Brilliant Black British History
Atinuke and Kingsley Nebechi
Bloomsbury Children’s Books

I wonder how many people know that the first humans in Britain were Black. Migrating from other parts of the world, around 12,000 years ago, they had dark skin, lived in Britain for 7,500 years before the first white Britons came and built Stonehenge and brought farming.

After introducing these first migrants, readers are taken through the Romans, Tudors, Georgians, Victorians, the World Wars, all the way up to the Windrush generation, the colour bar, colonial independence and current Black British culture. Something I discovered was that Dr Charles Drew, a Black American who came to help Britain in World War 2, invented a way to store and ship blood. This saved the lives a thousands of sick and injured Britons, and still does today.

Skilfully interweaving British and world history, the author doesn’t shy away from difficult topics such as slavery

and colonialism, dealing with them frankly.

There’s a spread highlighting Black heroes from World War One, another presenting Black people who make Britain Great, a look at contemporary Black British culture

and there’s a final page on Black Lives Matter, reminding us that there is still work to do to fight racism.

WIth effective use of a variety of layouts, this excellent book is beautifully illustrated by Kingsley Nebechi; it’s informative, eye-opening and a must for every school library.