James Baldwin, born in New York on Aug. 2, 1924, would have turned 100 today! The illustrious author and civil rights activist died in 1987 in France at the age of 63, but he left behind an unmatched legacy in literature, Black history, and writings tied to civil rights. He was a Black man who didn’t just dream of having a good life, he sought it out even when that meant coming out as queer later in life.
From “Giovanni’s Room” to “Go Tell It on the Mountain” to “If Beale Street Could Talk,” his work is ever-relevant. Based on the myriad graphics using his quotes on the internet, it would appear Baldwin had wisdom to share for nearly every occasion but especially in times of unrest.
“To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time,” he aptly said once.
Some of his best writing is also about love and joy. He showed all sides of humanity in his unforgettable Black characters.
“Love takes off the masks we fear we cannot live without and know we cannot live within,” he said.
While he was an award-winning, eloquent writer who joined the long list of American writers and artists becoming expats in Paris, he remained a fierce and vocal advocate for the civil rights movement in the United States. He called Medgar Evers, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King Jr. friends in his lifetime, and is credited in his essay “The Fire Next Time” included in the collection “The Fire Next Time; Nobody Knows My Name; No Name in the Street; The Devil Finds Work,” for giving the young but growing civil rights movement of the early ’60s its voice.
If you’ve been meaning to finally pick up a title of his or even if he’s an old favorite you’re looking to revisit, his birthday is the perfect opportunity. Below we’ve gathered seven of his top titles worth picking up or revisiting.
1. “Vintage Baldwin”
If you’re in the market for a comprehensive collection of his writing, “Vintage Baldwin” includes essays, short stories, and excerpts from novels and plays.
2. “Going to Meet the Man”
“Going to Meet the Man” is a collection of short stories by Baldwin about people who are genuinely trying to not just survive but also thrive in a world that keeps throwing punches. Who else can relate?
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3. “Giovanni’s Room”
For those who may want to know what Paris was like for a Black expat in the 1950s, Baldwin’s “Giovanni’s Room” beautifully tells the complex story of just that.
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4. “Another Country”
Spanning Greenwich Village, Harlem, and France, “Another Country” shows what happens when Black and white people, men and women, put their masks down.
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5. “Go Tell It On the Mountain”
As a 13-year-old boy’s 14th birthday approaches, in “Go Tell It On the Mountain,” the young protagonist grapples with his realities living in Harlem in the 1930s. The coming-of-age story is loosely based on Baldwin’s own growing up in Harlem.
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6. “If Beale Street Could Talk”
Baldwin’s novel “If Beale Street Could Talk” tells the story of a woman whose life is turned upside down in the 1970s after her lover is wrongfully accused of a crime. Barry Jenkins’ film adaptation swept the awards show season with nominations and wins, further solidifying the timelessness of this tale.
Related: Shay Youngblood, writer of ‘Black Girl in Paris’ and ‘Shakin’ the Mess Outta Misery,’ dead at 64
7. “I Am Not Your Negro”
The book Baldwin didn’t get the chance to finish before his death, “I Am Not Your Negro” was revisited in the documentary of the same name by filmmaker Raoul Peck that finishes telling the story Baldwin began about racism in America.
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