Black Boy Joy

Black Boy Joy is a compilation of 17 authors’ short stories, poems, and comics, edited by Kwame Mbalia and published in 2021. Each selection contributes to the collection’s goal of portraying The Joys of Black Boyhood. The collection contains a wide variety of works by a range of authors, poets, and writers, and the stories contain aspects of realism and fantasy. While the stories are fictional, they are also deeply rooted in the authors’ real-life experiences. The works exemplify the essential relationship between loved ones and joy through the theme of The Pillars of Family and Friends. By showcasing Black families experiencing moments of joy, togetherness, and success, Black Boy Joy emphasizes The Impact of Representation on Self-Esteem for Black boys. It received the 2022 Kids’ Book Choice Award, was a Notable Book for a Global Society in 2022, and won the 2021 New York State Three Apples Award, among many other selections and awards.

This guide refers to the 2021 Penguin Random House edition.

Content Warning: The source material and guide feature depictions of death and child death.

Plot Summaries

“The Griot of Grover Street” bookends the collection in three parts. In this framing story, sorrow seems to surround Fortitude “Fort” Jones after his Aunt Netta dies. He meets a mysterious, magical man named Gary the Griot, who takes Fort to a place between worlds. There, they travel from world to world, collecting joy from each story they encounter in Black Boy Joy and placing it in a jar. Fort learns that without anger, sadness, and fear, he would not be able to understand or appreciate joy. After seeing each story and filling the jar, Gary the Griot retires, giving Fort his job. Fort becomes the new collector of joy, and his first task is to share his first jar with his new sibling, with whom his mother is pregnant. Fort learns that while there is sorrow in the world, there can also be joy.

In “There’s Going to Be a Fight in the Cafeteria on Friday and You Better Not Bring Batman,” Cornell takes advice from each member of his family and one friend to come up with the perfect superhero team. He uses the team to win a weekly debate at school. Cornell learns that everyone has their own version of a superhero and that he also has the power to create heroes of his own. He designs a character, Fan Girl, based on a girl he likes.

In “The McCoy Game,” Jamal and his cousin Dre have recently lost their grandfather, Big Mac. Big Mac left a mansion to his grandchildren, but only one of them will get it in the end. When the boys reach the mansion, a droid greets them. The droid leads the boys through a series of doors in the house, where challenges test their wit, strength, and teamwork. Jamal sings Motown songs to save Dre from a deadly breathworm. In the end, the boys discover that the key to the house was their own hands all along. One inherits the mansion, while the other is surprised with Big Mac’s extraordinary spaceship.

In “The Legendary Lawrence Cobbler,” Jevon hopes to win a baking competition to impress his father. He recently came out as gay and still is not sure how his father feels about it. Jevon’s G’Ma comes over to share her famous peach cobbler recipe, and the three generations spend the day baking, dancing, and talking together. When Jevon brings up a boy he likes, his father grows quiet. Distracted, Jevon accidentally adds chili powder to the recipe. When he has a chance to talk to his father, Jevon learns that his father accepts him as he is. When the cobbler is ready, Jevon’s father is the first to taste it, and it turns out to be delicious; Jevon has inadvertently created his own unique recipe.

In “First-Day Fly,” a boy puts together the perfect outfit for the first day of school. Even though the boy has not had many good experiences at school, he takes pride and joy in his appearance.

In “Got Me a Jetpack,” Rodney and his friends accidentally kick a soccer ball into a neighbor’s yard. When Rodney retrieves it, the neighbor calls him into her house to tell him that he is urgently needed in space. Rodney’s father is missing, and Rodney must take his place as a Sundasher, a space racer. Wearing a special hoodie, Rodney goes into space, where he receives a jetpack. When his mother radios him to say that his father has returned home, Rodney’s joy and self-esteem help him win the race.

In “Extinct,” Dylan’s mother recently died. One day, his sister, T, and her girlfriend, Laila, take Dylan to the Natural History Museum. There, Dylan is moved by the sight of the dodo, an extinct bird. The dodo reminds him of his mother and makes him cry, but it also reminds him that he still has many loved ones to lean on. The experience inspires Dylan to write a list of everything he remembers about his mother, which ultimately turns into a poem.

In “Epic Venture,” Wes goes on Grandpa’s last flight in his small plane. Grandpa flies Wes across land and over mountains, telling him stories about the war and teaching him how to fly the plane. Wes sees Grandpa as a hero and discovers that Grandpa feels the same way about him. Grandpa encourages Wes to hone his talents as an illustrator so that he can be successful in his own right.

In “The Definition of Cool,” Des and his brother, Roosevelt, go to a Juice Box Squad concert. Des dresses up like his favorite member, DJ Amplified. At the concert, everyone makes fun of the way he looks. Eventually, Des cannot take any more and breaks down. After talking to some older men who maintain their youthful spirit and then to his brother, Des finds the strength to return to the concert and just be himself. He dances, enjoying the moment, and even appears on the Jumbotron.

In “Five Thousand Light-Years to Home,” Keziah and his family move to a new apartment, but Keziah is angry about the change. While exploring the new building, he enters a service elevator that transports him to a spaceship. There, he and a girl named Adanna must solve puzzles to find their way back home. Working together, they succeed and are freed. They look forward to being friends in the future.

In “Coping,” CJ wakes up in the hospital after a skateboarding injury. While he’s in the hospital, the COVID-19 pandemic causes mass shutdowns around the world. After he heals, CJ’s friend Taye invites him to deliver food from the food bank to people in need. While riding their route on their skateboards, Taye jumps a stairwell that CJ finds too daunting. His shame over his fear and the stress of the pandemic lead him to stop delivering food bank meals. Eventually, CJ’s mother encourages him to fight through his fear by helping others, and CJ returns to the stairwell to try and make the landing.

In “The Gender Reveal,” Malcolm prepares for their 13th birthday by sewing the perfect outfit. They create a suit with a floral pattern, though they originally wanted to wear a suit-dress hybrid. Malcolm plans to come out as nonbinary, encouraged by Big Nanny, their best friend and grandmother. Big Nanny alters Malcolm’s outfit into the original suit-dress hybrid they wanted, giving them the courage to wear it and come out the following day. When they do so, Malcolm finds that their friends and family are fully supportive, and there is no shortage of love and joy to go around.

In “Kassius’s Foolproof Guide to Losing the Turkey Bowl,” everyone has a unique superpower, called a Fuerza. Kassius (Kash), whose Fuerza is opening portals, hopes to ask his crush, Maya, to the upcoming Kwanzaa ball. He and his friends play a rousing game of football, and Kash’s team wins. Afterward, he gives Maya a series of clues that lead her to a cake with the words “yes” and “no” on it. Realizing that Kash is asking her to the ball, Maya picks the “yes” side.

In “But Also, Jazz,” rapper Brandon is tasked with creating a song that will bring joy back into the church after a series of child deaths in the neighborhood. Brandon feels deep pressure and struggles to come up with words, so his cousin Mikkel offers to help him. When they find their mothers dancing to Earth, Wind, and Fire one day, they are inspired to write about the feeling of joy they get from music and being in harmony with family. They find comfort in the knowledge that they have each other’s support in times of grief.

In “Our Dill,” Jay and his best friend, Mia, go through a period of change. Jay is the school mascot, a pickle, and one day, he loses the mascot’s head. Mia comes to help him find it, but a new student, Will, ultimately locates it. Will asks Mia to an upcoming dance, and Mia agrees. Jay, who assumed that he and Mia would go together, finds it difficult to adjust. He asks another girl to the dance and has fun with her, but he and Mia decide to dance together by the end.

In “Percival and the Jab,” Percival and his family move from Trinidad to the United States. A Jab, or devil, follows him, constantly reminding him that he is leaving his home and culture behind. Percival resists but is tricked into befriending a soucouyant, or evil spirit, who disguises herself as a kind woman. The soucouyant tries to kill Percival’s Jab and consume Percival, but the Jab defends Percival and saves him. Percival calls upon the head devil to take the soucouyant back to Trinidad, where she belongs. Later, at a carnival, Percival meets several children, each of whom comes from a different country and has their own spirit creature.

In the short comic “Embracing My Black Boy,” Jerry Craft expresses the power of joy and positive representation for Black boys. He describes the importance of telling stories and sharing joy with others, as well as the need to overcome stereotypes and become one’s own hero.