Reviews

Another Country by James Baldwin

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deskeepsreading's review against another edition

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challenging emotional informative reflective sad tense slow-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

4.75

rae_kh's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-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

4.75

a little too slow for my taste, but breathtaking prose

imminentgiallo's review against another edition

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2.5

Baldwin writes a setting and his characters beautifully, but I don’t think these characters actually come to terms with the fact that Rufus was a domestic abuser. The text also struggles with more misogyny than other works I’ve read by Baldwin, enough so that I just did not enjoy the story.

greesman's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

onceuponatime's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective 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

4.75

The way James Baldwin does characterisation is something that I've seldom ever experienced. I found myself being drawn into the reality of all the main characters and I could feel the way their presence influences and describes the people around them.

Especially the way Rufus stays present in the narrative after his death.

It was a complex and natural web.

If i had to describe the main thoroughline of the novel it would be the complexity of love and relationships and the tensions of race in them.

The ending is slightly open-ended but I do find it an interesting thing that all three pairs presumably stayed together, for the time being at least.

abeautifulgiant's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

The trademark poetic prose aside, the way it interweaves the unique dynamics of gender and sexuality into the social politics of interracial friendships/relationships felt so truthfully rendered.

One of the best love scenes I’ve ever read is in it.

And there’s something about its depiction of black despair & solitude in a crowd of white strangers that’s heartbreakingly honest.