James Baldwin : Voice from Harlem

VOYA - Florence H. Munat

The often troubled life of James Baldwin-one of America's greatest and most controversial writers-is ably and humanely chronicled in this slim volume. Whenever Baldwin published a novel, an essay, or a play, heated debate ensued. When he wrote Giovanni's Room (Dell, 1988) (which in effect announced his homosexuality, some gays were upset about his depiction of a white gay man's violent death, while some blacks subsequently rejected Baldwin as a spokesman for African Americans because of his gayness. When he described the origins of black anger in The Fire Next Time (Vintage, 1993), some critics complained that Baldwin was advocating racial violence. Others, both black activists and white segregationists, criticized him for not advocating racial separation. He always seemed to land between a rock and a hard place. That Baldwin persevered in his writing and his integrationist beliefs is a testimony to his conviction that only love and mutual tolerance can overcome prejudice. Gottfied describes Baldwin's largely unhappy childhood in the slums of Harlem; his talents as a boy preacher in a Pentecostal church; his association as a young writer with mentors such as Richard Wright and Countee Cullen; his expatriate life in France and Switzerland; his return to the United States to become involved with the sixties Civil Rights Movement; his college teaching career in the eighties; and his death from cancer in 1987. The emphasis on Baldwin's writing makes this volume useful to students researching his books. But its primary value is the portrait it paints of James Baldwin as a man who endured the troubles and sorrows life sent him, yet emerged as a loving and tolerant human being. Index. Photos. Biblio. Source Notes. Further Reading. VOYA Codes: 4Q 3P J S (Better than most, marred only by occasional lapses, Will appeal with pushing, Junior High-defined as grades 7 to 9 and Senior High-defined as grades 10 to 12).

School Library Journal

Gr 7-9A straightforward introduction to the life and career of the writer, this slim volume gives readers basic information, with sketchy glimpses of other important literary and civil rights figures of the time. However, the text is marred by weak writing, stale critical analysis, and a general glossing over of social and political issues. Gottfried's simplistic discussion of complex topics such as the Black Panther Party, the Vietnam War, and homosexuality do young people a disservice. Nothing is as easy as the author would have readers believe by his prose. The text is supported by a clear layout and eye-catching black-and-white photographs. However, James Tackach's James Baldwin (Lucent, 1997) and an excellent article in Valerie Smith's African American Writers (Scribners, 1991) are better sources of material on this important figure.Herman Sutter, Saint Pius X High School, Houston, TX