Black Birds in the Sky
(YA reading level - graphic depictions of violence and use of the "n" word is historical documents)
Written by Brandy Colbert, Black Birds in thy Sky recounts the story of the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921. Colbert writes with plain and clear text to recount the details surrounding the event - a necessary tactic given the immensity of sadness surrounding the history.
Really though, the book is about much more than the massacre. Colbert weaves in events that proceeded the event - including the founding of Oklahoma, the pattern of violence against Black men in the years before the massacre, WWI, the work of Ida B. Wells, Reconstruction, and much more. Colbert also takes time at the end to connect the massacre to current events discussing how the story had been hidden for many years, how it was gradually exposed by Black historians, and how the echoes of that story are reflected in the events of 2020. It's a great example of how historical context connects events throughout U.S. History.
