Phoenix hosts Black Children’s Book Week

From February 22 to March 1, 2026, the second annual Black Children’s Book Week will take place in Phoenix. The weeklong celebration helps highlight local Arizona Black authors and their contributions to children’s literature. The event aims to engage local students, families and communities in the transformative power of storytelling.

The Black Children’s Book Week will focus on early literacy and Black representation with events, author visits and community storytelling. The event will include a partnership with the Great Arizona Puppet Theater for a final performance.

During the week and beyond, look for story times, author spotlights and book fairs happening across Arizona, celebrating Black joy and literature.

Dr. Neal Lester, founding director of Project Humanities at Arizona State University, and Erica Maxwell, chair of Black Children’s Book Week Phoenix 2026, joined “Arizona Horizon” to discuss the events.

It’s “a celebration of literacy and stories about and by Black people,” Dr. Lester said, “but their stories are not just about and for Black people; they’re for everybody. But they come from a very specific place culturally, linguistically, to remind people that diversity doesn’t have to be a bad word.”

After the inaugural celebration last year, Maxwell explained she learned about the love of literacy and the strength of the community.

“Literacy and being able to read really allows people to discuss literacy in different topics around literacy,” Maxwell said, “to dream, to discover; it’s about the readiness, engaging activities and again, how do we discuss and engage students around.”

Maxwell emphasized how vital Black representation is in these stories, as it’s about reflection and narratives other people can relate to.

“It’s also not just about the Black experience, but all the experiences that people may experience from our perspective,” Maxwell explained.