Happy 2026! We’re Deep into the Year can you believe it!
Yes, I dropped out of the final book club I was attending 🙋🏾♀️. I like can’t this year…. Being told what to read and everyone reading it I totally get can be a jam. I think about some podcasters who talk about years and years of attending and gathering as book club attendees. That is beautiful! For a rebel-hearted person like me, 👀
Not me, not this era. A Friend and I talk about having our own book club with cookies, and just talk about the books we are reading, no mandates necessary…. that sounds divine!
Does that count as a book club? I think we may just break that mold 😄.
Reading truly is Bibliotherapy for me. If you want to learn more about this self care practice, take a peek here ⬇️.
This year, I decided to dedicate my list to Black Authors I believe bring the 🔥 to my reading. A few things I kept in mind as I built my list:
- I wanted to dedicate this list to Black Authors because I’ve recently been so inspired.
- The quality of writing, at times has enraptured my attention brought joy even in dark times….
- This list is not exhaustive of what I will read this year.
- I read between 75-90 books a year depending on my schedule.
- I read both physical and audiobooks.
- My favorite genres are:
- Nnarrative cookbooks, historical fiction, autobiographies, cupcake mysteries, and cozy romance.
- I like to sleep at night miss me with the horror 😅.
- I’m also not joining my Son’s new genre true crime. Again…. sleep is necessary!
- Lastly, I’m limiting this list to 9 or this post would be never-ending.
- Some authors I will be reading multiple books of, so I’m just picking the one in their catalogue I’m most excited about.
Charity Morgan… Unbelievably Vegan
In her first cookbook, Charity lays out a plan for anyone who wants to eat less meat—whether they are looking to go completely vegan or just be a little bit more meat-free.
I chose this book as I gave up dairy (particularly cheese) for lent. Hoping to get some great tips!
Pulling inspiration from her Puerto Rican and Creole heritage as well as from the American South, where she lives with her family, Charity’s recipes are full of flavor. Think Smoky Jambalaya; hearty Jerk-Spiced Lentils with Coconut Rice & Mango Salsa; Jalapeño-Bae’con Corn Cakes with Chili-Lime Maple Syrup; and a molten, decadent Salted Caramel Apple Crisp.
Angela Flournoy The Wilderness
Desiree, January, Monique, and Nakia are in their early twenties and at the beginning of their careers, of marriage, of motherhood, and of big-city lives in New York and Los Angeles. Together, they are finding their way through the wilderness, that period of life when the reality of contemporary adulthood—overwhelming, mysterious, and full of freedom and consequences—swoops in and stays.
Terry McMillan How Stella Got Her Groove Back
Stella Payne is forty-two, divorced, a high-powered investment analyst, mother of eleven-year-old Quincy- and she does it all. In fact, if she doesn’t do it, it doesn’t get done, from Little League carpool duty to analyzing portfolios to folding the laundry and bringing home the bacon. She does it all well, too, if her chic house, personal trainer, BMW, and her loving son are any indication. Is it time to find love?
This is my year of re-reading the classics! Can’t wait to dive into this one.
Kennedy Ryan…. Can’t Get Enough
This book takes us through the life of Hendrix Barry who lives a fabulous life. She has phenomenal friends, a loving family, and a thriving business that places her in the entertainment industry’s rarefied air. Your vision board? She’s probably living it. She’s a woman with goals, dreams, ambitions—always striving upward. And in the midst of everything, she’s facing her toughest challenge yet: caring for an aging parent. Who has time for romance? From her experience, there’s a low ROI on relationships. Anyway, she hasn’t met the man who can keep up with her. Until…him.
She explains her writing process and developing characters on this podcast episode. Very cool listen.
William M Banks… Black Intellectuals
Black Intellectuals offers a centuries-deep analysis of black life. Author William Banks goes on to discuss prominent figures ranging from black pioneers like Alexander Crummell, Frederick Douglass, and Anna Cooper to intellectuals of the modern age such as W. E. B. Du Bois, Alain Locke, E. Franklin Frazier, Toni Morrison, and Henry Louis Gates, Jr. These and hundreds of other black scholars and artists―many of them interviewed for this volume―people an enlightened and imaginative landscape, fascinating for both its range and its diversity.
Malcolm Gladwell…. I Hate The Ivy League
Malcolm Gladwell has long relished the opportunity to skewer the upper echelons of higher education, from the institution of U.S. News & World Report’s Best College rankings to the LSATs to the luxe Bowdoin College cafeteria.
I Hate the Ivy League: Riffs and Rants on Elite Education, upends the traditional thinking around how education should work and tries to get to the bottom of why we often reward the wrong people. The higher education system follows a hierarchy that was created to primarily benefit top-tier, elite, well-off students, but Gladwell wants to find out how we can do a better job at educating the middle and make education more affordable, fair, and open to all.
As a Mom of a high schooler, this book will be clutch as we value the merits of Ivy Leagues for our young scholar. Given I’ve chosen this book, I think you can imagine where we stand… Oh and we are also staunch public school supporters! 😉
Rachel Rodgers…. We Should All Be Millionaires
Only 10 percent of the world’s millionaires are women, making it difficult for women to wield the economic power that will create lasting equality. Whatever is stopping you from having seven figures in the bank—whether it’s shaky confidence, knowledge gaps when it comes to wealth building tactics, imposter syndrome, a janky mindset about money (it’s okay, we’ve all been there!), or simply not knowing where to begin—this book shows you how to clear every obstacle in your way, show up, and glow up.
Wealth building is high on my list this year. Looking forward to diving into this book.
Jessica B Harris….. Iron Pots and Wooden Spoons
Cajun, Creole, and Caribbean dishes all have their roots in the cooking of West and Central Africa; the peanuts, sweet potatoes, rice, cassava, plantains, and chile pepper that star in the cuisines of New Orleans, Puerto Rico, and Brazil are as important in the Old World as they are in the New World.
In Iron Pots and Wooden Spoons, esteemed culinary historian and cookbook author Jessica Harris returns to the source to trace the ways in which African food has migrated to the New World and transformed the way we eat. From condiments to desserts, Harris shares more than 175 recipes that find their roots and ingredients in Africa, from Sand-roasted Peanuts to Curried Coconut Soup, from Pepper Rum to Candied Sweet Potatoes, from Beaten Biscuits to Jamaica Chicken Run Down, from Shortening Bread to Ti-Punch.
Enticing recipes, a colorful introduction on the evolution of transported African food, information on ingredients from achiote to z’oiseaux and utensils make this culinary journey a tantalizing, and satisfying, experience.
I don’t think I have to explain why I chose this book haha, great material for future teaching kitchen classes!
Judith Davis….. 7 Whispers From My Heart to Yours
Be prepared to make this book messy! Seventeen months into my personal wellness journey, a lightbulb hit. The 7 dimensions of health model, is an ongoing journey, not a destination. So, I chose to create the journal I wish I had. Elevating your health helps everyone in your life. This journal is filled with “quick read” nuggets and easy to follow templates that will help you swag and sway between each health dimension attuned to personal harmony. When we don’t, that’s when the body keeps score. Some of these lessons were hard fought, many laughter was involved. Take a walk with me and listen to the Whispers!
Happy Reading!
J
We’re Holding A Whispers Reading Retreat!!
✨ The Cozy Reading Retreat | Winter 2026— at a Cozy Indiana AirBNB
Imagine this…
Snow falling outside.
Warm tea in your hands.
A quiet room full of women reading, reflecting, and resting.
The Cozy Whispers Reading Retreat is coming Winter 2026, an intimate gathering designed for women who crave space to slow down, read deeply, and reconnect with themselves.
This isn’t just a getaway.
It’s restoration.
It’s reflection.
It’s rooted rest.
If your spirit whispered “I need that”…
Join the interest list now.
Be the first to receive dates, location details, and early registration access.
Spots will be limited.
Cozy is intentional.
➡️ Join the list here: https://heartwhispers.cafe/subscribe/