Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

Going to Meet the Man by James Baldwin

2 reviews

asililydying's review against another edition

4.25

Sonny's Blues and Previous Condition are my favorites, Going To Meet The Man itself as a story may be the most disgusting thing I have ever read ~ not unintentionally of course.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Murder, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Deportation

seawarrior's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This short story collection presents moments of revelation for a variety of characters caught up in complex relationships and questioning their identity within them. I appreciated the diversity of people, places and times Baldwin wrote from the perspective of to make up the collection. He was adept at finding resounding voices for each of these characters, from playful young Black boys to a violently racist white sheriff. I felt like I understood the meaning and themes of some of these stories more than others, but it was easy to feel drawn into them all. The final and title story of Going to Meet the Man was one of the most disturbing works of literature I've ever encountered, and the most difficult to keep reading. Racism was described throughout many of these works, but Going to Meet the Man details how it has been passed on through generations of white families through violence to sedate depraved insecurity. I would be wary of reading this particular story if descriptions of violent racism and lynchings are triggering to you. My primary issue reading this collection was the length of the paragraphs. Often times I got lost in a passage and had to re-read it repeatedly to make sense of it, thought I doubt this is a problem for everyone. Overall, I enjoyed being introduced to Baldwin's style and skill through these stories, and look forward to reading his longer novels. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child death, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Torture, Police brutality, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Sexual content and Toxic relationship