''Black Issues Book Review'' was a bimonthly magazine published in New York City, U.S., in which books of interest to

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

readers were reviewed. It was published from 1999 until 2007.

History and profile

''Black Issues Book Review'' was founded in late 1998 by William E. Cox, Adrienne Ingrum, and Susan McHenry. Cox had been the publisher of ''Black Issues in Higher Education'', which ran a single book review in each issue. He wanted to expand its coverage of books, but after considering the large number of books aimed at Black readers, he came to the conclusion that a new magazine would be more appropriate. Ingrum was a book industry veteran, with nearly 20 years of experience in publishing and book-selling. McHenry had served in editorial positions at several magazines, including '' Black Enterprise'', ''

Essence Essence () has various meanings and uses for different thinkers and in different contexts. It is used in philosophy and theology as a designation for the property (philosophy), property or set of properties or attributes that make an entity the ...

'', and '' Ms.'' ''

Library Journal ''Library Journal'' is an American trade publication for librarians. It was founded in 1876 by Melvil Dewey. It reports news about the library world, emphasizing public libraries, and offers feature articles about aspects of professional prac ...

'' named ''Black Issues Book Review'' one of the 10 best new magazines of 1998. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' reported that the magazine sold 40,000 copies of each issue in 2000. By 2004, according to ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

'', ''Black Issues Book Review'' had circulation of 75,000. In 2005, ''Black Issues Book Review'' entered into a partnership with QBR The Black Book Review, a quarterly book review founded in 1992 by Max Rodriguez, whose publishers also managed an annual book fair in Harlem. ''QBR'' was merged into ''Black Issues Book Review''. Target Market News purchased ''Black Issues Book Review'' in March 2006. Later that year, Target Market News announced that it would begin publishing ''Blacks & Books'', a monthly supplement for newspapers such as the '' New York Amsterdam News'' and the '' Philadelphia Tribune'' that serve African-American readers. ''Blacks & Books'' was to be produced by members of the ''Black Issues Book Review'' staff. The September–October 2007 issue of ''Black Issues Book Review'' was its final issue.

Notes

External links

William Cox talks about ''Black Issues Book Review''
C-Span, June 1, 2001. * Troy Johnson
"What Happened to the Best African American Literary Magazines?"
AALBC.com, November 28, 2011. {{African American press African-American magazines Book review magazines published in the United States Bimonthly magazines published in the United States Defunct literary magazines published in the United States Magazines established in 1999 Magazines disestablished in 2007 Magazines published in New York City Newspaper supplements 1999 establishments in New York City