BIPOC Lit – Page 69 – Trigger Warning Database

Star Child by Ibi Zoboi

Star Child: A Biographical Constellation of Octavia Estelle Butler by Ibi Zoboi

Acclaimed novelist Ibi Zoboi illuminates the young life of the visionary storyteller Octavia E. Butler in poems and prose. Born into the Space Race, the Red Scare, and the dawning Civil Rights Movement, Butler expereinced an American childhood that shaped her into the groundbreaking science-fiction storyteller whose novels continue to challenge and delight readers fifteen years after her death.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Racism
Sexism
Miscarriage mentioned
Poverty

The Best Next Thing by Natasha Anders

The Best Next Thing by Natasha Anders

After years of torment and pain, Charity Cole feels safe again. The isolated house within which she lives and works is her haven. But her sanctuary is invaded when her icy, reserved boss shows up unannounced. He sees her as he was never meant to see her and Charity’s carefully constructed safe world begins to crumble.

Miles Hollingsworth is a stone-cold workaholic. His life revolves around his company and when ill health forces him to take time off he heads to his holiday home where he knows he won’t have to deal with anyone but his dour live-in housekeeper… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Martial rape recounted
Domestic abuse & violence recounted
Death of a husband from suicide

Uncharted by Adriana Anders

Uncharted by Adriana Anders

Hotshot pilot Leo Eddowes is afraid of nothing and no one. So when she’s asked to evacuate a man from the wilds of Alaska, she doesn’t hesitate. But with enemies in close pursuit and the weather turning sour, what should have been a simple mission quickly shifts to disaster. And there’s only one way out.

When Elias Thorne disappeared, he was America’s most wanted. Now he’s spent more than a decade in one of the most remote places on earth, guarding a dangerous secret. Leo’s arrival, quickly followed by a team of expert hunters, leaves him no choice but to join forces with her—and run. Neither is prepared… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Gun violence
Grief & loss depiction
Death of a parent from suicide
Murder of a parent
Torture
Plane crash, on-page

Darling by K Ancrum

Darling by K. Ancrum

On Wendy Darling’s first night in Chicago, a boy called Peter appears at her window. He’s dizzying, captivating, beautiful—so she agrees to join him for a night on the town.

Wendy thinks they’re heading to a party, but instead they’re soon running in the city’s underground. She makes friends—a punk girl named Tinkerbelle and the lost boys Peter watches over. And she makes enemies—the terrifying Detective Hook, and maybe Peter himself, as his sinister secrets start coming to light. Can Wendy find the courage to survive this night—and make sure everyone else does, too?

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Adult-minor relationships
Grooming
Child abuse & neglect
Anxiety
Panic attacks
PTSD & trauma
Alcohol consumption
Blood depiction
Death of a parent
Death of a child
Murder, off-page
Gun violence
Police brutality
Stalking
Kidnapping

One Carefree Day by Whitney Amazeen

One Carefree Day by Whitney Amazeen

For eighteen-year-old Willow Bates, anxiety is just a part of life. With her every decision ruled by intrusive thoughts, she’s worried she sometimes seems a little odd. Despite Willow’s efforts to hide her OCD from those around her, it isn’t always possible. Her rituals are her coping mechanism, and Willow’s past has left her with a lot to cope with.

But when Willow takes things too far, her mother breaks and gives her an ultimatum: Willow must finally start taking meds to treat her obsessive-compulsive disorder, or she’ll have to move out within three months… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Child abuse mentioned
Domestic violence mentioned
Suicide mentioned
Pregnancy loss mentioned

Maverick’s Madness by Lorrain Allen

Maverick’s Madness by Lorrain Allen

Maverick’s bigot father raised him to be a racist. The moment he sees me—the biracial new girl—an invisible target is placed on my back. Before the first day of school, he turns most of the senior class against me.

Maverick thought I would roll over and take his abuse, never anticipating a battle. He was mistaken. I will fight until my last breath. Maverick and his friends can suck it.

When I don’t fold under pressure, he comes at me full force, wanting to destroy me. He never expected to be the one to fold.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Racism

Black Girls Must Be Magic by Jayne Allen

Black Girls Must Be Magic by Jayne Allen

For Tabitha Walker, her grandmother’s old adage, “Black girls must die exhausted” is becoming all too true. Discovering she’s pregnant–after she was told she may not be able to have biological children–Tabitha throws herself headfirst into the world of “single mothers by choice.” Between her job, doctor’s appointments, and preparing for the baby, she’s worn out. And that’s before her boss at the local news station starts getting complaints from viewers about Tabitha’s natural hair.

When an unexpected turn of events draws Marc–her on and off-again ex-boyfriend–back into her world with surprising demands, and the situation at work begins to threaten her livelihood and her identity, Tabitha must make some tough decisions about her and her baby’s future… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Racism

Black Girls Must Die Exhausted by Jayne Allen

Black Girls Must Die Exhausted by Jayne Allen

Tabitha Walker is a black woman with a plan to “have it all.” At 33 years old, the checklist for the life of her dreams is well underway. Education? Check. Good job? Check. Down payment for a nice house? Check. Dating marriage material? Check, check, and check. With a coveted position as a local news reporter, a “paper-perfect” boyfriend, and even a standing Saturday morning appointment with a reliable hairstylist, everything seems to be falling into place.

Then Tabby receives an unexpected diagnosis that brings her picture-perfect life crashing down, jeopardizing the keystone she took for granted: having children. With her dreams at risk of falling through the cracks of her checklist, suddenly she is faced with an impossible choice… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Attempted suicide
Infertility
Police brutality

Black Birds in the Sky by Brandy Colbert

Black Birds in the Sky: The Story and Legacy of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre by Brandy Colbert

In the early morning of June 1, 1921, a white mob marched across the train tracks in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and into its predominantly Black Greenwood District—a thriving, affluent neighbourhood known as America’s Black Wall Street. They brought with them firearms, gasoline, and explosives.

In a few short hours, they’d razed thirty-five square blocks to the ground, leaving hundreds dead. The Tulsa Race Massacre is one of the most devastating acts of racial violence in US history. But how did it come to pass? What exactly happened? And why are the events unknown to so many of us today?

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Racism & racial profiling
Grief & loss depiction
Death of a brother in a gang shooting recounted

The Voting Booth by Brandy Colbert

The Voting Booth by Brandy Colbert

Marva Sheridan was born ready for this day. She’s always been driven to make a difference in the world, and what better way than to vote in her first election? Duke Crenshaw is so done with this election. He just wants to get voting over with so he can prepare for his band’s first paying gig tonight. Only problem? Duke can’t vote.

When Marva sees Duke turned away from their polling place, she takes it upon herself to make sure his vote is counted. She hasn’t spent months doorbelling and registering voters just to see someone denied their right. And that’s how their whirlwind day begins, rushing from precinct to precinct, cutting school, waiting in endless lines, turned away time and again, trying to do one simple thing: vote. They may have started out as strangers, but as Duke and Marva team up to beat a rigged system (and find Marva’s missing cat), it’s clear that there’s more to their connection than a shared mission for democracy.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

Racism & racial profiling
Grief & loss depiction
Death of a brother in a gang shooting recounted