Books of September–2025

The White Guy Dies First by Terry J. Benton Walker

Have you ever watched or read a horror story where a person of color died almost immediately and thought: that sucks! Well, this is for you! These thirteen scary stories are told by people of color and feature people of color. Some of these stories were really disturbing to me. I struggled to get through the cannibalism story, but the message was spectacular. Although I was laughing for most of the haunted house story, it was just as scary as the other stories. All of these stories were strong. Be aware of your triggers before reading these. Take breaks as needed. This is a fantastic book. Bonus points: all the white guys literally die first!

Hijab Butch Blues by Lamya H

I have had this book on my to be read list for a while. I finally got to it, and I loved it! As a Black, queer, outspoken political person, this hit home. I had many of the same religious and gender questions, since I grew up Christian. I always wondered why God would use he/him pronouns. Why would God care who I liked? I am not an immigrant, but I did grow up Black in suburbia. People let me know that my body and experiences were less than my white peers. Overall, this book was great. I left like I was listening to a friend talk to me about what their life was like on a long car ride. Also, I did not realize that my name (Khadijah) was tied to Islam, so that is neat.

The Ballad of Jacoquotte Delahaye by Briony Cameron

Are there pirates? Yes. Are there queer people? Absolutely. Are there people of color fighting against colonialism? You bet there are! This is a fun and emotional book about pirates of color fighting colonialism and falling in love. I cannot believe that the entire book takes place over (I think) a couple of months. Wow. So much happens in this book. Be prepared for a sprint and not a marathon. This book introduces characters, and then a couple chapters later, they die. All of the deaths felt sensible and painful to me. I was influenced by A’isha (@ nosi1ence on TikTok) because she described this book beautifully!