6 must-read Canadian nonfiction works for Black History Month 2019

These recent works of nonfiction by black Canadian authors help inform, illustrate and shape national viewpoints, truths and experiences.

I've Been Meaning to Tell YoubyDavidChariandy

InI've Been Meaning to Tell You,DavidChariandycontemplateshow to talk to his young daughter about the politics and history of race by sharing their family's story and his personal experience as the son of black and South Asian immigrants from Trinidad.Written in an epistolary format, Chariandy explores race and what it means to be a person of colour in North America.

Chariandy's novel Brotheris a contender for Canada Reads 2019.

• DavidChariandywrites his truth for his 13-year-old in his latest book

The Wife's TalebyAidaEdemariam

InThe Wife's Tale,Aida Edemariamrecords her grandmother Yetemegnu's long and storied life in Ethiopia. Yetemegnu was born in Gondar, married to an ambitious man before the age of 10 and grew into a spiritual and resilient woman. Over the stretch of her 97 years, Yetemegnu raised a family through violent fascist regimes, civil war and revolution.

The Wife's Talewasshortlisted for the2018 Governor General's Literary Award for nonfiction.

• How Aida Edemariam turned her grandmother's stories into a biography about 97 years in Ethiopia

They Call Me George by Cecil Foster

At the beginning of the 20th century, being a train porter in Canada was a job reserved for black men only. Cecil Foster documents this underreported piece of Canadian history in the nonfiction book They Call Me George. The tiring, thankless and low-paying job that consisted of hauling luggage, folding down beds, shining shoes and serving passengers forced these men to be separated from their families as they travelled thecountry. They Call Me George documents how one man, Stanley Grizzle, went from being a porter to leading a movement and eventually receiving the Order of Canada.

• The untold story of Canada's black train porters

Black Writers Matteredited by Whitney French

This anthology of blackCanadian writing from new and established writers aims to reflect the "everydayness" of living in Canada while being black. Edited and curated by Whitney French who was named a black Canadian writer to watch in 2019 by CBC Books the essays in Black Writers Matter tackle contemporary and pressing issues.

• Want to be a successful black writer in Canada? Whitney French has advice for you

Why Young Menby Jamil Jivani

Drawing on his experience growing up mixed-race and with an absent father, Jamil Jivani explores the socioeconomic and cultural forces that motivate young men to turn to violent radicalization and adopts a prescriptive approachgeared to provoke discussion and debate. Jivani, a lawyer, academic and speaker describes a combination of school, religion and community as a potential solution for society.

• The link between young men who join gangs and young men who join terror cells

Dear Current OccupantbyCheleneKnight

Through a series of letters and an unconventional mix of poetry and prose, CheleneKnight recalls growing up as the only mixed East Indian/black child in her family during the 1980s and 1990s in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. Her family lived in 20 different residences and Knight revisits each one, trying to deconstruct and understand her past while illustrating life as a black womanliving on the West Coast.

Dear Current Occupant won a Vancouver Book Award in 2018.

• WhyCheleneKnight wrote letters to the current occupants of all the houses she lived in growing up