Black Books Matter Fest returns to MahoganyBooks with a lineup of award-winning authors

The Black Books Matter Fest will return to National Harbor on Saturday Aug. 1. The third annual event, created by MahoganyBooks, brings together local vendors, more than 50 authors and thousands of book lovers to celebrate the richness and diversity of Black literature.

The free event runs from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and will feature author panel discussions, children’s story times, family activities, on-site library card sign-up with the Prince George’s County Library, and a DJ.

This year’s lineup boasts prominent award-winning authors, including 1619 Project creator Nikole Hannah-Jones, popular self-help and mindfulness author Alex Elle, and acclaimed crime fiction author S.A. Cosby.

MahoganyBooks cofounder and owner Derrick Young is most excited about hosting a conversation with Cosby, whose novel “King of Ashes” was featured on Barack Obama’s 2025 favorite books list.

“The brother is bad. Just plain and simple,” Young said. “His books, in addition to being great works of mystery thriller — books that live in the tradition of Walter Mosley — the other thing that he does is center Black folk in small-town America.”

Ramunda Lark Young, the shop’s other cofounder, said the festival gives Black writers a platform to amplify their work and connect with their peers while offering book lovers a space to celebrate.

“The festival was kind of our love letter to the community, to our readers, to do that and have joy,” Lark Young said. “Especially right now, joy is so needed in the political landscape that we’re in.”

The pair founded MahoganyBooks online in 2007 to amplify works written for, by or about people of the African Diaspora. They opened their first brick-and-mortar store in D.C. in 2017 before expanding to National Harbor in July 2021.

Lark Young estimates that more than 5,000 people attended the festival last year, and is expecting an even bigger turn out this year. For Young, the anticipated turnout affirms his belief that publishers should invest more in Black authors across all genres.

“There’s this terrible stereotype and joke about Black folks and reading and literature and books that is just so inaccurate,” Young said. “I think this is a huge statement against this terrible idea that Black folk don’t read. … People are looking for it everywhere: romance, sci-fi, all the different genres.”

That investment is already paying off for local voices like Prince George’s County native Shanti Edwards (whose real name is Karla Talley). An attorney by trade, Edwards won Laurel’s Next Bestseller Competition hosted by Laurel-based, Black-woman-owned publisher Quill & Company.

Just last year, Edwards waited in line for hours as a fan to meet author Kennedy Ryan. This year, she’ll be signing her own debut romance novel, “Love in the Key of Black,” a collection of short stories that celebrates love through music and features two stories set in the DMV with nods to go-go music.

“The title itself of the festival, Black Books Matter, just kind of a shout to the world, to the community that our voices matter,” Edwards said.

Cecelia Dowdy, another local author who will be featured at the festival, has been writing Christian romance novels for more than 30 years and has published more than a dozen books.

Since she was a little girl, Dowdy said she always had her nose in a book. She got hooked on romance novels as a young teen and started writing her own in her 20s.

“I would ride the Metro to work, and during my lunch break, I would always read a book,” Dowdy said. “One day, I forgot my book. It was lunchtime, and normally at lunchtime I read a book, and I didn’t have one, so I took out a pen and paper and I started writing, and I’ve been writing ever since.”

Dowdy will turn 60 at the end of July. Her latest book, “The Blacksmith’s Bride,” is a historical romance novel with mystery and suspense.

As Young and Lark Young look forward to the festival, they hope for a little grace for the team working behind the scenes.

“This is a big festival,” Lark Young said. “This is our third year, and it just grew exponentially. Our team has been working hard on logistics behind the scenes just to make this an amazing day.”

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