Books to Read: Black Women on Faith, Family, and Finances

On Our Radar: 10 Books on Faith, Family, and Finances by Black Women

There is nothing as beautiful as having the opportunity to read new books as they are released, and as 2021 draws to a close, you will not want to miss out on some of the bestselling books of the year, as well as books set to be released in 2022.

Whether you’re looking for books online or in bookstores, finding good books to read amid the thousands published every year can be a bit difficult. To save you some time, we have hand-picked 10 new, recent, or forthcoming books on faith, family, and finances. The 10 books on our radar this season feature life lessons, expert advice, and encouragement from women of all backgrounds and professions who share their stories and have had huge impacts on readers.

You can purchase any of these books with our affiliate partners, Amazon and Bookshop.org. Faithfully Magazine may earn a commission from the retailer when you make a purchase, which helps us cover operating expenses.

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Bamboozled By Jesus: How God Tricked Me Into the Life of My Dreams

By Yvonne Orji

Yvonne Orji’s Bamboozled by Jesus should be on your list if you’re looking for an excellent book with humor and honest talk about faith. Orji, a Nigerian-American Emmy-nominated actress (“Insecure”) and comedian takes readers on a twenty-five-lesson trip through her life as a Christian and entertainer. The book is described by the majority of her reviewers as realistic, honest, and transparent, with many tips on how to live a fulfilling Christian life.

Buy Bamboozled By Jesus at Amazon or Bookshop.org

Get Good with Money: Ten Simple Steps to Becoming Financially Whole

By Tiffany Aliche (The Budgetnista)

While reading the Bible and other Christian literature is important, we should also broaden our knowledge in other areas, particularly in areas that affect our daily life. As a Christian, our financial life is important, and Tiffany Aliche has written one of the best financial books to help readers achieve financial freedom. Aliche, dubbed “The Budgetnista,” is a financial expert and teacher who has won numerous awards. She claims to have changed the lives of “over one million women worldwide” through the Live Richer Academy, an online school she co-founded, and has now written a book called Get Good with Money to share the lessons she has learned about money. The book contains a ten-step process to help committed readers build wealth.

Buy Get Good with Money at Amazon or Bookshop.org

Woman Evolve: Break Up with Your Fears and Revolutionize Your Life

By Sarah Jakes Roberts

Sarah Jakes Roberts takes her readers through the life of Eve in her book Woman Evolve, showing them how she was able to find herself and rebuild her life despite her mistakes. Many women, like Eve, have made errors and lost themselves, but this book aims to show you how to forgive yourself, see yourself as God sees you, pursue a meaningful connection with God, care for yourself, and put the seed God planted in your heart into action. Woman Evolve teaches women how to use mistakes as a springboard for meaningful growth.

Buy Woman Evolve at Amazon or Bookshop.org.

Big, Bold, and Beautiful: Owning the Woman God Made You to Be

By Kierra Sheard-Kelly

We all need a little motivation from time to time to keep being who we are as Christians, and who better to get it from than Kierra Sheard-Kelly. The Grammy Award-nominated Christian singer has demonstrated in her debut book how big, bold, and beautiful she is. Every woman who wants to learn about body positivity, spiritual self-care, goal setting, and self-discovery, to mention a few topics, should read Big Bold and Beautiful. Black Christian women frequently struggle with cultural expectations and self-care, and this book addresses these and other challenges.

Buy Big, Bold, and Beautiful at Amazon or Bookshop.org

Checking In: How Getting Real about Depression Saved My Life—and Can Save Yours

By Michelle Williams

A transition from a depressed and anxious woman to a strong woman of God, Michelle Williams takes her readers through her healing process in the book, or what some would call Williams’s journal, Checking In. The Grammy award-winning artist’s amazing book is loaded with real talks for women who are struggling to regain their confidence and become who God made them to be, with a mix of humor and motivation.

Buy Checking In at Amazon or Bookshop.org.

Carved in Ebony: Lessons from the Black Women Who Shape Us

By Jasmine L. Holmes

Jasmine L. Holmes, known for her works about finding one’s identity as a Black person and a Christian, leads us on an educational tour about our African-American roots. She tells the stories of 10 Black Christian women (Elizabeth Freeman, Nannie Helen Burroughs, Maria Fearing, Charlotte Forten Grimké, Sarah Mapps Douglass, Sara Griffith Stanley, Amanda Berry Smith, Lucy Craft Laney, Maria Stewart, and Frances Ellen Watkins Harper) who shaped their generation. Not only in the church but also in society, these Black women were change agents. Every Black Christian woman and history enthusiast should read Carved in Ebony.

Buy Carved in Ebony at Amazon of Bookshop.org

In My Grandmother’s House: Black Women, Faith, and the Stories We Inherit

By Yolanda Pierce

Yolanda Pierce, dean of Howard University’s School of Divinity, takes readers on a journey through her grandmother’s experiences on a former cotton plantation and how she came to faith. Pierce’s experiences growing up in a Black church are also captured in In My Grandmother’s House, which is rich with truth and wisdom that will be relevant for generations to come. The author introduces the reader to womanist theology through her theological ideas in a poetic and conversational tone.

Buy In My Grandmother’s House at Amazon or Bookshop.org

Finding My Father: How the Gospel Heals the Pain of Fatherlessness

By Blair Linne

Many Christian authors share their personal stories through books, inspiring others to be hopeful about life. Blair Linne, who wrote the book Finding My Father, shares her tale of growing up without a father. Linne describes how readers looking for more from an earthly parent can turn to their Heavenly Father, who can provide them with more than enough. The book aims to assist believers in finding their church family and benefiting from the Heavenly Father’s care, love, protection, and wisdom. Shai Linne, a Christian hip-hop artist and Blair’s husband, has a chapter in Finding My Father that chronicles how his faith helped him amid an existence without his father.

Buy Finding My Father at Amazon or Bookshop.org

Fortune: How Race Broke My Family and the World—and How to Repair It All

By Lisa Sharon Harper

Lisa Sharon Harper has spent three decades researching her family’s history and ethnicity, and the result is a life-changing book that exposes the effects of racism in America. The Christian activist explains how America came to be, as well as the impact that decisions made at the time had on her family and others. This historical book aims to provide readers with solutions to a plethora of race-related questions as well as a path to atonement. “An introduction by Otis Moss III, illustrations, and a glossy eight-page black-and-white insert containing images of Harper’s family” are among the features of Fortune, according to the publisher.

Buy Fortune at Amazon or Bookshop.org

Just As I Am: A Memoir

By Cicely Tyson

Just As I Am, a title dubbed from an old gospel hymn, depicts the life of late Hollywood star Cicely Tyson. The actress died in January 2021 at the age of 96. In addition to chronicling the ups and downs of her career, Tyson had a lot to say about faith, friendship, and family in her bestselling book after living for nearly 10 decades. Just As I Am is the screen and stage star’s first-ever autobiography (written with story architect Michelle Burford), which was released just days before her death.

Buy Just As I Am at Amazon or Bookshop.org