Fewer than 10% of books with autistic characters feature non-white protagonists. Author Tiffany Hammond is changing that narrative by celebrating nonverbal autistic joy, communication, and belonging.
Books
A space for local and national arts and entertainment stories, with an emphasis on stories pertaining to African and African Americans.
Posted inLocal & State
St. Paul native Dr. Elizabeth Adams brings community values to the fight for responsible AI
Dr. Elizabeth M. Adams, a fifth-generation Minnesotan from St. Paul’s Rondo neighborhood, has spent her career pushing for responsible AI. Contributing writer Tiffany Johnson tells her story, from helping ban facial recognition in Minneapolis to writing a new memoir on purpose and technology.
Posted inBooks
Historian revisits a pivotal moment in city history
More than 50 years after Minneapolis teachers risked their careers in a 20-day walkout, historian Dr. William D. Green reveals how the historic 1970 strike was about far more than pay.
Posted inEvents
Midwest Black Book Fair comes to North Minneapolis
The 2026 Midwest Black Book Fair honors Black storytelling and resistance for Black August, featuring author panels, publishing workshops and raffles at UROC in North Minneapolis. Digital Editor Aaliyah Demry has the full lineup.
Posted inBooks
Shannon Gibney breaks taboo with new children’s book on infant loss
Local author Shannon Gibney’s new children’s book, “Where Is My Sister?,” tackles a subject rarely addressed in kids’ literature: how young children process infant loss. Contributing writer Ella Stern has the story behind the book.
Posted inBooks
Justin Ellis confronts Minneapolis’ hidden racial history in new book
Minneapolis native and journalist Justin Ellis discusses his new book The Cruelty of Nice Folks at Magers and Quinn on June 22, examining how Minneapolis has hidden its history of white supremacy and racial inequality behind the veneer of Minnesota Nice.
Posted inLocal & State
St. Paul publisher named to national list of top solo entrepreneurs
Dr. Artika R. Tyner, founder of Planting People Growing Justice Press and Bookstore in St. Paul, has been named a 2026 Zoom Solopreneur 50 honoree, selected from nearly 2,800 applicants across 48 states.
Posted inBooks
The Black lawyer history forgot
Norma Adams-Wade explores the forgotten legacy of attorney Joseph Edwin Wiley Sr., founder of Dallas’s historic Mill City community, through the unpublished memoir of 105-year-old Pearl Etta McVey-Guthrie.
Posted inEducation
Dr. Brittany Lewis challenges institutions to build a new table in debut book
Dr. Brittany Lewis Building a New Table challenges institutions and funders to move beyond good intentions toward genuine community centered leadership rooted in accountability and shared power.
Posted inBooks
PPGJLI Seeks Submissions for Children’s Book Awards Honoring Black Authors and Illustrators
PPGJLI Children’s Book Awards are now accepting submissions from Black authors and illustrators nationwide through April 15.
Posted inWomen’s History Month
Trailblazing athlete Lusia Harris spotlighted in Difference Makers book series
The Lusia Harris NBA draft milestone is highlighted in a Difference Makers book about the pioneering basketball star’s historic career.
Posted inSister Spokesman
“Her Story” encourages Black women to write and publish their stories
The Her Story Sister Spokesman event brought women together at Hallie Q. Brown Community Center to celebrate African American authors and storytelling.
Posted inBlack History
‘Our First Bus Ride’ brings Hale-Field school integration history to life
Black history Minneapolis school integration is explored in a new children’s book recounting the 1971 Hale-Field Elementary bus ride.
Posted inArts + Culture
Ralph Remington launches “Penetrating Whiteness,” a personal and political examination of white supremacy
Ralph Remington never intended to write a book, but inspiration from James Baldwin led him to compile years of essays into Penetrating Whiteness: How White Supremacy Built America. During a Twin Cities book launch, Remington shared powerful reflections on race, empathy and navigating today’s political moment.
Posted inBooks
Children’s Book Launch Revisits Minnesota’s School Integration History Through Young Eyes
The Our First Bus Ride book launch in Minneapolis highlights a true story of school integration through children’s literature and community conversation.
Posted inBooks
‘Natural Order’ explores love, trauma and renewal
Donika Kelly’s “The Natural Order of Things” opens with the familiar warmth of Black gatherings and uses bones as a powerful symbol to explore love, queerness, community and healing. With lyrical precision, Kelly moves between tenderness, political awareness and the natural world, offering a collection that speaks to survival and the ongoing work of living in one’s body with honesty and joy.
Posted inBooks
Local author celebrates the world through a child’s eyes
In 2020, as Minneapolis grappled with the twin realities of pandemic isolation and civil unrest, South Minneapolis native Jocelyn McQuirter found herself observing a quiet but powerful story unfolding at home: the world through the eyes of her two-year-old son, Kaiden. While the city experienced uncertainty and tension, Kaiden remained fully immersed in play, mesmerized […]
Posted inBooks
‘At Mama Feely’s Feet’ journeys through faith, generational healing
When Hope Venetta began writing “At Mama Feely’s Feet,” she wasn’t simply crafting a book. She was building what she calls “an altar of remembrance.” Venetta, a Durham-based therapist and storyteller, set out to create a space where the stories of her family, and those of other Black families, could be honored, reclaimed and healed. […]
Posted inBooks
In ‘Before I Lie,’ MN poet speaks up for Black women
A powerful review of Dralandra Larkins’ hybrid collection Before I Lie. The book centers truth telling, Black girlhood, ASL, and healing through poetry, prose, and image.
Posted inEducation
Children’s bookstore inspires early love for books
Planting People Growing Justice, a Black woman-owned children’s bookstore and publisher inside Gideon Barbershop, is growing literacy and youth leadership in South Minneapolis. Founded by Dr. Artika Tyner, PPGJ centers books that reflect the African Diaspora and offers storytimes, workshops, and author visits to help kids “read to lead.”