By Reginald Williams,
Special to the AFRO
The Guilford Room at the Renaissance Baltimore Harborplace Hotel was packed on Feb. 4 with enthusiastic book lovers reconvening in person for dining and discussion after a two-year absence to celebrate Enoch Pratt Library’s 35th annual Black History Month Booklovers’ Breakfast.
More than 600 people, made up of book club members and aspiring authors, gathered to hear from the featured speaker, Walter Mosely, the critically acclaimed writer, who authored over sixty books, wrote, and produced several plays and television series. From the instant the Los Angeles, Calif., native graced the stage, he had the audience glued to his every word.
While Mosely fans were pleased with his presence, Mosely was equally pleased with theirs.
“This was a wonderful event,” explained Mosely. “It’s always great whenever you have readers who share a common history—it’s really wonderful. We had great conversation. There were a lot of interesting ideas and the sharing of ideas.”
In every question asked and answered, Mosely provided a story, nuanced and rich with nuggets of information. The patrons dined on a buffet of interests presented by Mosely. He revisited the history of his books, providing backstories to characters and plots. At times Mosely strolled back in time, retelling the history of America and its relationship with Black people and how that impacted his writings. And he shared concepts of what the future holds in the sci-fiction space.
“Science fiction writers are some of the smartest people,” Mosely said.
Mosely’s sci-fi proclamation was a breath of encouragement to Kymone Freeman, author of Nineveh: A Conflict of Water, a novel scheduled for release on March 22 recognized as World Water Day.
“I’m a big fan of Walter Mosely. He is a writer’s writer, probably one of the most prolific writers we have alive today,” explained Freeman. “He’s inspired me. He autographed a book [John Woman] to me, and it says ‘do.’ That happened when I was trying to finish a novel, and I’m here now because I have done that, and I wanted to be able to tell him that I did ‘do’ what I set out to do.”
Book clubs throughout Maryland attended the breakfast. One club recognized was SWIRL (She Who Reads Leads). Established in 2021, the Baltimore-based club comprised four members, Cecilia Stephens, LaTonya Anderson, Tonya Brown, and Tracy Green (not in attendance) were excited about their inaugural Booklovers’ Breakfast experience.
In unison, each member said the breakfast was “amazing.” “This is our first book club breakfast, and it’s really wonderful enjoying Walter Mosley,” shared Anderson.
Enoch Pratt in conjunction with Mahogany Books and the AFRO serves as sponsors for the event.
“Having a distinguished author like Walter Mosley at this year’s breakfast who started writing at 37 is a testament that it’s never too late to fulfill your dreams,” explained Will Johnson, manager for outreach and mobile services for Enoch Pratt Free Library, who provides free programs and resources to help the community fulfill their dreams.
The breakfast concluded with Mosely autographing copies of his books and taking pictures with his excited fans. “Signing autographs is the least of my work, but it’s the best,” concluded Mosely.
Reginald Williams, the author of “A Marginalized Voice: Devalued, Dismissed, Disenfranchised & Demonized” writes on Black men and Holistic Health concerns. Please email bookreggie@reginaldwilliams.org or visit amvonlinestore.com for more information.
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