What: James Baldwin's first collection of short stories is by turns wise, wry, and heartbreaking. You might have read Baldwin's work in college as an illustration of racial and/or sexual issues in the U.S in the mid-20th century. It's alarming how little has changed and how relevant the characters' hopes and fears still are. Whether this says more good things about Baldwin's formidable skill at cutting to universal truths or bad things about our lack of progress as a society, I'll leave for you to judge.
Comparable to: Maya Angelou cites Baldwin as a major influence.
Representative quote: "There's no way not to suffer. But you try all kinds of ways to keep from drowning in it."
You might not like it if: You are already so depressed about the state of the world that one more little nudge would be enough to send you over the edge.
How to get it: Libraries! Big bookstores! Little bookstores! Used bookstores! Face it, they could all probably use our help.
[Originally posted 1/22/11.]
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