onward

This space was created to support and celebrate the work of Black female authors, a group that has historically been under-supported and under-promoted in the publishing industry (and of course the world beyond). The mission is to share with readers — and your book clubs — important voices both established and emerging, and the vital stories they tell in various genres about where we come from, who we are, and where we are heading.

Here’s how it works: I announce our bimonthly selection on my Instagram page, and we meet there a few weeks later for a live discussion with the author. You can find past videos on Instagram and on this website. These conversations have been at turns inspiring, thought-provoking, surprising, weighty, and hilariously funny. 

How do you become a member of the Onward Book Club? Just read along with us! Done. As you read, you may find that you have a comment or question for the author: you can post those under the announcement of the book club selection as we await the live interview.

I hope that you will share our selections with your own book clubs, and use the resources posted on this website, as well as questions brought up in the posted conversations, as a toolkit for your own study of the works of the brilliant women featured here.

It has been a joy and an honor to be in conversation with such extraordinary, talented writers and thinkers. And I’m thrilled that you are here to join us. Onward!

Elizabeth Gilbert

As always, I encourage you to buy your books from Black-owned businesses. The official bookstore of the Onward Book Club is Elizabeth’s Bookshop and Writing Centre, owned by the writer, speaker, educator, and activist Rachel Cargle. Below each selection on the following pages, you will find a link to purchase the selected book directly from Elizabeth’s. Thank you.