The Black Book is a collage-like book compiled by Toni Morrison and published by Random House in 1974,[1] which explores the history and experience of African Americans in the United States[2][3] through various historic documents, facsimiles, artwork, obituaries, advertisements, patent applications, photographs, sheet music, and more.

'I was afraid that young people would come to believe that black history began in 1964,' she told an interviewer.

'"[5] The book was co-edited by Roger Furman, Middleton A. Harris, Morris Levitt, and Ernest Smith,[6] and features an introduction by Bill Cosby.

Morrison said it was important to include documents such as patents to demonstrate that African Americans were "busy, smart and not just minstrelized".

[1] In 2009, Random House published a 35th-anniversary edition of The Black Book,[9] containing Morrison's poem as the preface.