A review by mitskacir
The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin

4.0

Knowing that this is an absolute Baldwin must-read, and of course seeing it on nearly every social-justice "to read" list, but not knowing anything about the book itself, I was quite surprised by The Fire Next Time. While certainly an examination of race relations in the US, it is also essentially about religion, with Baldwin in particular critiquing Christianity and Islam. Having just read "The Color Purple", Baldwin's reflections on a white God continued the conversation for me of what role Christianity plays in the Black community. I would like to re-read this alongside its descendant "Between The World and Me".