Reviews tagging 'Racial slurs'

The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin

32 reviews

mattyvreads's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective slow-paced

5.0

One of the most important pieces of literature ever written. It is comprehensive, straightforward, and thought-provoking. Baldwin is a master of his craft.

This is the first Baldwin essay I ever read, and I was breath-taken. He remains one of my favorite authors of all time. 

The fact that this essay is written as a letter to his nephew adds yet another layer of humanity and emotionality. 

It is horrifying to realize the depth of this essay’s relevance 60 years after it’s publication. It is  inconceivable.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs and Racism

Moderate: Police brutality and Religious bigotry

Minor: Homophobia

james1star's review against another edition

informative inspiring medium-paced

5.0

This was my first work by James Baldwin and will certainly not be the last. In these two essays/letters, he perfectly explains the ‘racial nightmare’ in America with such brutal honestly and rawness. It starts with a letter to his then fifteen year old nephew James telling him of his current place in American society as a young black man and how despite being destined to the gutter, he must accept himself and aspire for a better life. Then a much longer piece tells the reader of Baldwin’s experiences of growing up in Harlem with the many racial injustices, his interactions with religion (Christianity and later the Nation of Islam movement) and how we as a society much think about things differently to ever move forward. There are maybe some convoluted or slightly tangental passages but this adds to the human-ness and honesty he puts forward - it’s like he’s talking to you, sharing his thoughts and wisdom… amazing. At its heart, ‘The Fire Next Time’ is a plea to end the legacy of racial injustice that plagued (and still does) America at the time of writing in 1963 and was influential in the growing civil rights movement. Additionally, Baldwin’s grasp on the human condition is put forward with a pin-point accuracy that you can’t help but sit back and take a few moments to really take in. It may seem hard and a little preachy to some extent, but his message of love overcoming hate is what we should be aspiring to. The book has many well penned quotes/passages but these were my favourites - I am likely going to give this a reread and make more notes. 

‘But what was the point, the purpose, of my salvation if it did not permit me to behave with love towards others, no matter how they behaved towards me?’

“I love a few people and they love me and some of them are white, and isn't love more important than colour?” 

‘Life is tragic simply because the earth turns and the sun inexorably rises and sets, and one day, for each of us, the sun will go down for the last, last time. Perhaps the whole root of our trouble, the human trouble, is that we will sacrifice all the beauty of our lives, will imprison ourselves in totems, taboos, crosses, blood sacrifices, steeples, mosques, races, armies, flags, nations, in order to deny the fact of death, which is the only fact we have. It seems to me that one ought to rejoice in the fact of death - ought to decide, indeed, to earn one's death by confronting with passion the conundrum of life. One is responsible to life: It is the small beacon in that terrifying darkness from which we come and to which we shall' return. One must negotiate this passage as nobly as possibly, for the sake of those who are coming after us.’

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

Moderate: Racial slurs

Minor: Hate crime, Slavery, Police brutality, and Religious bigotry

jaiari12's review against another edition

challenging reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Violence, and Police brutality

bookaholic_in_wonderland's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs and Racism

milesjmoran's review against another edition

challenging dark hopeful informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, and Colonisation

zaracampbell's review against another edition

challenging dark informative reflective tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs and Racism

Moderate: Slavery

leannanecdote's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective slow-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, and Colonisation

Moderate: Genocide and War

theuncannydani's review against another edition

challenging informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, and Islamophobia

Moderate: Police brutality, Religious bigotry, and Acephobia/Arophobia

Minor: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Hate crime, Slavery, Trafficking, and Colonisation

mandkips's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Racial slurs, and Racism

Moderate: Slavery and Violence

Minor: Alcoholism, Genocide, and War

terrastrial's review against another edition

challenging hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.25

Worth a second read, especially after learning more historical and religious context. A short read, but packed full of so many amazingly crafted thoughts and passages that I highlighted half the book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs

Moderate: Violence