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A review by inherbooks
If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin
5.0
• Neither love nor terror makes one blind: indifference makes one blind. •
I was surprised to learn that If Beale Street Could Talk was practically dismissed when it was first published in 1974. It received reviews that were pretty critical of the story and wasn’t widely accepted. This is a phenomenal book and I don’t know what they were on back then.
James Baldwin tell us the story of Fonny and Tish, 18 and 21 years old, also known as Harlem’s Romeo and Juliet. The premise of this novel is that of a love story almost tainted by systematic racism in the United States. It explores family drama, religion, social justice, and their fight against a system adamant on stomping out their lives. When Fonny is jailed for a crime he didn’t commit, a pregnant Tish and their families band together to try to bring their boy back and break the chains of slavery that continue to torment them. A moment’s despair was no match for their unwavering resiliency.
In true James Baldwin fashion, he exposes how corrupt America’s system is, and the long-lasting impact of incarceration on people in and out of jail. His words are powerful. His every sentence has you thinking, reading and re-reading, only to find a deeper meaning each time. I truly believe his stories withstand the test of time and stay relevant no matter which decade you read them in.
P.S. Ernestine, Tish’s sister, is a badass.
I was surprised to learn that If Beale Street Could Talk was practically dismissed when it was first published in 1974. It received reviews that were pretty critical of the story and wasn’t widely accepted. This is a phenomenal book and I don’t know what they were on back then.
James Baldwin tell us the story of Fonny and Tish, 18 and 21 years old, also known as Harlem’s Romeo and Juliet. The premise of this novel is that of a love story almost tainted by systematic racism in the United States. It explores family drama, religion, social justice, and their fight against a system adamant on stomping out their lives. When Fonny is jailed for a crime he didn’t commit, a pregnant Tish and their families band together to try to bring their boy back and break the chains of slavery that continue to torment them. A moment’s despair was no match for their unwavering resiliency.
In true James Baldwin fashion, he exposes how corrupt America’s system is, and the long-lasting impact of incarceration on people in and out of jail. His words are powerful. His every sentence has you thinking, reading and re-reading, only to find a deeper meaning each time. I truly believe his stories withstand the test of time and stay relevant no matter which decade you read them in.
P.S. Ernestine, Tish’s sister, is a badass.