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rabidcat's review against another edition
informative
reflective
slow-paced
4.75
before reading this book, i truly only knew james baldwin in fragments. mentions of him in other bodies of work, and in quotes shared around online, usually pared with superficial inspiration videos. these things in turn, obscured him and blurred him. after watching the 2019 documentary which expanded on an unfinished book of his called “Remember This House” led me down the road of figuring out who he is, in his own words. from a cultural standpoint, i knew that he was thought of as brilliant, intelligent, and was someone who furthered the greater understanding of racism in America. after reading this, its clear to me how much of the love people have for him is so genuine and deep, despite, not having known him when he was still alive. he writes with such certainty, he precisely phrases everything so eloquently. i have not yet read a book so well written before this one!!! in regards to the conversations he has about blackness in America and the way he combats with his the way he is perceived versus his perception of himself is not something i can deeply discuss, because, i am white. yes, i can read about his experiences and feel immensely about them (and think about how my own whiteness should be addressed because of them) but i will never ever truly understand these circumstances because i will never experience the pain from them! i mention this distinction because it really has to be considered when i try to comprehend something so many people experience, because in admitting this, i can further understand my own races part of the oppression of black people. even though i read this book as an introductory to him to know him better, i’ve also learned how to make sense of racism in America. although his thoughts were born decades upon decades before i was ever conceived, they’re STILL relevant! crazy!
thewhiteraven's review against another edition
fast-paced
5.0
Piercing cultural critique of black-white relations in America. Baldwin is so keenly perceptive, it is nearly tragic. I recommend this to everyone.
cool_new_jacket's review
dark
informative
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
3.5
pretty good! loved the title essay and the ending one, although I found the writing style a bit hard to get into.
mrbear's review against another edition
4.0
This was pretty good. It was more factual and honest than most books on the subject, and I actually feel like he made a lot of good points with his anecdotal evidence. He told a compelling story, and I generally enjoyed reading it. Worth reading if the plight of the black man interests you (and general injustices, which I feel he alludes to often).