Books for all ages to honor MLK’s legacy

Martin Luther King Jr. Day, which falls on January 17 this year, is an occasion to honor the achievements of an incredible activist. Here are a few books that kids, teens, and adults can read to learn more about King, the civil rights movement, and issues of race in America.

For kids
Enough! 20+ Protesters Who Changed America
By Emily Easton
Striking illustrations are paired with introductions to American activists who took a stand against injustice, including Ruby Bridges, Colin Kaepernick, and Martin Luther King Jr.

The Youngest Marcher
By Cynthia Levinson
In 1963, at the age of nine, Audrey Faye Hendricks was the youngest among thousands of students who marched in protest of segregation and were arrested in Alabama.

For teens
All American Boys
By Brendan Kiely and Jason Reynolds
Inspired by real events, this novel follows two young men, one Black and one white, as they grapple with the aftermath of an act of police brutality that shakes their community.

March
By Andrew Aydin and John Lewis
This graphic novel trilogy provides a first-hand account of John Lewis’s lifelong struggle for racial justice as well as a broader look at the evolution of the civil rights movement.

For adults
Begin Again
By Eddie S. Glaude Jr.
Glaude mixes a biography of novelist and activist James Baldwin with his own memoir and analysis to explore how today’s America can learn from the past and move forward.

Stride Toward Freedom:
The Montgomery Story
By Martin Luther King Jr.
Written two years after the Montgomery bus boycott, a young King provides an intimate account of the first successful large-scale act of nonviolent resistance in America.

To find these and other MLK Day reads, visit your local library or an independent bookstore in your area.