![]() ![]() His relationships with Hella and Giovanni suffer and roll into despair as David learns and fails to accept parts of his self-discovery. The story is told from the perspective of David, a young, closeted American who comes to France to “find himself.” While his fiancée (Hella) is away in Spain, David enters into a relationship with an Italian bartender, Giovanni. The novel – just around 160 pages – is a paramount example of Baldwin’s ability to capture the wrought nuance of inner conflict. ![]() But it is Baldwin’s unique prose that truly makes the short book worth reading. ![]() “Giovanni’s Room” is a staple of the literary canon, and its intertwining themes of identity, immigration and American nationalism are as relevant today as they were in the 1950s. ![]() Movies like “I Am Not Your Negro” (2016) and “If Beale Street Could Talk” (2018) have found critical success but unintentionally place a shadow over Baldwin’s influence as a queer author. Still, recent adaptations of Baldwin’s work tend to emphasize or exclusively center on one (albeit integral) facet of his literary identity: his race. James Baldwin’s “Giovanni’s Room” routinely tops lists of Baldwin must-reads – and yet, it seems to be the work that the 21 st century is least interested in.īaldwin’s prominence as a writer and activist cannot be overstated. ![]()
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