THE INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • FIVE STARRED REVIEWS Celebrate the joys of Black boyhood with stories from seventeen bestselling, critically acclaimed Black authors—including Jason Reynolds, Jerry Craft, and Kwame Mbalia. ★ "Pick up Black Boy Joy for a heavy dose of happiness." — Booklist , starred review Black boy joy is…   Picking out a fresh first-day-of-school outfit. Saving the universe in an epic intergalactic race. Finding your voice—and your rhymes—during tough times. Flying on your skateboard like nobody’s watching.   And more! From seventeen acclaimed Black male and non-binary authors comes a vibrant collection of stories, comics, and poems about the power of joy and the wonders of Black boyhood. Contributors include : B. B. Alston, Dean Atta, P. Djèlí Clark, Jay Coles, Jerry Craft, Lamar Giles, Don P. Hooper, George M. Johnson, Varian Johnson, Kwame Mbalia, Suyi Davies Okungbowa, Tochi Onyebuchi, Julian Randall, Jason Reynolds, Justin Reynolds, DaVaun Sanders, and Julian Winters An Amazon Best Book of 2021 A Washington Post Best Book of 2021 A Boston Globe Best Book of 2021 A New York Public Library Best Book of 2021 A Chicago Public Library Best Book of 2021 A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of 2021 A Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2021 A School Library Journal Best Book of 2021 A BookPage Best Book of 2021 "From stories to poetry and comics, Black Boy Joy has something for every type of reader ."— The New York Times Book Review ★ " Luminous . . . Filtering perennial subjects such as friendships, gender identity, and family through the lenses of magic, science, space travel, superheroes, and more, this is an exuberant celebration of carefree Black experiences ; while it will especially resonate with Black readers, any reader will appreciate how this genre-bending collection expands the horizons of what joy for Black boys can be."— Publishers Weekly , starred review ★ "This book is a must-have in every collection for its variety of topics and its celebration of Black boyhood in all its forms."— School Library Journal , starred review ★ "In a world where Black boys' stories are often tragedies, statistics, and stereotypes, this work surely reclaims ownership over the boldness, creativity, and wholeness they possess. " — Booklist , starred review ★ “ Some are humorous, some are poignant, but all are compelling reading... A unique, timely, and necessary read. ” — Kirkus Reviews, starred review ★ "This anthology for middle-graders is beautifully and unapologetically written , allowing anyone, regardless of age, sex or race, to feel a sense of pride and joy in being true to themselves."— Shelf Awareness, starred review “A book that in addition to celebrating joy reminds readers that getting excited and caring—about people, about stuff—is cool and rewarding .” — The Bulletin "Honest and fresh . . . Black Boy Joy is a treasure to share and return to again and again ."— BookPage Kwame Mbalia is a husband, father, writer, #1 New York Times bestselling author, and former pharmaceutical metrologist, in that order. He is the author of the Tristan Strong trilogy, the Last Gate of the Emperor duology, and Black Boy Joy —an anthology of 17 stories celebrating Black boyhood. His work has received numerous starred reviews and a Coretta Scott King Honor. A Howard University graduate and a Midwesterner now in North Carolina, Kwame survives on dad jokes and Cheez-Its. There’s Going to Be a Fight in the Cafeteria on Friday and You Better Not Bring Batman  By Lamar Giles  **Batman (perma-banned)**  Spider-Man  Captain America  Superman  War Machine  Wonder Woman  Thor  Iron Man  The Hulk  The Winter Soldier  The Flash  Wolverine  Doctor Strange  Thanos  Black Panther   The school bus squealed to a stop at the corner by Cornell’s house. Other kids from the neighborhood got off, but he was too busy rereading that stupid list to notice. Black Panther gone. Superman gone. The Hulk--  “Cornell!” Mr. Jeffries shouted from the driver’s seat. “You ain’t about to have me doubling back because you missed your stop again. Pay attention!”  “Sorry. Sorry.” Cornell scooted from his seat and brushed past his laughing schoolmates, including Amaya Arnold. Amaya was more giggling than laughing, and Cornell could tell she wasn’t being mean. Actually, her giggle was kind of pretty. Almost as pretty as her.  But he wasn’t brave enough to look her way too long, so his eyes wandered . . . to Tobin Pitts. Who was staring at him. Hard.  Tobin swiped his red bangs away from his eyes and freckled forehead. “Hope you’re ready.”  Cornell shook his head and exited the bus with that stupid list taking up the space in his head he’d rather reserve for Amaya.  But, unless she got superpowers before lunch tomorrow, she wasn’t going to be much help.    The cars in the driveway told Cornell everyone was home except Mom, who was still on the West Coast for her business trip. He weav