Reviews with content warning for Death - Giovanni's Room

"I feel in myself now a faint, a dreadful stirring of what so overwhelmingly stirred in me then, great thirsty heat, and trembling, and tenderness so painful I thought my heart would burst."

Despite being only 150 pages long, it did take me a while to read Giovanni's Room. It's definitely a lot to digest, it's very literary and emotionally intense, but those are also exactly the reasons I love this book so much.

With his powerful prose, it feels as though James Baldwin is reaching across time, right into the depths of my Queer soul. Honestly, sometimes it even hurt to read this (in a good way).

Giovanni's Room is a story of self-destruction, identity, shame, repression, alienation, gender and sexuality. It's a tale that examines the destructive forces of toxic masculinity, and internalised homophobia and misogyny. To quote Baldwin himself:

"It's about what happens to you if you're afraid to love anybody."

It's tragic, explosive, emotional, frustrating and deeply meditative. David is a very flawed person, but still I related deeply to so many of his experiences with his sexuality. And at his worst and most toxic, David also reminded me of all the shitty queer men I've had terrible experiences with. Baldwin somehow puts into words so many tumultuous feelings I myself have experienced before. It's genuinely astonishing.

"But if I were still able to feel affection and if he had seen it in my eyes, it would not have helped, for affection, for the boys I was doomed to look at, was vastly more frightening than lust."

Baldwin is a master at writing. The way he plays with tense/chronology/structure is especially ingenious. While very literary, his writing isn't impenetrable, and is still filled to the brim with complex themes, intensity, symbolism and poeticism. Every sentence is so perfectly crafted, and there are so many quotes that just took my breath away.

I honestly can't do this book justice with words. Just read it. It's life changing.

As I finished this book in a graveyard, bathed in the gleam of the Spring sunlight, the striking potency of the climax involuntarily caused me to frantically hold the book closer to my face. And when it was over, with that haunting denouement, I closed the book and sat there for a while in silence.

"No matter how it seems now, I must confess: I loved him. I do not think that I will ever love anyone like that again."

Content Warnings

sanperse's review against another edition

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dark emotional 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

4.75

Content Warnings

lerburger's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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simplythegirl's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

This is definitely my favorite James Baldwin book. He explores questioning and denying one's sexual identity, power dynamics, class differences, citizenship, the American dream, homophobia, and racism. Racism can be seen when you decode his characters I believe if Baldwin was alive today he definitely would have made David obviously African American since he would no longer have to worry about audiences laughing him off/not taking him serious for having an African American man who questions his sexual identity as a main character. The writing is beautiful and I love the symbolism.

By the end of the book it seems like how David identifies (gay straight or bisexual) is still up for debate. His decision in the end can be seen as further denial of his true self especially during times where it wasn't accepted to be anything but straight but others can interpret his decision as ending an experimental time for David.

His decision could also be symbolic of a part of himself dying much like Giovanni died.

Content Warnings

annkimn's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

Absolutely gorgeous. Explores the pain of queerness the pain of love in words that were so accurate and breathtakingly beautiful. Reading Baldwin left his voice in my head and I felt like he was digging down into my own spirit to touch and name things I hadn’t been able to name in quite the same way before.

Content Warnings