19 Best Baldwin Books (2023 Update)

First published in 1963, james baldwin's the fire next time stabbed at the heart of america's so-called "negro problem." as remarkable for its masterful prose as for its frank and personal account of the black experience in the united states, it is considered one of the most passionate and influential explorations of 1960s race relations, weaving thematic threads of love, faith, and family into a candid assault on the hypocrisy of the "land of the free." now, james baldwin's rich, raw, and ever relevant prose is reprinted with more than 100 photographs from steve schapiro, who traveled the american south with baldwin for life magazine. the encounter thrust schapiro into the thick of the movement, allowing for vital, often iconic, images both of civil rights leaders–including dr. martin luther king jr., rosa parks, fred shuttlesworth, and jerome smith–and such landmark events as the march on washington and the selma march.rounding out the edition are schapiro's stories from the field, an original introduction by civil rights legend and u.s. congressman john lewis, captions by marcia davis of the marshall project, and an essay by gloria baldwin karefa-smart, who was with her brother james in sierra leone when he started to work on the story. the result is a remarkable visual and textual record of one of the most important and enduring struggles of the american experience.first published as a taschen collector's edition, now available in a popular edition.

The collection confirms his as a uniquely prophetic voice in american letters. included are such famous essays as the harlem ghetto, everybody's protest novel, many thousands gone, and stranger in the village.

Hailed as the finest-looking, longest-lasting editions ever made, library of america volumes make a fine gift for any occasion. now, with exactly one hundred volumes to choose from, there is a perfect gift for everyone.

The life and influence of jimmy in saint-paul de vence. composed of more than 70 interviews with some of the many people who encountered james baldwin in the last 17 years of his life, this revealing retrospective provides an intimate look into one of america's greatest literary figures. baldwin escaped from the racism and hatred in america to find solace and self-exile in saint-paul de vence. in his time there, baldwin became a beloved neighbor and friend to the locals of the village and hosted many guests from around the world in his grand bastide. legendary celebrities, such as sidney poitier, harry belafonte, maya angelou, toni morrison, bill wyman, and others, tell their personal reminisces and stories about baldwin.

An extraordinary history of the turbulent sixties and early seventies that displays james baldwin's fury and despair more deeply than any of his other works, and powerfully speaks to contemporary conversations around racism." it contains truth that cannot be denied.” — the atlantic monthlyin this stunningly personal document, james baldwin remembers in vivid details the harlem childhood that shaped his early conciousness and the later events that scored his heart with pain—the murders of martin luther king and malcolm x, his sojourns in europe and in hollywood, and his retum to the american south to confront a violent america face-to-face.

Set in greenwich village, harlem, and france, among other locales, another country is a novel of passions—sexual, racial, political, artistic—that is stunning for its emotional intensity and haunting sensuality, depicting men and women, blacks and whites, stripped of their masks of gender and race by love and hatred at the most elemental and sublime. in a small set of friends, baldwin imbues the best and worst intentions of liberal america in the early 1970s. reviews “an almost unbearable, tumultuous, blood-pounding experience” —washington post “brilliantly and fiercely told.” —the new york times about the author james baldwin was born in 1924 and educated in new york. the author of over twenty works of fiction and non-fiction, baldwin received numerous accolades, including a guggenheim fellowship and a ford foundation grant. in 1986 he was made a commander of the legion of honor. he died in 1987.

“the most revealing and subjectively penetrating assessment of baldwin’s life yet published.” —the new york times book review. “the first baldwin biography in which one can recognize the human features of this brilliant, troubled, principled, supremely courageous man.” —boston globejames baldwin was one of the great writers of the last century. in works that have become part of the american canon—go tell it on a mountain, giovanni’s room, another country, the fire next time, and the evidence of things not seen—he explored issues of race and racism in america, class distinction, and sexual difference.a gay, african american writer who was born in harlem, he found the freedom to express himself living in exile in paris. when he returned to america to cover the civil rights movement, he became an activist and controversial spokesman for the movement, writing books that became bestsellers and made him a celebrity, landing him on the cover of time.in this biography, david leeming creates an intimate portrait of a complex, troubled, driven, and brilliant man. he plumbs every aspect of baldwin’s life: his relationships with the unknown and the famous, including painter beauford delaney, richard wright, lorraine hansberry, marlon brando, harry belafonte, lena horne, and childhood friend richard avedon; his expatriate years in france and turkey; his gift for compassion and love; the public pressures that overwhelmed his quest for happiness, and his passionate battle for black identity, racial justice, and to “end the racial nightmare and achieve our country.”

This collection of interviews with james baldwin covers the period 1961-1987, from the year of the publication of nobody knows my names, his fourth book, to just a few weeks before his death. it includes the last formal conversation with him. twenty-seven interviews reprinted here come from a variety of sources–newspapers, radio, journals, and review–and show this celebrated author in all his eloquence, anger, and perception of racial, social, and literary situations in america. over the years baldwin proved to be an easily accessible and cooperative subject for interviews, both in the united states and abroad. he frequently referred to himself as ""a kind of trans-atlantic commuter."" whether candidly discussing his own ghetto origins, his literary mission and achievements, his role in the civil rights movement, or his views on world affairs, black and white relations, vietnam, christianity, and fellow writers, baldwin was always both popular and controversial. this important collection contributes significantly to the clarification and expansion of the ideas in baldwin's fiction, drama, essays, and poetry. it gives additional life to a stunning orator and major literary figure who considered himself a sojourner even in his own country. yet early in his career baldwin told studs terkel: ""i am an american writer. this country is my subject.

In an age of black lives matter, james baldwin's essays on life in harlem, the protest novel, movies, and african americans abroad are as powerful today as when they were first written. with documentaries like i am not your negro bringing renewed interest to baldwin's life and work, notes of a native son serves as a valuable introduction.written during the 1940s and early 1950s, when baldwin was only in his twenties, the essays collected in notes of a native son capture a view of black life and black thought at the dawn of the civil rights movement and as the movement slowly gained strength through the words of one of the most captivating essayists and foremost intellectuals of that era. writing as an artist, activist, and social critic, baldwin probes the complex condition of being black in america. with a keen eye, he examines everything from the significance of the protest novel to the motives and circumstances of the many black expatriates of the time, from his home in “the harlem ghetto” to a sobering “journey to atlanta.” notes of a native son inaugurated baldwin as one of the leading interpreters of the dramatic social changes erupting in the united states in the twentieth century, and many of his observations have proven almost prophetic. his criticism on topics such as the paternalism of white progressives or on his own friend richard wright’s work is pointed and unabashed. he was also one of the few writing on race at the time who addressed the issue with a powerful mixture of outrage at the gross physical and political violence against black citizens and measured understanding of their oppressors, which helped awaken a white audience to the injustices under their noses. naturally, this combination of brazen criticism and unconventional empathy for white readers won baldwin as much condemnation as praise. notes is the book that established baldwin’s voice as a social critic, and it remains one of his most admired works. the essays collected here create a cohesive sketch of black america and reveal an intimate portrait of baldwin’s own search for identity as an artist, as a black man, and as an american.

Only a boy preacher who had grown up to become one of america's most eminent writers could have produced a play like the amen corner. for to his first work for the theater james baldwin brought all the fervor and majestic rhetoric of the storefront churches of his childhood along with an unwavering awareness of the price those churches exacted from their worshipers. for years sister margaret alexander has moved her harlem congregation with a mixture of personal charisma and ferocious piety. but when margaret's estranged husband, a scapegrace jazz musician, comes home to die, she is in danger of losing both her standing in the church and the son she has tried to keep on the godly path. the amen corner is a play about faith and family, about the gulf between black men and black women and black fathers and black sons. it is a scalding, uplifting, sorrowful and exultant masterpiece of the modern american theater. james baldwin was born in 1924 and educated in new york. between 1953 and 1987, baldwin wrote over twenty books of fiction and non-fiction. the recipient of a guggenheim fellowship and a ford foundation grant, among other accolades, baldwin was made a commander of the legion of honor in 1986. he died one year later.

"a scrupulous biography." ―publishers weekly "a fresh, incisive, and uplifting biography." ―kirkus bill mullen celebrates the personal and political life of the great american writer who refused to shy away from controversary and hate and created some of the most important literary work of his time, including the novels go tell it to the mountain, if beale street could talk, another country, and just above my head. it is essential reading for anyone who wants to truly understand this towering literary and political figure and everyone who understand that imperialism and racism are as dangerous today as in baldwin's time. as a lifelong radical, anti-imperialist, black queer advocate, feminist and pro-palestinian, the life and writing of james baldwin (1924-1987) has been an inspiration to generations and his words continue to resonate through our culture at large. mullen explores how baldwin's life and work channel the long history of the african american. fighting towards what he hoped would be a post-racial society, baldwin's philosophy was tragically ahead of its time. table of contents: preface: james baldwin–a revolutionary for our time 1. baptism by fire: childhood and youth, 1924-42 2. dissidence, disillusionment, resistance: 1942-48 3. political exile and survival: 1948-57 4. paying his dues: 1957-63 5. baldwin and black power: 19963-68 6. morbid symptoms and optimism of the will: 1968-79 7. final acts postscript: baldwin's queer legacies mullen writes in his preface, "baldwin developed a capacious, revolutionary theory and proactive of lived resistance to capitalism, imperialism, and oppression fueled by a lifetime of study, engagement, and creative tension with the most dissident pollical political movements in the us and around the world. in 1961, at the age of 37, baldwin name this dissidence 'revolution'…' as racist and reactionary forces rise across the world, this is an essential guide to the life and legacy of one of america's most important radical voices.

At the height of his theatrical career, the actor leo proudhammer is nearly felled by a heart attack. as he hovers between life and death, baldwin shows the choices that have made him enviably famous and terrifyingly vulnerable. for between leo's childhood on the streets of harlem and his arrival into the intoxicating world of the theater lies a wilderness of desire and loss, shame and rage. an adored older brother vanishes into prison. there are love affairs with a white woman and a younger black man, each of whom will make irresistible claims on leo's loyalty. and everywhere there is the anguish of being black in a society that at times seems poised on the brink of total racial war. overpowering in its vitality, extravagant in the intensity of its feeling, tell me how long the train's been gone is a major work of american literature. james baldwin (1924-1987) was a novelist, essayist, playwright, poet, and social critic. his first novel, go tell it on the mountain, appeared in 1953 to excellent reviews, and his essay collections notes of a native son and the fire next time were bestsellers that made him an influential figure in the growing civil rights movement. baldwin spent much of his life in france, where he moved to escape the racism and homophobia of the united states. he died in france in 1987, a year after being made a commander of the french legion of honor.

Baldwin's early essays have been described as 'an unequalled meditation on what it means to be black in america' . this rich and stimulating collection contains 'fifth avenue, uptown: a letter from harlem', polemical pieces on the tragedies inflicted by racial segregation and a poignant account of his first journey to 'the old country', the southern states. yet equally compelling are his 'notes for a hypothetical novel' and personal reflections on being american, on other major artists – ingmar bergman and andre gide, norman mailer and richard wright – and on the first great conference of negro – american writers and artists in paris. in his introduction baldwin describes the writer as requiring 'every ounce of stamina he can summon to attempt to look on himself and the world as they are' ; his uncanny ability to do just that is proclaimed on every page of this famous book.

James baldwin’s critique of american society at the height of the civil rights movement brings his prescient thoughts on social isolation, race, and police brutality to a new generation of readers.available for the first time in a stand-alone edition, nothing personal is baldwin’s deep probe into the american condition. this edition also includes a new foreword from interdisciplinary scholar imani perry and an afterword from noted baldwin scholar eddie s. both explore and situate the essay within the broader context of baldwin’s work, the movement for black lives, the covid-19 pandemic, and the presidency of donald trump.nothing personal is both a eulogy and a declaration of will. in bringing this work into the twenty-first century, readers new and old will take away fundamental and recurring truths about life in the us. it is both a call to action, and an appeal to love and to life.

Never before available, the unexpurgated last interview with james baldwin“i was not born to be what someone said i was. i was not born to be defined by someone else, but by myself, and myself only.” when, in the fall of 1987, the poet quincy troupe traveled to the south of france to interview james baldwin, baldwin’s brother david told him to ask baldwin about everything—baldwin was critically ill and david knew that this might be the writer’s last chance to speak at length about his life and work.the result is one of the most eloquent and revelatory interviews of baldwin’s career, a conversation that ranges widely over such topics as his childhood in harlem, his close friendship with miles davis, his relationship with writers like toni morrison and richard wright, his years in france, and his ever-incisive thoughts on the history of race relations and the african-american experience.also collected here are significant interviews from other moments in baldwin’s life, including an in-depth interview conducted by studs terkel shortly after the publication of nobody knows my name. these interviews showcase, above all, baldwin’s fearlessness and integrity as a writer, thinker, and individual, as well as the profound struggles he faced along the way.

Selected by the modern library as one of the 100 best novels of all time"mountain," baldwin said, "is the book i had to write if i was ever going to write anything else." go tell it on the mountain, first published in 1953, is baldwin's first major work, a novel that has established itself as an american classic. with lyrical precision, psychological directness, resonating symbolic power, and a rage that is at once unrelenting and compassionate, baldwin chronicles a fourteen-year-old boy's discovery of the terms of his identity as the stepson of the minister of a storefront pentecostal church in harlem one saturday in march of 1935. baldwin's rendering of his protagonist's spiritual, sexual, and moral struggle of self-invention opened new possibilities in the american language and in the way americans understand themselves.

New york times bestseller – “a powerful study of how to bear witness in a moment when america is being called to do the same.”—time james baldwin grew disillusioned by the failure of the civil rights movement to force america to confront its lies about race. one of the best books of the year: time, the washington post, chicago tribune – one of esquire’s best biographies of all time – winner of the stowe prize – shortlisted for the goddard riverside stephan russo book prize for social justice “not everything is lost. responsibility cannot be lost, it can only be abdicated. if one refuses abdication, one begins again.”—james baldwin begin again is one of the great books on james baldwin and a powerful reckoning with america’s ongoing failure to confront the lies it tells itself about race. just as in baldwin’s “after times,” argues eddie s. glaude jr., when white americans met the civil rights movement’s call for truth and justice with blind rage and the murders of movement leaders, so in our moment were the obama presidency and the birth of black lives matter answered with the ascendance of trump and the violent resurgence of white nationalism. in these brilliant and stirring pages, glaude finds hope and guidance in baldwin as he mixes biography—drawn partially from newly uncovered baldwin interviews—with history, memoir, and poignant analysis of our current moment to reveal the painful cycle of black resistance and white retrenchment.

He has been called passionate and violent, cryptic and probing, hostile and eloquent. his works have been called brilliant and unbearable, poetic and documentary, classic and controversial. he is a major voice of the civil rights movement. his words, which have compelled, agitated and hypnotized a nation, are now heard around the world. that is the public image of james baldwin. but there is also an aspect of baldwin that grew out of self-deprecation and a search for personal identity; a timorous side that his mother worried over in the presence of a step-father who would not acknowledge him, and that his teachers watched carefully because there was precocity beneath it, trying to force its way out. there was a child who thought he was ugly and useless, who was overly self-conscious about his appearance and couldn't find the love he needed to make his own existence bearable. there is a man who claims: "i've been scared to death since i was born and i'll be scared till i die. but if you're scared to death, walk toward it." and there is an author whose tremendous impact on american literature–and american life–has, until now, not been fully measured. fern marja eckman has based this vivid book on hours and hours of taped interviews with baldwin and with the people who are significant in his story. she presents a detailed account of baldwin's harlem childhood, a portrait of the exile who returned to his country to shock it into reappraisal of its racial and sexual attitudes, and an inside view of his part in robert kennedy's civil-rights meeting in 1963. speaking with james baldwin and probing the complex mixture of extreme hate and intense love that characterize him, she presents a profile told largely in his own words–one which is essentially baldwin on baldwin.

Good guys will grab you off the dance floor – put your clobber back on – and uber you home before you're hit upon-from "#me – too"valerie mason-john's poetry collection, i am still your negro, blends spoken word and hashtags with villanelles, sonnets, and haiku to traverse the african diaspora experience through place, time, and circumstance. blak inglis street vernacular, the cadence of enslaved people in the americas, patois and creole join the enduring spirit voice of yaata, supreme being of the kona people, to reveal narratives of liberation, entrapment, sexual assault, eating disorders, and rave culture. an emotive critique of colonization's bitter legacy, this collection will draw audiences of the spoken word genre and poetry readers who wish to broaden their knowledge about contemporary social justice issues.