Speaking Volumes | Manatee libraries celebrate Black History Month

By David Breakfield and Chelsea Baker

Special to the Herald

This month is Black History Month, and your library has a large collection celebrating the great contributions made by individuals in many fields including writers like Zora Neale Hurston and Langston Hughes, civil rights figures such as Rosa Parks and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and filmmakers such as Spike Lee.

Our collection also contains materials dealing with the painful history of slavery and segregation after the Civil War, as well as books on pivotal events, such as the enactment of the Jim Crow laws after the Civil War, the torturous struggle for integration in the 1960s, and the role of the African-American soldier in the wars of the 20th century.

As might be expected, there are also a variety of items on the African-American experience in Florida and Manatee County, many of which can be found in the Central Library's non-circulating Eaton Collection.

You can see all that we have to offer on any of these topics by perform

ing an author or keyword search in the online catalog which includes items from all six libraries in the county. Go to www.mymanatee.org/library and click on "Search for Books, DVDs, & More." E-books, e-audiobooks, streaming music and movies that are available in our online resources OverDrive, Hoopla, and OneClickdigital are conveniently linked from the catalog. Read on for a few titles to get you started.

For a solid introduction to key African-American figures and issues, we have a number of excellent anthologies and online resources. "The Black List," by Timothy Greenfield-Sanders, is a collection of profiles and interviews of 25 people, ranging from former Secretary of State Colin Powell to writer Toni Morrison.

"The Norton Anthology of African American Literature" offers historical and contemporary works from 140 writers in a wide variety of genres. Casual or serious students of African-American history or culture should also explore the online database resources "Gale Virtual Reference Library," "US History Collection," and "MasterFILE Premier" for e-books, magazine and academic journal articles, biographies, and more.

For those who wish to celebrate the month with a new dish, you can learn about African-American cooking in "A Date with a Dish: Classic African-American Recipes" by Freda De Knight, "Afro-vegan: Farm-fresh African, Caribbean & Southern Flavors Remixed" and "Vegan Soul Kitchen: Fresh, Healthy, and Creative African American Cuisine" both by Bryant Terry, and Wilbert Jones' "The New Soul Food Cookbook: Healthier Recipes for Traditional Favorites," which as the title indicates provides lower calorie versions of soul food dishes. Books on the same subject are also available in the children's area and include many popular dishes and recipes, but also inform younger readers about the evolution of African-American cooking traditions.

Finally, the tremendous contribution made by African-American musicians and singers is amply represented by albums featuring such giants as Louis Armstrong and biographies like Al Green's memoir, "Take Me to the River."

For more resources to help you celebrate Black History Month or learn more about African-American culture and history any time of the year, contact your local Manatee County Public Library.

Speaking Volumes, written by Manatee County Public Library System staff members, is published each Sunday. David Breakfield and Chelsea Baker are reference librarians at the Manatee County Central Library.

This story was originally published February 12, 2016 at 5:27 PM with the headline "Speaking Volumes | Manatee libraries celebrate Black History Month ."