I will think about this book for a long time。 Profound。 It gets to the heart of America's ills。 The foreword by by Imani Perry and the afterword by Eddie S。 Glaude Jr add even more insight。 I will think about this book for a long time。 Profound。 It gets to the heart of America's ills。 The foreword by by Imani Perry and the afterword by Eddie S。 Glaude Jr add even more insight。 。。。more
Avi Woontner,
Thanks to Edelweiss for the digital ARC!Absolutely adored the final section。 Great supplementary material to accompany this essay。
Cheri,
This essay written by James Baldwin was originally published in 1964, in collaboration with photographer Richard Avedon, using Avedon’s photographs, and Baldwin’s words。 It is scheduled to be reissued, using Baldwin’s words alone, which offer more than sufficient reason to read this。 This is the first time this will be published as Baldwin’s work on it’s own, along with a Foreword by Imani Perry and the Afterword by Eddie Glaude, Jr。, both of which are also well worth reading。 There isn’t much a This essay written by James Baldwin was originally published in 1964, in collaboration with photographer Richard Avedon, using Avedon’s photographs, and Baldwin’s words。 It is scheduled to be reissued, using Baldwin’s words alone, which offer more than sufficient reason to read this。 This is the first time this will be published as Baldwin’s work on it’s own, along with a Foreword by Imani Perry and the Afterword by Eddie Glaude, Jr。, both of which are also well worth reading。 There isn’t much about that has changed, there certainly hasn’t been enough that has changed in the years since he wrote these inspired words。 Too much seems eerily relevant to our current days, even though nearly sixty years have passed by。 Dangerously emboldened by recent events, encouraged by someone with their own agenda, and willing to throw his followers to the wolves, it certainly doesn’t appear to be better。 Despite all the pleas for change, the inches instead of miles of progress, too much remains the same, and many of the changes we’ve seen of late have gone in the opposite direction of what is needed。 'Judged by this standard, we are a loveless nation。 The best that can be said is that some of us are struggling。 And what we are struggling against is that death in the heart which leads not only to the shedding of blood, but which reduces human beings to corpses while they live。'Pub Date: 04 May 2021Many thanks for the ARC provided by Random House / Beacon Press 。。。more
Oliver,
Classic James Baldwin: that is to say, swooningly brilliant, transportive, clear-eyed, beautifully written, and rage-inducing。 His is one of my favourite minds, because everything he writes is so astoundingly real。 This is a short essay but contains so much that it reads like a distillation of his passions, and makes me want to go back and reread everything else he's written。 The fore- and afterwords are great too, though I admit to skimming the foreword because I was anxious to get to the essay Classic James Baldwin: that is to say, swooningly brilliant, transportive, clear-eyed, beautifully written, and rage-inducing。 His is one of my favourite minds, because everything he writes is so astoundingly real。 This is a short essay but contains so much that it reads like a distillation of his passions, and makes me want to go back and reread everything else he's written。 The fore- and afterwords are great too, though I admit to skimming the foreword because I was anxious to get to the essay, and taking more time over the afterword because I wanted to marinade a little longer in Baldwin's world。 My thanks to Edelweiss and Beacon Press for the ARC。 。。。more
Alexander Peterhans,
"To be locked in the past means, in effect, that one has no past, since one can never assess it, or use it: and if one cannot use the past, one cannot function in the present, and so one can never be free。"I had never heard of this work, also hadn't heard of Baldwin's collaboration with photographer Richard Avedon that led to a book combining this essay with Avedon's photography。This is the first time the essay is being published on its own, not part of an essay collection and without Avedon's p "To be locked in the past means, in effect, that one has no past, since one can never assess it, or use it: and if one cannot use the past, one cannot function in the present, and so one can never be free。"I had never heard of this work, also hadn't heard of Baldwin's collaboration with photographer Richard Avedon that led to a book combining this essay with Avedon's photography。This is the first time the essay is being published on its own, not part of an essay collection and without Avedon's photos。And it's fantastic。 I'm only a novice reader of James Baldwin, but he is an incredible writer, with perfect command of the craft。 That would be fantastic enough, but he also has so much to say, and it is still as relevant today as it was in the 60s。 In fact, it's almost unnervingly so。There is still a large part of the white US population who believe in the myth of white supremacy, in the myth of "heroes" just "looking for freedom" in the new world。 Baldwin expertly shows how these myths are rotten to their very core, ending on a hope that love for yourself and the "other" (whether they be a "stranger" or not) might be the answer。"It is necessary, while in darkness, to know that there is a light somewhere, to know that in oneself, waiting to be found , there is a light。"Included in this edition are an introduction by professor Imani Perry, and a concluding essay by professor Eddie S。 Glaude Jr。Glaude's essay especially is a great addition, further pondering the points Baldwin addresses, coming to observations like:"If I am reading Nothing Personal correctly, the country needs its “strangers” to resolve the sense of alienation that threatens to suffocate this place。 The enemy and evil without, and the violence we exact upon the threat they present or directly upon them, keeps us whole while the rot within corrupts everything。"An essential read。(Picked up an ARC through Edelweiss) 。。。more
Andre,
Wow, Baldwin covered a lot of territory in this short essay。 It’s certainly a tribute to his writing mastery that he can seemingly say so much but use very few words in doing so。 An essay that is taking America to task for its hypocrisy while also dealing with his own personal challenges in staving off despair and trying to remain hopeful。 The addition of Imani Perry penning the foreword and Eddie Glaude Jr。, the afterword helps add to the understanding of not only the essay but Baldwin’s brilli Wow, Baldwin covered a lot of territory in this short essay。 It’s certainly a tribute to his writing mastery that he can seemingly say so much but use very few words in doing so。 An essay that is taking America to task for its hypocrisy while also dealing with his own personal challenges in staving off despair and trying to remain hopeful。 The addition of Imani Perry penning the foreword and Eddie Glaude Jr。, the afterword helps add to the understanding of not only the essay but Baldwin’s brilliance as a writer。 I hope everyone takes a moment to digest this。 And I’m thankful to Beacon Press and NetGalley for an ARC。 。。。more
Faith,
“The America of my experience has worshiped and nourished violence for as long as I have been on earth。 The violence was being perpetrated mainly against black men, though – the strangers; and so it didn’t count。 But, if society permits one portion of its citizenry to be menaced or destroyed, then, very soon, no one in that society is safe。 The forces thus released in the people can never be held in check, but run their devouring course, destroying the very foundations which it was imagine they “The America of my experience has worshiped and nourished violence for as long as I have been on earth。 The violence was being perpetrated mainly against black men, though – the strangers; and so it didn’t count。 But, if society permits one portion of its citizenry to be menaced or destroyed, then, very soon, no one in that society is safe。 The forces thus released in the people can never be held in check, but run their devouring course, destroying the very foundations which it was imagine they would save。”“I have been, as the song says, ‘buked and scorned’ and I know that I always will be。 But, my God, in the darkness, which was the lot of my ancestors and my own state, what a mighty fire burned! In the darkness of rape and degradation, that fine flying froth and mist of blood, through all that terror and all that helplessness, a living soul moved and refused to die。”James Baldwin was a national treasure。 This essay, a critique on social isolation, race and police brutality, was published in 1964 in a book of photos by Richard Avedon (they went to high school together) and it has appeared in 2 anthologies。 It is now being published for the first time as a standalone, with a new foreword by Imani Perry and an afterword by Eddie S。 Glaude Jr。 As Gaude wrote the essay encompasses “history, identity, death and loneliness”。 Parts of it are extremely prescient, not surprising given Baldwin’s powers of observation, and parts are very moving。 I received a free copy of this book from the publisher。 。。。more