One Maryland One Book Discussion: Lawrence Burney | No Sense in Wishing
Be a part of Maryland's only statewide reading program!
Join the AOK Library & Gallery and Baltimore County Public Library for delicious refreshments and lively discussion of No Sense in Wishing: Essays on Black Music, Belonging, and Baltimore.
Visit the Library Circulation Desk to pick up your free copy of No Sense in Wishing while supplies last.
This year's One Maryland One Book selection is a personal and analytical look at culture critic Lawrence Burney's home city of Baltimore, music from throughout the global Black diaspora, and the traditions that raised him.
In a time when music is spurring Black Americans’ connection with Africans on the Continent, culture critic Lawrence Burney takes us on a journey from the streets of Baltimore to the concert halls of Lagos, reminisces on seeing his mother perform as the opening act of a Gil Scott-Heron show when he was a child, and sits at a Maryland crab feast with family, assessing how the Black people in his home state have historically improvised paths for their liberation. Burney explores these profound interactions with incisive and energizing prose, offering us a personal and critical perspective on the people, places, music, and art that transformed him.
No Sense in Wishing is a kaleidoscopic exploration of Burney’s search for self. With its gutsy and uncompromising criticism alongside intimate personal storytelling, this “powerful collection of essays” (Rolling Stone) is like an album that hits all the right notes, from a promising writer on the rise.
One Maryland One Book is sponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities, Institute of Museum and Library Services, Maryland State Library Agency, Deutsch Foundation, Baker Foundation, BGE An Exelon Company, and Baltimore County Commission on Arts and Sciences.
This event is open for full participation by all individuals regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, or any other protected category under applicable federal law, state law, and the University's nondiscrimination policy.