Since September is National Library Card Sign-up Month, I thought I'd share a bit of information I discovered when looking into the magic that is non-resident library cards 😊

Unfortunately this information is only for my fellow US readers, but if you're outside the US I encourage you to look into whether there's anything similar available for you!

Current libraries I have found offer library cards to non-residents (unless noted, there is an annual fee for the card).

• Central Arkansas Library System
• Enoch Pratt Free Library, Maryland
• Fairfax County Public Library, Virginia
• Los Angeles Public Library - Must apply in person
• Monroe County Library System, Michigan - Accepts non-US residents
• New Orleans Public Library
• Orange County Library System - Accepts non-US residents
• Queens Public Library - Accepts non-US residents
• Queer Liberation Library – FREE for all (even non-US residents!), only an email address is required to register!
• Seattle Public Library: Books Unbanned – FREE for young adults aged 13 to 26 living in the US!

***EDIT: one_crazy_eliott let me know that Books Unbanned also has branches in Brooklyn, Boston, San Diego, and Los Angeles and you can apply for any/all of their cards here!

Have you read any of the books recommended at the end? I have The New Jim Crow and How the Word is Passed on my TBR.

Books Black Booksellers Want Everyone to Read

Black booksellers always have a reading recommendation. Over the years, I’ve asked them about the books they consider essential reading—their lists were long and diverse. But two books came up most, The Autobiography of Malcolm X and The Mis-Education of the Negro. Here are ten books Black booksellers want everyone to read:

• The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Malcolm X and Alex Haley
• The Mis-Education of the Negro by Carter G. Woodson
• The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
• 100 Years of Lynching by Ralph Ginzburg
• Assata: An Autobiography by Assata Shakur
• Beloved by Toni Morrison
• How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America by Clint Smith
• How Europe Underdeveloped Africa by Walter Rodney
• Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
• The Price of the Ticket by James Baldwin