Scan barcode
A review by marleyrollins
Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin
4.0
My first Baldwin didn’t disappoint- I loved this.
Such a fantastic examination of the ways that denial of your true self can eat away at you and have huge repercussions that ripple outwards.
The language is also so lush and beautiful- it perfectly captures the glamour and magic of Paris in the 1950s, when it was a hub for artists, eccentrics and adventurous flaneurs. It really made me want to be young and drunk, stumbling through the streets of Paris with a partner, feeling like the night could go anywhere.
It can’t be underestimated how brave it was to write a novel like this in the 1950s also- Baldwin was so incredibly before his time that this novel still feels fresh and timeless now.
Such a fantastic examination of the ways that denial of your true self can eat away at you and have huge repercussions that ripple outwards.
The language is also so lush and beautiful- it perfectly captures the glamour and magic of Paris in the 1950s, when it was a hub for artists, eccentrics and adventurous flaneurs. It really made me want to be young and drunk, stumbling through the streets of Paris with a partner, feeling like the night could go anywhere.
It can’t be underestimated how brave it was to write a novel like this in the 1950s also- Baldwin was so incredibly before his time that this novel still feels fresh and timeless now.