Baltimore Living
Best Local Author
Larnell Custis Butler
This Afrocentric feminist deserves the nod for her tireless letters to the editors of local publications alone. But the incomparable, indubitable Larnell Custis Butler earns the title this year for her debut book, a nigh stunning collection of poetry as personality portraits complemented by her own drawings titled Improvise in the Amen Corner. Published via the University of Baltimore's Passager Books, the 65-year-old Butler's Improvise tells stories of people in Baltimore's African-American community and the community of her imagination through her lyrical, sometimes even magical, colloquial language. We can't wait for her follow-up.
Other Awards for Best Local Author:
Madison Smartt Bell, 9/21/2005
