A review by theeo
Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin

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

4.25

I don’t have anything original to add to the conversation about this book, but I personally enjoyed it a lot. It’s definitely an emotional read and a lot of the themes are very heavy, so it took me a little while to get through despite it being very short. This isn’t a bad thing in this case - I was savouring it. The descriptive language is so meticulously crafted that it felt wrong to rush through. 

I believe this is a must-read for queer literature and I’d really like to read more of James Baldwin’s work now!

Definite recommend, just don’t expect to like the protagonist…
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