I think this will end of being one of my top reads of the year. I knew I would love it, but I didn't realize how much I would LOVE it.

This was a wonderful collection of essays that also read like a memoir journeying Burney's life in Baltimore, but also his experiences in places like New York, South Africa, and Nigeria. These stories felt very introspective and thought provoking. and it was so great reading Burney's stories as grew up and the ways in which his mindset on life grew overtime. I especially loved this book because I grew up in the Baltimore area myself, so reading his stories felt so nostalgic and relatable. It's always a joy for me to read a book and be like "yes I know what they're talking about!" and even think back to moments and memories too. I also loved all the stories connecting to music (which was most of them LOL.) It was a bonus when essays brought music and Baltimore together.

I loved the picture that Burney painted of Baltimore as well. Although it is not without flaws, it is truly a great city with so much character and culture.I think that by reading a book like this one people could see really see that.

I think if you're from Baltimore (or even the DMV) you will really enjoy this book. I think that if you are from neither of these places you will still really enjoy this book.

Thank you so much to Atria for this e-arc.

Thank you so much to Lawrence Burney and Netgalley for sending over the advanced reader copy!

This essay collection made me discover my love for a new literary genre. Burney’s cultural critiques and ideas framed through snapshots into his life were truly impactful, and wonderfully written.

I eagerly await his future writing projects, and again appreciate the ARC offer!

This book is the beautiful journey of Lawrence Burney's experience growing up in Baltimore.

I loved the thread of music throughout his essays and rawness he brings to his life situations.

I've followed Lawrence Burney's writing (and personality, via social media) online for nearly a decade now. Though we've never met, he has always felt like a friend in the ways that people would make genuine friendships via online communities in the early aughts. But when I saw he was writing this book, I genuinely didn't know what to expect.

No Sense in Wishing is a fresh take on memoir that probably won't but should come with a soundtrack (or playlist). It is a collection of personal essays that ultimately reveal how the music he's listened to has shaped him—whether he loved it or not. But it's also a really unique spin on a coming-of-age tale. And I think this work might be just as engaging for young Black boys growing up in Baltimore or the DMV as people like me: middle-aged Black women from the Bay Area.

Burney laces the pages with a blend of prose and slang through sentence structures that prove his journalistic merits are well deserved. While so much of this book is Burney recollecting on the role music has played throughout his life, there are elements of it that feel like an investigative journalist report. It's not just that Burney *felt* a particularly way about a song or artist, he digs deeper to understand what the rest of the world was feeling about that same song or artist at the same time. It's a memoir, it's personal, but it also can be seen as a history lesson.

And just like what made me follow him all those years ago, there's great song recommendations in here too. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

I enjoyed this collection. I liked getting to read about Burney's experiences and broader experiences of cultural moments and societal experiences. Overall, reading this book felt very nostalgic, and I think the writing was beautiful.

Overall I really enjoyed this collection of personal essays. I felt it really shined when Burney was at his most introspective and tied his experiences with music to significant moments in his life. I wasn't as drawn in to the essays that covered broader scopes or were more analytical of cultural movements. He excels at giving a look at life growing up in Baltimore that relates to the familiar cultural references but gives a fuller more "real" picture. There is a lot of beautiful nostalgia and appreciation for where he grew up and as a reader it made me do the same. 4 stars, would recommend!

No Sense in Wishing is a collection of essays by journalist Lawrence Burney about his home town of Baltimore.

Lawrence reflects on his upbringing, with a heavy influence of music throughout. He writes about black culture in Baltimore. He details about his visit to Africa, significant to his story because of both his roots & his passion for music. He talks about the fond memories he associates with the smell of a seafood boil.

He also discusses deliberate systematic changes intended to further the socioeconomic gap, and other struggles that Black Americans face due to the racism weaved into the fabric that the United States was founded on.

No Sense in Wishing invites the reader to witness Baltimore from Burney’s perspective, using both his personal and journalistic experience. His passion for music is palpable throughout the book. For me, a person of pallor, his essays opened my eyes to a perspective other than my own privileged lived experiences.

As a music lover, and a somewhat recent dweller of the DMV, I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this book. Lawrence is someone I have followed for years through his publication True Laurels and that great and visual writing that he captures is shown throughout this book. I loved learning about Baltimore through his lens, loved seeing how much of the same music I love has shaped him, and more. I think this book would be great for anyone who loves music--and hip hop specifically, and also anyone who wants to be touched by what they read. I loved it!

wow i started this last night and could not stop reading. such a touching, gut wrenching collection of essays. absolutely heartbreaking. while some were uplifting, most were so relatable and so upsetting because of how the world works. i'm so happy i picked this up randomly. thank you netgalley for the arc!