By Brooks Welch

Today is National Read Across America Day. In celebration, here’s five books written by contemporary Black authors that you should check out:

“How Stella Got Her Groove Back” by Terry McMillan

“How Stella Got Her Groove Back” is full of Terry McMillan’s signature humor, heart, and insight. More than a love story, it is ultimately a novel about how a woman saves her own life—and what she must risk to do it.”

“The Vanishing Half” by Brit Bennett

“From The New York Times-bestselling author of The Mothers, a stunning new novel about twin sisters, inseparable as children, who ultimately choose to live in two very different worlds, one black and one white.”

“Such a Fun Age” by Kiley Reid

“A striking and surprising debut novel from an exhilarating new voice, Such a Fun Age is a page-turning and big-hearted story about race and privilege, set around a young black babysitter, her well-intentioned employer, and a surprising connection that threatens to undo them both.”

“Memorial” by Bryan Washington

“A funny and profound story about family in all its strange forms, joyful and hard-won vulnerability, becoming who you’re supposed to be, and the limits of love.”

“The Water Dancer” by Ta-Nehisi Coates

“This is the dramatic story of an atrocity inflicted on generations of women, men, and children—the violent and capricious separation of families—and the war they waged to simply make lives with the people they loved. Written by one of today’s most exciting thinkers and writers, The Water Dancer is a propulsive, transcendent work that restores the humanity of those from whom everything was stolen.”

Check out more on Penguin Random House’s site. Descriptions courtesy of Penguin Random House.