Would it surprise you to know that Black History Month, as we know it today, began in 1926 as "Negro History Week" and owes its existence to one overlooked African-American scholar? Indeed, Dr. Carter G. Woodson can be credited with not only the annual celebration, but the entire study of Black history. After earning his Ph.D. from Harvard, Dr. Woodson decided to take up the challenge of writing Black Americans into U. S. history. He established the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History, the Journal of Negro History, and in 1926, Negro History Week.

Ever wonder why Black History Month falls in February? Well, Dr. Woodson specifically chose the month because it marked the birthdays of the two men who most impacted the Black American population at the time: Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln.

Of course, recognition of achievement --- for artists, politicians, scholars, scientists, inventors, reactionaries, athletes, entertainers, and writers --- is the real driving force behind Black History Month. In celebration, Teenreads.com is paying tribute to Afro-centric literature with a roundup of new and notable books...