Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

El cuarto de Giovanni by James Baldwin

139 reviews

charlotteoftheweb's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad

4.0

This was a fascinating and tragic novel. The fascinating part was the glimpse into a man from the 50s acutely struggling with his internalized homophobia (and the very real threat of external homophobia as well). But it was tragic because, as outsiders, we could see every bad decision that David made, and we wish we could do better, but we know he won't.  And, despite the fact that I'm a woman from 2024, there were countless pages that I dogeared solely because I could relate so strongly to David and his anxieties.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Suicidal thoughts, and Alcohol

marthadude's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Homophobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Outing, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

alexisgarcia's review against another edition

dark emotional sad fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Homophobia, Racism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Grief, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol

annoyedhumanoid's review against another edition

dark reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

in the last book i read, Greta & Valdin, Valdin is praised for not being "one of those gay men who says awful things about women" and reading that i was like what! which gay men are those, i'll fight them. these are those gay men.

i was expecting a tragedy of forbidden love between expats in Europe, a proto–Call Me By Your Name, but that's not what this is. rather, Giovanni's Room is a character study of two lost men who come to depend on each other for purpose, until their foundations crumble. the pacing was excellent and the journey as bleak as it was for our characters. i was going to make fun of my edition's Tortured Poets Department–ass cover (black-and-white photo of subject posed in almost cartoonish angst), but it's actually quite fitting:

David, our narrator,

is the smallest man who ever lived. they're both terrible misogynists, don't get me wrong, but this one is literally an emotional terrorist (albeit unintentional, i believe).

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Moderate: Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Grief, and Murder

Minor: Body shaming, Fatphobia, and Death of parent

seapotatohowisitalrtaken's review against another edition

reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexual content, Transphobia, Violence, Car accident, and Alcohol

Minor: Child death, Suicidal thoughts, and Death of parent

benteasm's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, and Alcohol

messymimms's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

Another sad and sadly important book! I understand why it’s a classic, as it does what classics do best, delve into a deeply specific situation that has some bearing on universal human themes and emotions. At its heart, Giovanni’s room is a story about shame. 

It chronicles what happens when the object of your desire is so unthinkable (read: a man) that they become grotesque and despised by virtue of your own projected self-hatred. Not easy reading. 

The narrator is admirably reflective; he dodges and intellectualises but really, he knows how he feels. Baldwin accurately describes those moments where you can see the truth inside yourself, *somewhere over there* but you daren’t look in case it catches the light and becomes more real.

He is also painfully observant, detail-obsessed and speculative. Always going off and describing the projected inner workings of someone else’s life. Often women - such strange creatures! Speaking from a 21st Century ADHD perspective, he sounds neurodivergent. But that’s just opinion! 

Beyond being a story of shame, this novel also talks about codependency, with characters smearing boundaries all over the place and taking advantage of power (the power of shame? Maybe that’s putting it too simply). It’s a mess! But that’s the point. 

The writing itself is intense. There are long sentences. There are big words. There were some new words for me, like “unregenerate” and - dear god - it drilled the word sardonic into my mind. A lot of people in this book act sardonically. Some of it is in French, but I rather enjoyed that. 

Especially towards the beginning, the language is dynamic and very exciting; heat “bangs” against walls, light “spills” covering everything, telephone poles “come crying out” as you speed towards them. This shifts through the novel, and towards the end is where I felt it became dense and a little tepid. This seems to reflect the main character’s depth of despair, which kind of works, I guess. 

We have a great view into the inner machinery of the narrator’s mind, his attempts to cover-up, his little lies, his big ones, his overthinking, his biases and his bigotry too. The rest of the view is Paris and its characters, with all of their flaws laid out. So. Many. Flaws. 

Look, there are reasons I have not ventured to Paris in my adult life. I’m allergic to hedonism. At best I don’t get it, at worst it disgusts really bothers me. The wine, the intensity, all of those varied and supposedly wondrous plaisirs of the flesh - not my bag. Don’t come for me, I’ve got my own shit, I’m in therapy!!! 

As such, a book like this was never going to be meant for me. I’ve never felt David nor Giovanni’s particular gut-wrenching anguish, their need to be close and the impossibility of that, but overall, Giovanni’s Room truly had its moments. Despite being heady, intellectual and anxiety-inducing, it felt authentic. I have no doubt Baldwin wrote from experience. 

For anyone looking to really delve into the mind of a queer person in the 1950s, I would consider this essential reading. I suppose I’d just ask you to remember it doesn’t represent all queer people. Many of us can (thankfully) both love and like each other. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Infidelity, Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Moderate: Fatphobia and Violence

maurice_greenware's review against another edition

reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, and Alcohol

cowardlyteaman's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Wasn't sure what I was expecting from this book, but it certainly surpassed all expectations.
I'm embarrassed to admit that I'd never heard of Baldwin until I came across this book in the shelf, but holy mother of Christ, he's an EXCELLENT author.

I really do love how realistic the characters here are. They're all atrocious human beings,  but in a natural way. They're so repressed and internalised everything, that it makes sense how they act like they do. And I must say that, as a queer guy, I was very charmed by Giovanni myself in the beginning, too. Had a strong love-hate relationship with all the characters, but Jacques especially.

The ending was very satisfactory and realistic. I'm terrible at advertising books, but this was seriously an amazing read. Not a happy one, by all means. Lost all hope in my community. But a good read nonetheless. 10/10

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Toxic relationship, Grief, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

Moderate: Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Murder, Outing, Abandonment, and Classism

Minor: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, and Death of parent

benegesserwitch's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Homophobia, Infidelity, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Murder

Minor: Body shaming, Fatphobia, and Classism