Mid-Sentence | She Would Be King: Wayetu Moore with Isaac Fitzgerald

Blending fantasy and reality, the foundation of the Republic of Liberia retold.

In her debut novel, Wayétu Moore uses historical fact and magical realism to weave together an unforgettable retelling of the formation of Liberia, a West African colony of freed African-Americans looking for liberty. Told from the perspective of three distinguished characters—Gbessa, an accused witch, June Dey, an escaped Virginia slave with superhuman strength, and Norman Aragon, a biracial man who can fade from sight at will—who, upon finally meeting in the Liberian settlement of Monrovia, realize how to harness their special gifts to ease the tension between the African American settlers and the native African indigenous tribes.

Wayétu Moore is the founder of One Moore Book, a children's book publishing company whose goal is to provide culturally sensitive and educational stories for children living in regions with low literacy rates and underrepresented cultures. Moore  will be joined in conversation by Isaac Fitzgerald, currently a writer for Buzzfeed as well as the author of the essay collection Dirtbag, Massachusetts.

Mid-Sentence presents a series of conversations with groundbreaking literary voices. Indie authors and cult favorites explore the intersections between literature and lived experience.

ASL interpretation and real-time (CART) captioning available upon request. Please submit your request at least two weeks in advance by emailing accessibility@nypl.org.