Pathfinder: Fiction for African American Teens

                                                                 

 

First Semester (Kimani TRU)Indigo Summer (Kimani TRU)KEYSHAÂS DRAMA 

 

 

 

Introduction:  A poll taken in 2003 by the NEA (National Education Association) showed that minority youth are the most enthusiastic and prolific readers between the ages of 12 and 18.  50 percent of black teens read over 15 books that year, compared to just 37 percent of white teens. Much of this volume may, in fact, come from parental encouragement. A greater population of black teens also said that their parents encourage them to read.

          Despite the numbers, it is still difficult for black teens to find books that they can relate to on a personal level without going to an African American book store or hunting through a few public libraries. Many modern books that include predominantly black characters are considered “urban fiction” and are not relatable to a broad scope black teens. Since the books teens are most happy to crack open are fiction stories about people their own age, this pathfinder outlines some modern fiction stories, entertainment magazines, websites and videos that portray African American teens in a positive light.

 

 

msoy original publications

 

 

Here are some useful Subject Headings to search for materials:

 

African American authors African Americans—Fiction  

African Americans in literature

American literature—African American authors

 

 

Contents

·       Books

·       Websites

·       Magazines

·       Videos

 

 

 

 

Books

 

Heaven

 

 

 

 

 

Heaven by Angela Johnson

Winner of the 1999 Coretta Scott King Author Award. Marley has lived in heaven with her parents and her brother for 12 years since the accident. She can't imagine her life any other way, but she may have to. Does Marley have the perfect life, or is her life the perfect lie.

 

 

toning the sheep   

 

 

 

 

Toning the sweep by Angela Johnson

One of the best-reviewed novels for young adults in 1993, this powerful debut is reminiscent of Terry McMillan's Waiting to Exhale. This story spans three generations of African-American women and their struggle to find a common ground for sharing love, friendship, and hardships. Young Adult.

 

 

 

Sweet ThangSweet Thang by Allison Whittenberg

Charmaine, 14, is jealous of her orphaned cousin, Tracy John, whom her parents adopted three years earlier. Resentment piles on when her mother goes back to work and Maine is stuck providing after-school care for the obstreperous six-year-old. As events progress, she begins to understand how he feels, and even comes to his defense in school when he is targeted for special ed. She also develops the self-confidence to stand up to a gorgeous loser with whom she is infatuated but who has been using her to do his homework. By story's end, Charmaine is content with herself, her blended family, and her life in Dardon, PA.

 

 

The First Part Last by Angela Johnson

 

With powerful language and keen insight, Johnson tells the story of a young man's struggle to figure out what "the right thing" is and then to do it. The result is a gripping portrayal of a single teenage parenthood from the point of view of a young on the threshold of becoming a man.

 

 

 

 

 

Slam! (Point Signature (Scholastic)) Slam by Walter Dean Myers

Sixteen-year-old "Slam" Harris is counting on his noteworthy basketball talents to get him out of the inner city and give him a chance to succeed in life, but his coach sees things differently.

 

From The Notebooks Of Melanin SunFrom the Notebooks of Melanin Sun by Jacqueline Woodson

Fourteen-year-old Melanin Sun's comfortable, quiet life is shattered when his mother reveals she has fallen in love with a woman.

 

A Right to Be Hostile: The Boondocks Treasury A Right to Be Hostile: The Boondocks Treasury

by Aaron McGruder

With bodacious wit, in just a few panels, each day Aaron serves up life in America through the eyes of two African-American kids who are full of attitude, intelligence, and rebellion. Each time I read the strip, I laugh and I wonder how long The Boondocks can get away with the things it says. And how on earth can the most truthful thing in the newspaper be the comics??

foreword by Michael Moore

 

Drama High: The Fight Drama High: The Fight by L. Divine (Drama High is a series)

Drama High offers a tantalizing story. Jayd and her laugh-out-loud funny assessment of life, along with her quirky cast of friends and her magical family make for an irresistible, can't-put-it-down read.

 

  The Skin I'm in The Skin I'm In by Sharon G. Flake

So begins the story of Maleeka Madison, a child burdened with the low self-esteem that many black girls face when they're darker skinned. When Maleeka lays eyes on her new teacher, Miss Saunders, she encounters someone who, she feels, is worse off than she is. Miss Saunders' skin, which is blotched with a rare skin condition, comes to serve as a mirror to Maleeka's struggle. Miss Saunders is tough -- she doesn't stand for the snickers and shouts that her students hurl at her. But can Maleeka stand up to tough-talking Charlese? Will she ever accept Caleb's friendship, the unconditional acceptance he's been showing her from the get-go? And how can she learn to love the skin she's in?

 

Winner of the 1999 Coretta Scott King John Steptoe Award

 

Jason & Kyra Jason and Kyra by Dana Davidson

Jason is a basketball star and one of the most popular guys in school. Brainy Kyra isn't, but she doesn't much care what other people think. Under normal circumstances, Jason and Kyra would live in their separate worlds until graduation. But fate intervenes, and the unlikely duo is paired up for a class project. Although preconceived notions abound on both sides, Kyra soon realizes that Jason is not the dumb jock she anticipated. And Jason finds himself telling Kyra things he can't even tell his best friend. As the two become close and eventually start to fall in love, no one in school can believe it, especially Jason's ex-girlfriend, who is determined to get him back. Being together means navigating the obstacles that are coming their way-but staying apart may be impossible.

 

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Websites

 

KimaniTru Publishing -Series of  fiction books with black teens as main characters.

 

Yahoo! Groups- African American teen poetry – Group site for African American teens to share their poetry and chat with other teens who write.

 

Blackbooks direct - Offers a variety of current fiction for black teens. 

 

MSOY -  (Multiple Shades Of You) A website directed towards African Americans features a section for young people. Full of great websites, books and movies.

 

Black Issues Book Review - African-American literature and online book club that has a teen section.

 

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Magazines

 

Vibe Vixen MagazineVibe Vixen Magazine

Vibe Vixen is the first magazine exclusively for the trendsetting woman whose love for urban music and culture inspires her choices in beauty, fashion, and lifestyle.

 

 

 

 

Sister 2 SisterSister 2 Sister

The very personal entertainment magazine that keeps you abreast on all the latest happenings in music, movies, and lifestyles. A must-read!

 

 

 

 

Ebony Magazine

Ebony Magazine

Ebony Magazine has been the nation’s number one magazine for African Americans for fifty years! With an emphasis on stories about black progress and achievement throughout the world, Ebony brings you inspiring articles on health, education, careers, politics, religion, sports, entertainment, fashion, and food.

 

 

  Right On!

   Entertainment magazine for black teens.

                                                     

Black Issues Book Review

Distributed through paid subscriptions and newsstand sales in major book retailers and independent African American bookstores. Black Issues Book Review is an excellent source in building “word of mouth” for today’s African-American authors and books.

                                                     

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Videos Go to fullsize image

 

Drumline (2002) Poster Drumline- Devon Miles, a young, gifted hip-hop drummer from Harlem, wins a full music scholarship to Atlanta A&T University with the hopes of gaining a spot as a drummer on the school’s renowned marching band’s drumline.

 

Akeelah and the Bee (2006) Poster Akeelah and the bee- A precocious eleven-year-old girl, Akeelah Anderson, from south Los Angeles, is discovered to have a talent for words.

 

Stomp the Yard (2007) Poster Stomp the yard- DJ, a troubled youth from Los Angeles attending the historically black Truth University in Atlanta, Georgia. When adapting to his new environment proves difficult, DJ finds solace in joining a struggling fraternity where he begins implementing his street-style dance moves in an attempt to help the step team win the coveted National Step Show Championship.

 

Love Don't Cost a Thing (2003) Poster Love don’t cost a thing - With his head always buried in a book or under the hood of a car, Alvin has spent the last three years of high school grinding away at his studies and working as a pool boy to earn extra cash. As he enters his senior year, Alvin wants to kick his nerdy persona to the curb and somehow become cool enough to chill with ultra-popular students like Paris Morgan, the hottest girl in school and queen of the Elites.

 

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Reference sites

 

African American Literature Book Club. (1997). Retrieved April 10, 2007, from     http://aalbc.com/

 

Black Books Direct. (n.d.). Retrieved April 10, 2007, from Azizi.com, Inc. Website: http://www.blackbooksdirect.com/teenfiction.html

 

Black Issues Book Review. (2006). Retrieved April 18, 2007, from     http://www.bibookreview.com/bookclubs.htm

 

Henry, L. (2000). MSOY (Multiple Shades Of You). Retrieved April 5, 2007, from     http://www.msoyonline.com/

 

Scarecrow Press. (1997). Voice of Youth Advocates. Retrieved April 11, 2007,     from Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group Web site: http://www.voya.com/

 

 

 

 

 

 

Elizabeth Campbell- Library student of Rowan University, NJ