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4.35 AVERAGE
4.35 AVERAGE
favorite stories: “Sonny’s Blues” and “This Morning, This Evening, So Soon
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
challenging
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
i liked a few of the stories more than others; i feel like they did span a wide range of themes though - from different types of familial relationships and friendships, all with race as an interwoven thread. heed content warnings, especially for the titular story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual violence, Slavery, Murder
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
going to meet the man maybe the most haunting short story i have ever read… however some of these stories did not arrive and depart in the most engaging way. if that makes sense…
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
(obviously) love Baldwin as a person and a thinker, and I think his voice translates to his writing incredibly well, yet I just struggle to really engage with a lot of his writing itself so far? despite how fairly short a good few of these stories are they actually felt somewhat laborious to finish, or to even start. it's really hard to put a finger on here but, rather than a good collection of short stories, it's a collection of short stories that ARE good but they're each good for A reason. as in each contains an element, for lack of a better word, that elevates it into such territory. Previous Condition is good BECAUSE of its anger; This Morning is good BECAUSE of how it uses perspectives.
it's only really the final, titular, story that feels whole, feels great, and WOW it's SO good. just such a powerful, excellent piece of work that's layered so well. actually gave me chills, a strong repulsion that I've never really felt while reading before. really almost makes this entire thing worth it, but...
don't get me wrong this is a great compilation and, at worst, I LIKE all of these, just notably, disappointingly, disappointed. if anything it's a strong introduction.
faves: Going to Meet the Man, Previous Condition, The Man Child
least fave: The Outing
it's only really the final, titular, story that feels whole, feels great, and WOW it's SO good. just such a powerful, excellent piece of work that's layered so well. actually gave me chills, a strong repulsion that I've never really felt while reading before. really almost makes this entire thing worth it, but...
don't get me wrong this is a great compilation and, at worst, I LIKE all of these, just notably, disappointingly, disappointed. if anything it's a strong introduction.
faves: Going to Meet the Man, Previous Condition, The Man Child
least fave: The Outing
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
I've never been as enthralled by Baldwin's fiction as his essays, but this small collection grew on me. Some of the stories I liked best:
The Rockpile
Sonny's Blues
This Morning, This Evening, So Soon
The Rockpile
Sonny's Blues
This Morning, This Evening, So Soon