#dwatkins

SUNDAY SPOTLIGHT! Let’s go. A great big dose of thanks to @legacylitbooks for gifting me an ARC of Black Boy Smile. And it is our featured book in the SUNDAY SPOTLIGHT. I’ve always liked D. Watkins from his first book and now his memoir in moments, which is masterful in moments. I wrote ✍🏿 D. Watkins takes you inside his East Baltimore community and gives you a real unflinching representation of what he faced in those streets. All the horrors of drugs and the collateral damage done by the presence of an unchecked culture where violence is more the norm than the exception. D. Watkins writes with an emotional bent that easily allows the reader to feel. Really feel. That’s D. Watkins’ super power. It’s not all doom and gloom here, there are some moments that bring levity to the page and humanizes the community. It’s important to have these stories told, because of the potential for inspiration and in-depth information. It’s always much more impressive and important when you get the story of a community from a loving, knowing native! D. Watkins is a chronicler that the reader can trust. Well done! #dwatkins #ownvoicesreviews #bookpusher #pushingbooksainteasy #bookreviewer #bookstagram #blackbooksmatter #blackbibliophile #bibliophile #goodblackreads #legacylit #readmorebooks #makereadinglitagain #booksarelove #readologist #houstonreads #booksbooksbooks #bookblogger (at Houston, Texas) https://www.instagram.com/p/CfRTrj6LDNY/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Young writers and photographers of Baltimore @bydvnlln and @dwatkinsworld will be teaching a master class. #thecookup #DWatkins (at Jubilee Arts Baltimore)

#Repost @bydvnlln with @repostapp ・・・ #Repost @yahdon with @repostapp ・・・ "Those people out marching for Gray's justice weren't career activists or professional protestors, no--they were hurt, disenfranchised Black people who constantly feel robbed by the system, just like Devin Allen. Devin's role was more than that of a photographer, he was a liaison between his people and the rest of the word, and you can feel the compassion in his photos. They aren't cheap and explorative, they capture the love, pain, togetherness, and humanity that exists with the Black community or what he calls--A Beautiful Ghetto. . . Devin doesn't use his fame and success as a shield to separate him from his origins, but as a tool to uplift people with backgrounds similar to his, by collecting hundreds of cameras and giving away free lessons and shows to future Devin Allens all over Baltimore city. Devin lives and works in the community that raised him and uses his connections and skills to expose young people to the redemptive power of art--and that's how you prevent the next Freddie Gray from happening." Now I see what my g @bydvnlln meant when he told me @dwatkinsworld put him up in the opening. I never bothered to ask D. if his name was just "D." or if it stood for anything else. This could be my way of finally him asking that question. But based on what I just read in the opening--and shared here, I'd wager that the "D." in Watkins' name means "Damn." ✊🏾 #literaryswag #abeautifulghetto #devinallen #dwatkins #baltimore #damn #pubday #june13th #haymarketbooks

If you haven't read either of these books yet the homie @dwatkinsworld has 2 #newyorktimesbestsellers that were released 7 months apart and both are in paperback now! Go out & cop both of them now! #dwatkins #thecookup #thebeastside #reading #ddh #baltimore

The homie @dwatkinsworld dropped his memoir today.... ✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉 #dwatkins #dwightwatkins #thecookup #baltimore #perseverance

Check out @dwatkinsworld's Tweet! He gave me a shout out for his pages in Creatives of Color! So awesome!

It is time. #dwatkins #thebeastsidelivinganddyingwhileblackinamerica "This is the first book to capture our post-Obama reality in all its maddening, and occasionally inspiring, complexity. It must be read by Americans of all colors and all social backgrounds - by anyone who bleeds for our country and prays for its deliverance." -David Talbot (at Houston, Texas)

It's time. #dwatkins #thebeastside (at Houston, Texas)