quill Tree Books | 422327 | 114348 |
9780062885500 | Class Act | Fiction | Jerry Craft | Male | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2020-10-06 | Quill Tree Books | 116395 | 63395 |
9780064407311 | Monster | Fiction | Walter Dean Myers | Male | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2019-03-05 | Amistad Press | 862031 | 32745 |
9780064461818 | Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad | Non-fiction | Ann Petry | Female | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2007-08-14 | Amistad Press | 57350 | 8 |
9780064470667 | Scorpions | Fiction | Walter Dean Myers | Male | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2013-05-28 | Amistad Press | 61791 | 568 |
9780064472883 | Bad Boy: a Memoir | Non-fiction | Walter Dean Myers | Male | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2020-05-12 | Amistad Press | 133131 | 3273 |
9780064472906 | Shooter | Fiction | Walter Dean Myers | Male | Harpercollins Publishers | Trade Paperback | 2005-03-29 | Amistad Press | 58531 | 201 |