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signeskov's review against another edition
dark
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
‘“Pray? Who, pray? I bet you, if I ever get anywhere near that white devil you call God, I’ll tear my son and my father out of his white hide! Don’t you ever say the word Pray to me again, woman, not if you want to live.”’
This novel is not for the easy-hearted, its main themes being racism and human estrangement. Sex, misogyny, toxic masculinity, and violence is the interwoven fabric of the story, and the characters are one big, unlikeable mass of suffering. Often, these elements of the book disgusted me or provoked some pretty heavy reactions in me. Despite Baldwin’s identity as a black gay man, one must announce that the book is still a product of its time - though this of course also adds to the historical depiction of racism and patriarchy, which definitely interested me. Finally, this is a novel that doesn’t say a whole lot as you’re sitting with it, but only truly revealed itself to me as I finished it and had left it to brew for some days.
What brings this novel up from a pretty standard 4 rating to a 4.25 is Baldwin’s writing. It is simply put immaculate, constantly blending love and hate into shattering contrasts of existential crisis, human loneliness, and, of course, racism. It is forceful, violent, and at once beautiful - and is sure to stay with its reader for a while as a literary shot of refreshment to the brain.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Drug use, Homophobia, and Alcohol
writtenontheflyleaves's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Another Country by James Baldwin
🌟🌟🌟🌟✨
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I was told to read this by one of my professors in my master’s and I’m so glad I finally got round to it! CW for mention of suicide in this review.
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🌃 The plot: Rufus Scott is a Harlem jazz musician adrift in New York after his destructive tendencies irreparably harm his girlfriend and shipwreck his life. His sister and his friends attempt to get through to him, but he ultimately dies by suicide in the Hudson river. The rest of the novel charts the fallout—for his white friends whom he saw on the night of his death and whom he had relationships with in the past, and for his sister Ida who nurses a burning anger over his passing.
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This novel is an unbelievable achievement. For starters, the writing is beautiful—if you like Fitzgerald’s prose style, you’ll love Baldwin’s descriptions of New York. However, what Fitzgerald lacks in clarity around the nuance and complexities of privilege and race in America, Baldwin has in spades. This is a novel about the traps we find ourselves in, and whether we can ever really connect to each other across the gaps in our experiences—particularly when those experiences diverge so wildly when it comes to race. It contrasts the experiences of each of the characters expertly and this gives the novel a depth of humanity that is really amazing. I’m SO glad I read this and I can’t wait to read more from Baldwin.
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🌃 Read it if you like Fitzgerald (I thought the delicacy of the prose was similar) but like novels to explore in more complexity issues like race, gender, and sexuality.
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🚫 Avoid it if you’re avoiding stories about suicide, grief, sexual assault, and perhaps especially racism and violence against women. Violence is treated somewhat as part of women’s lot in this book, and it animates much of the story without leaving much of a mark on many of the main male characters. There are women in this story, but I would say this is still a novel about men - take that how you will!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Death, Sexism, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Racial slurs, Racism, and Grief
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