{"product_id":"no-sense-in-wishing-by-lawrence-burney-9781668051863","title":"No Sense in Wishing","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eA BEST BOOK OF 2025: \u003ci\u003eThe New Yorker\u003c\/i\u003e • \u003ci\u003eVulture\u003c\/i\u003e • \u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\n\u003cb\u003e“Earnest and engaging.” —\u003ci\u003eThe New Yorker\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e“Among the most profound and dazzling debuts I've ever read.” —Kiese Laymon, award-winning author of \u003ci\u003eHeavy: An American Memoir\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAn essay collection from culture critic Lawrence Burney that is a personal and analytical look at his home city of Baltimore, music from throughout the global Black diaspora, and the traditions that raised him.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThere are moments throughout our lives when we discover an artist, an album, a film, or a cultural artefact that leaves a lasting impression, helping inform how we understand the world, and ourselves, moving forward. In \u003ci\u003eNo Sense in Wishing\u003c\/i\u003e, Lawrence Burney explores these profound interactions with incisive and energising prose, offering us a personal and critical perspective on the people, places, music, and art that transformed him.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn a time when music is spearheading Black Americans’ connection with Africans on The Continent, Burney takes trips to cover the bubbling creative scenes in Lagos and Johannesburg that inspire teary-eyed reflections of self and belonging. Seeing his mother perform as the opening act at a Gil Scott-Heron show as a child inspires an essay about parent-child relationships and how personal taste is often inherited. And a Maryland crab feast with family facilitates an assessment of how the Black people in his home state have historically improvised paths for their liberation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTaking us on a journey from the streets of Baltimore to the concert halls of Lagos, \u003ci\u003eNo Sense in Wishing\u003c\/i\u003e is a kaleidoscopic exploration of Burney’s search for self. With its gutsy and uncompromising criticism alongside intimate personal storytelling, it’s like an album that hits all the right notes, from a promising writer on the rise.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Simon \u0026 Schuster NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47344342302956,"sku":"9781668051863","price":41.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/1b41422c74287a206442c48e586c8266.jpg?v=1772311722","url":"https:\/\/bookhero.co.nz\/products\/no-sense-in-wishing-by-lawrence-burney-9781668051863","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}