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Begin Again: James Baldwin’s America and Its Urgent Lessons for Today by Eddie S. Glaude Jr.
sophiaeck's review against another edition
4.0
begin again is truly a beautiful testament to james baldwin and the timelessness of his work. glaude masterfully memorializes baldwins writing and speech, contextualizing it for it’s time while also providing a guide to how it still applies in todays world as well, and is a true showcase of baldwins writing standing the test of time. the song silver soul by beach house says, “it’s a sickness, infinite quickness, it is happening again”, and glaude poses this same sentiment of the racial politics in america and the sinister disguises racism hides behind no matter the changes we ostensibly see in the world; as the title says, it begins again, and in response, the fight also begins again. baldwin faced backlash for the politicalization of his work, he received endless criticism on the incorporation of his political beliefs, from critics who refused to come to terms with the problems in their own country, but the person is political, and baldwin could not ignore the lies america tells about itself, not even capable of turning his back to it when he tried, when he fled to paris for respite, james came back to bear witness. gaude weaves an incredible tapestry of excerpts, essays, interviews, etc. by baldwin and he creates this call to attention in regards to the repetitive nature of the issues of race inequality, silencing of queer identity, and the incapability of america to confront itself with its own racist history and the toxic way it repeats itself. this book will either be enlightening for you, or a reminder of what you already know and need to be reminded of, and i think this is a must read for anyone who is a fan of baldwins work, and is interested in how it relates to the world we live in today, in addition to then.
kaneesha's review against another edition
challenging
informative
slow-paced
3.75
it is an academic text and wonderful as that—a reference. for such a short work, I found myself dragging along reading it til the end.
a_proud_bibliophile's review against another edition
4.0
A good overview of Baldwin’s life and work, and how they both can help us learn about our present going forward. The book is intimate and well written, and it fully admits to walking the line between biography and literary analysis. While much is gained from this duality, some is lost as well because neither Baldwin’s life nor his writing are fully examined. But this is still a wonderful book as an introduction to his life.
suetrav's review against another edition
3.0
This is a tough one to review. I want to give it more stars but something was missing. I really did enjoy listening to this book in audio format (although it was a LONG listen of over seven hours). It was a book that required all my attention and I had to really focus to get through it.
There were some great quotes and some really interesting parts. The visit to the memorial really stands out for me as well as the stories about the civil rights movement. It almost felt like an academic text with a little biography thrown in. The author did say that it was a strange book and he was correct.
There were some great quotes and some really interesting parts. The visit to the memorial really stands out for me as well as the stories about the civil rights movement. It almost felt like an academic text with a little biography thrown in. The author did say that it was a strange book and he was correct.
ames_101's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
4.0
This book was meant to inspire and challenge, especially for a white woman like me. Glaude’s love and appreciation for not only James Baldwin’s work, but also his mind in the dark and the light was beautiful to witness. I am grateful for the studious historians in the world (especially those of color) who continue to teach us and reteach us.
jg12389's review against another edition
4.0
Amazing and skillful weaving of James Baldwin's life, politics, and internal struggles, and issues of the present day. The writing is powerful and evocative. I really enjoyed this one!!