The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin

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Product Details

Web ID: 11775766

A national bestseller when it first appeared in 1963, The Fire Next Time galvanized the nation, gave passionate voice to the emerging civil rights movement and still lights the way to understanding race in America today. "Basically the finest essay I've ever read. . . . Baldwin refused to hold anyone's hand. He was both direct and beautiful all at once. He did not seem to write to convince you. He wrote beyond you.” Ta-Nehisi Coates At once a powerful evocation of James Baldwin's early life in Harlem and a disturbing examination of the consequences of racial injustice, the book is an intensely personal and provocative document from the iconic author of If Beale Street Could Talk and Go Tell It on the Mountain. It consists of two "letters," written on the occasion of the centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation, that exhort Americans, both black and white, to attack the terrible legacy of racism. Described by The New York Times Book Review as "sermon, ultimatum, confession, deposition, testament, and chronicle...all presented in searing, brilliant prose," The Fire Next Time stands as a classic of literature.

  • Product Features

    • Author - James Baldwin
    • Publisher - Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
    • Publication date - 12-01-1992
    • Page count - 128
    • Paperback
    • Adult
    • Classics
    • Product dimensions - 5.26 W x 8.01 H x 0.46 D
    • ISBN-13 - 9780679744726
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Ratings & Reviews

4.8/5

5 star ratings, 4 reviews

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1 year ago
from Nashville, Tennessee USA

A classic of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement

Written during the early days of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, James Baldwin’s biographical essays teach Americans what it’s like to be a black man in our society as it emerged from Jim Crow. Even sixty years later, it still resonates with me as I seek to understand my African-American young mentee. Certainly, much progress has been made as reading these essays shows, but Baldwin shows even then what progress we can still make now. This short book consists of two parts. First, a memoir details how American religion has failed the black man. On the one hand, you have a Christian church which, too often, has become a trumpet for subservience to whites. He describes his life as a pastor’s son and his early flirtation with a ministerial career. On the other, militant Islam inaccurately makes all white people into “devils.” He describes meeting Nation of Islam leader Elijah Muhammed in Chicago and why he didn’t convert. He tries to tease out a more moderate middle way. In the second essay, Baldwin writes a personal essay on the 100th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation. He describes the unheralded benefits African Americans bring to society. He highlights how black voices often show shortcomings of whites and the willful ignorance of white culture. Even sixty years later, these views continue to be controversial, but hard to argue against. In a contemporary world where the Black Lives Matter continues to teach us of systemic inequities, this book reminds us that prophets like Baldwin saw many problems in the 1960s. The pace of change is, unfortunately, slow, but the promise of a more just society makes the struggle worth it. Baldwin’s command of both the English language and social conditions surpasses almost every other voice except luminaries like Dr. King. Baldwin’s words, though piercing, resonate with me as deeply true and reliable. If only white Americans would listen better!

Recommends this product

Customer review from barnesandnoble.com

2 years ago
from B&N Home Office

Has A Special Place On My Shelf

I return to this book over and over again. Its lessons will change you and will remain essential.

Recommends this product

Customer review from barnesandnoble.com

4 years ago
from New York, NY

Easy Reading

Good book. I found the reading very enjoyable and easy.

Recommends this product

Customer review from barnesandnoble.com

5 years ago
from Louisville KY

Beautifully relevant!

This short book of two letters rises to the cadence of poetry on nearly every page. If you have missed this and want to read what today’s protests mean, search no further.

Recommends this product

Customer review from barnesandnoble.com