I can’t afford hardcover books on a non-profit director’s salary, but I like to read and I read often (mostly on the train and the toilet).  So what I do is buy paperbacks, go to the library, and I trade when possible.  One of the authors I read frequently is Walter Mosley, one of the most talented, successful, and prolific writers in the country who just so happens to be black.

I recently finished devouring his latest paperback offering, Cinnamon Kiss and as usual I was not dissapointed.  It’s an “Easy Rawlins” mystery and he is one of the best protagonists in fiction, in my humble opinion.  Why is this relevant to being a dad?  As a dad I find myself waving like a giddy child to my colleagues, learning the names of cartoon heroes, and saying things like “I’m pooped.”  I’m taking on some of my son’s cuter behaviors, which is scary and weird for a 210 pound black guy. 

To feel like a hardcore dude again I read Mosley.  Not Seuss.  In Kiss there was sex, beautiful women, alcohol, murder, and a loving dad fighting to save the life of his young daughter.  That’s good reading!  I often picture myself as the cool-as-hell private detective Easy Rawlins and it’s a fun distraction from potty training and coloring.  Any dad that spends a good amount of time with his children needs time to do adult things and a good mystery works for me. Â