Book description
“Anyone who has ever wondered what it really means to be Black will find the answer in this book.”—MINNEAPOLIS TRIBUNE
To Be Young, Gifted and Black is a special kind of autobiography, in a very special voice. Both the story and the voice belong to a young woman from Chicago…
Why read it?
2 authors picked To Be Young, Gifted and Black as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
There’s nothing like reading a gifted author. This is Lorraine Hansberry (playwright of A Raisin in the Sun) in her own words. Lorraine died tragically young. There are many biographies about her, but her own words shine.
It’s a strange autobiography, compiled after she died and mixed with journal writings as well as unfinished plays.
What strikes me most about her is her sharp intelligence and the aching in my heart for the works she left unfinished. We get a glimpse of them here.
Lorraine Hansberry and her husband Robert Nemiroff were college friends of mine.
Lorraine had a way with words, a sense of justice, and deep compassion. Her Raisin in the Sun made Broadway history. The collage approach to the material in To Be Young, Gifted and Black I’ve found is completely in keeping with the diamond-sharp artistic mind of the woman I knew.
From Clarence's list on the realities of being Black in America.
If you love To Be Young, Gifted and Black...
These Blue Mountains
A moving story of love, betrayal, and the enduring power of hope in the face of darkness.
German pianist Hedda Schlagel's world collapsed when her fiancé, Fritz, vanished after being sent to an enemy alien camp in the United States during the Great War. Fifteen years later, in 1932, Hedda…
Want books like To Be Young, Gifted and Black?
Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 67 books like To Be Young, Gifted and Black.
Share your top 3 reads of 2025!
And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.
1,366
readers submitted
so far, will you?
📚 If you like To Be Young, Gifted and Black, you might also like...
Deadly Revenge
Deputy Jenna Hart has only been working in her sleepy hometown of Pearl Springs for seven months when city officials begin to be targeted by a killer. Twenty years ago, the construction of a dam caused people to lose their land to eminent domain. That wound has not healed with…
The Duty of Memory
Separating the true stories from the myths, The Duty of Memory provides a deeper understanding of the diverse motivations that drove ordinary people to join an underground network of French Resistants despite terrible odds and horrifying consequences.
This book takes the reader inside the true story of men and women…
