Book cover of James Baldwin: Collected Essays

Book description

James Baldwin was a uniquely prophetic voice in American letters. His brilliant and provocative essays made him the literary voice of the Civil Rights Era, and they continue to speak with powerful urgency to us today, whether in the swirling debate over the Black Lives Matter movement or in the…

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Why read it?

2 authors picked James Baldwin as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Baldwin is, I believe, our best essayist. His work stands the test of time and always will. Here you have a writer who can combines heart and brain gracefully and with great humanity.

I am recommending this book because one can’t understand power without being beholden to it systemically and repeatedly, all the while dissecting power’s discontents. Baldwin’s words may seem to strike only to America’s core, but every marginalized person will find truth in them. As an Egyptologist, I rely on Baldwin to tell me what oppressed people in an authoritarian regime thought but could not commit to paper.

From Kara's list on power and the powerless.

If you love James Baldwin...

Book cover of Silver Lady: Travels Along the River Road

Silver Lady by Susan E. Sage,

The world is fraying. Art is disappearing. And one woman sets out on the river before everything changes forever.

A few years into the future, society is unraveling. Violence is rising. The aftermath of a devastating pandemic still lingers. And across the country, a phenomenon known only as the Vanishing…

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