Common Sense Media Review
By Barbara Saunders
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Realistic, compelling coming-of-age stories of black teens.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 13+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
BLACK ENOUGH: STORIES OF BEING YOUNG & BLACK IN AMERICA, edited by Ibi Zoboi, is a collection of 17 short stories about young black people written by black authors. The stories portray teens encountering serious and not-so-serious events, from losing a friend in a fatal car accident to choosing what sandwiches to have for lunch. The teens explore not only their racial identity but also sexual awakening, academic choices, and relationships with family and friends.
Is It Any Good?
There's so much to love about this collection! Black Enough: Stories of Being Young & Black in America offers a range of literary voices -- lyrical first-person monologue, fantasy, humor, and more. It portrays a variety of types of people and shows empathy for all of them. Though controversial topics are covered, the focus stays clearly on how the young people navigate the personal and ethical dilemmas in their lives; there are no soapboxes.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about what it means to be Black Enough or "not black enough". How does this question come up in the lives of the characters in the stories? Has this question come up in your life or in the life of someone you know?
The stories in Black Enough were all written by black authors. How do you think that affected the stories they wrote? How does the fact that the authors are black influence your perception of the stories they tell?
In some stories, the character's main problem is about race, like whether to attend a historically black college or how to make friends in a town where almost everyone else is white. In others, it's about romance, a relationship with a parent, or coming out as gay or lesbian. In the stories not about race, do you think the character's "blackness" matters to the story? If so, how? If not, why not?
Book Details
- Author :
- Genre : Short Stories
- Topics : Activism , Friendship , School ( High School )
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Balzer + Bray
- Publication date : January 28, 2019
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 13 - 18
- Number of pages : 416
- Available on : Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : December 3, 2025
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