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aseel_reads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I'm really glad I've read this now and I'm was very surprised about Giovanni's demise (the cause of it). Obviously all the problematic stuff was ick to read and there could have been a more substantial plot
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Misogyny, Homophobia, and Transphobia
Moderate: Toxic relationship and Sexual harassment
gvstyris'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
4.75
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.
I'm very grateful to Baldwin for this book's existence, and will be fighting to protect its rightful place in the queer literary canon going forward 🥲
The non-linear structure, Baldwin's beautiful prose, the overwhelming and lowkey cloying atmosphere (I'm so nostalgic for Paris!), the parallels drawn between homophobia and misogyny...man. Baldwin's portrayal of internalised homophobia is powerful and endlessly relevant, particularly considering Giovanni's Room was published almost 70 years ago.
I'll definitely be checking out more of Baldwin's work!
I dropped my brick and went to him. In a moment I heard his fall. And at moments like this I felt that we were merely enduring and committing the longer and lesser and more perpetual murder.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship
Moderate: Misogyny, Murder, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Homophobia, Sexual assault, and Transphobia
rionstorm's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Beautifully written. I found the narrator, David, absolutely vile, and Giovanni and Hella so charming. The characters all reminded me of elements of people I have known in real life, as they feel very alive. I found parts of it challenging, particularly the intense homophobia (& transphobia?) from David himself towards the other queer people around him.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Infidelity, Transphobia, Toxic relationship, Misogyny, Alcohol, Homophobia, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Death of parent, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Miscarriage
Minor: Domestic abuse and Murder
e_r_q's review against another edition
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
"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
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Death, Toxic relationship, Homophobia, and Transphobia
Minor: Misogyny and Sexual content
saintshithead's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Sorry James Baldwin, this was too much of a downer for me
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia
quiettalker's review against another edition
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Transphobia and Homophobia
Minor: Child death
sanperse's review against another edition
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
Moderate: Transphobia and Misogyny
Minor: Death
merlinagarance's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
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
This is an important read but let me preface by saying this is not a romance. It’s a tragedy. Baldwin’s writing is incisive and you can feel the internalised homophobia the character experiences, that leads to the tragic ending. Historically, it’s very interesting to find out what Paris was like for queer people in the 50s - more accepting that you’d think.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Transphobia, Misogyny, Death, and Homophobia
marionhoney's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, Homophobia, Murder, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Biphobia, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Transphobia, Domestic abuse, Outing, Classism, Sexual violence, and Sexual content
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Fatphobia, and Rape
kendal_reads's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Death, Toxic relationship, and Homophobia
Moderate: Sexual content, Misogyny, Murder, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Transphobia