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sohva's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Beautiful, still makes me think of what it is wanting to say about love, life and home.
My only gripe woth this book was that the female characters were a bit... weird.
My only gripe woth this book was that the female characters were a bit... weird.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia and Murder
Moderate: Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, and Toxic relationship
maxgardner's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Well, this book absolutely destroyed me. Giovanni's Room is my first Baldwin, and it's beautifully written with characters that feel unique, but still real and well developed. I suppose there's no way this could have been a happy story considering it's about queer people in the 1950s, and really the brutality of the story reflects how dark and bleak life was for them at that time; primarily, Baldwin focuses on gay men and life from their perspective through the eyes of the main character, David. First of all, this story was illuminating for me because it provides a window into queer life 70 years ago. Obviously this story is fiction, but its core themes and many of David's experiences are drawn from Baldwin's life. It's fascinating to see, aside from some obvious differences with the times, just how many parallels there are between the struggles young queer people faced then and what they face now. Doubt, denial, disgust, self hate, suicidal thoughts and ideation, living this odd double life where you indulge your desires while simultaneously disassociating, seeing your actions as other from your identity, wishing you could be "normal" and maybe even trying to be in spite of the lack that life will leave you with. In true form to the queer experience, reading this book both gave me comfort in relating to this specific experience, to what feel like my people, and broke my heart knowing what that experience must have been like.
For a fairly short book, Giovanni's Room packs a huge punch and is a gold mine for literary analysis. Baldwin, in spite of having pretty terse prose, weaves these beautiful themes and motifs throughout that all intersect and complement each other. The idea of home as this place David wants to return to yet has never actually had in the sense of what he yearns for, the theme of otherness and lack of identity that David feels in how he's perceived as a foreigner and as a straight man, the violence of masculinity and self-repression, among so many others. The text is so rich with all of these really well thought out ideas, and I think that is in large part due to Baldwin's intrinsic understanding of what it feels like to be a gay man and to have lived with those struggles. Obviously there's imagination on display here in crafting these characters, but the depth of the story comes from a place of real pain and experience. This is a masterwork from Baldwin, and it seems like he is the only one who could have told this story.
This book made me feel nerdy again and want to write an essay. I can't wait to read it again in the future and see what new insights I can mine from it.
For a fairly short book, Giovanni's Room packs a huge punch and is a gold mine for literary analysis. Baldwin, in spite of having pretty terse prose, weaves these beautiful themes and motifs throughout that all intersect and complement each other. The idea of home as this place David wants to return to yet has never actually had in the sense of what he yearns for, the theme of otherness and lack of identity that David feels in how he's perceived as a foreigner and as a straight man, the violence of masculinity and self-repression, among so many others. The text is so rich with all of these really well thought out ideas, and I think that is in large part due to Baldwin's intrinsic understanding of what it feels like to be a gay man and to have lived with those struggles. Obviously there's imagination on display here in crafting these characters, but the depth of the story comes from a place of real pain and experience. This is a masterwork from Baldwin, and it seems like he is the only one who could have told this story.
This book made me feel nerdy again and want to write an essay. I can't wait to read it again in the future and see what new insights I can mine from it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Drug abuse, Transphobia, Homophobia, and Misogyny
mkdeco's review against another edition
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I was sad for a whole month after finishing this book. Everyone I thought about it it pangs my heart.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Physical abuse
imnotarke's review
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
this was an experience. a true depiction about the process of escape, acceptance, and grief. the characters were problematic, but real, and you are left wishing the best outcomes for them despite the flaws and distaste.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Child death, Violence, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Misogyny, Homophobia, and Death
purplehulk713's review
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
This book only truly interested me at the very end when Giovanni is calling David out on all his bullshit. It felt so much like what people consider “literature” otherwise—clever and well-thought-out, but too dense and tedious to read to be of any real enjoyment to anyone who’s not an English scholar (and I’m speaking as university writing minor). But as a landmark in queer fiction, it does deserve praise. I just wish that it didn’t make me want so much for it to be over while reading more than it made me enjoy its poetic prose and insights (David is so frustrating, and Jacques and Guillaume are disgusting). But facing the sincerity embodied in Giovanni’s room was a truly tantalizing subject.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Adult/minor relationship, Cursing, Grief, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Murder, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic relationship
noblekylie's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Grief, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Alcohol, and Violence
maess's review against another edition
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Alcoholism, Homophobia, Murder, Death, Grief, Misogyny, Outing, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Racism and Suicide
jeremie's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Murder
lucykateburns's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Homophobia, Death, Sexism, Sexual content, and Self harm
Moderate: Abandonment, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic friendship
whatannikareads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
i was afraid that i was gonna go into this with too high of expectations but goddamn i was so emotional—not necessarily crying but i was just SO emotionally invested in these characters. this story isn't even 200 pages and it is filled to the brim with beautiful prose (some of which I don't think I'm smart enough to understand but still enjoyed lol). Each character was so flawed but you still felt for them. I took a bit of adjusting in order to settle into Baldwin's writing style but when it came full circle at the end i just wanted to reread it again because i was like, oh OH OH THIS IS HAPPENING NOW AHHHHH.
i think this might be one of my favorite books of all time. i love how it's not stretched for 100 more pages of fluff. i loved the american expat feeling that i've felt before and am anxious to encounter again in my near future moving overseas. i can't believe this was written in the 1950s (i believe) and it's still like a good indie film that could be released today. i loveddddddddd this, THE DIALOGUE IS THE HEART OF THIS BOOK GOD i was just GLUED to the page with the back and forth. ugh so good.
i think this might be one of my favorite books of all time. i love how it's not stretched for 100 more pages of fluff. i loved the american expat feeling that i've felt before and am anxious to encounter again in my near future moving overseas. i can't believe this was written in the 1950s (i believe) and it's still like a good indie film that could be released today. i loveddddddddd this, THE DIALOGUE IS THE HEART OF THIS BOOK GOD i was just GLUED to the page with the back and forth. ugh so good.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Homophobia, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic relationship