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The Furious Passage of James Baldwin
He has been called passionate and violent, cryptic and probing, hostile and eloquent. His works have been called brilliant and unbearable, poetic and documentary, classic and controversial. He is a major voice of the Civil Rights Movement. His words, which have compelled, agitated and hypnotized a nation, are now heard around the world.
That is the public image of James Baldwin. But there is also an aspect of Baldwin that grew out of self-deprecation and a search for personal identity; a timorous side that his mother worried over in the presence of a step-father who would not acknowledge him, and that his teachers watched carefully because there was precocity beneath it, trying to force its way out. There was a child who thought he was ugly and useless, who was overly self-conscious about his appearance and couldn’t find the love he needed to make his own existence bearable. There is a man who “I’ve been scared to death since I was born and I’ll be scared till I die. But if you’re scared to death, walk toward it.” And there is an author whose tremendous impact on American literature—and American life—has, until now, not been fully measured.
Fern Marja Eckman has based this vivid book on hours and hours of taped interviews with Baldwin and with the people who are significant in his story. She presents a detailed account of Baldwin’s Harlem childhood, a portrait of the exile who returned to his country to shock it into reappraisal of its racial and sexual attitudes, and an inside view of his part in Robert Kennedy’s civil-rights meeting in 1963. Speaking with James Baldwin and probing the complex mixture of extreme hate and intense love that characterize him, she presents a profile told largely in his own words—one which is essentially Baldwin on Baldwin.
That is the public image of James Baldwin. But there is also an aspect of Baldwin that grew out of self-deprecation and a search for personal identity; a timorous side that his mother worried over in the presence of a step-father who would not acknowledge him, and that his teachers watched carefully because there was precocity beneath it, trying to force its way out. There was a child who thought he was ugly and useless, who was overly self-conscious about his appearance and couldn’t find the love he needed to make his own existence bearable. There is a man who “I’ve been scared to death since I was born and I’ll be scared till I die. But if you’re scared to death, walk toward it.” And there is an author whose tremendous impact on American literature—and American life—has, until now, not been fully measured.
Fern Marja Eckman has based this vivid book on hours and hours of taped interviews with Baldwin and with the people who are significant in his story. She presents a detailed account of Baldwin’s Harlem childhood, a portrait of the exile who returned to his country to shock it into reappraisal of its racial and sexual attitudes, and an inside view of his part in Robert Kennedy’s civil-rights meeting in 1963. Speaking with James Baldwin and probing the complex mixture of extreme hate and intense love that characterize him, she presents a profile told largely in his own words—one which is essentially Baldwin on Baldwin.
- GenresBiography
254 pages, Paperback
First published April 7, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
December 25, 2021
This has the feel of a magazine profile of Baldwin from his boyhood to the 60s, which makes sense since the author is a journalist. Her voice and language have a bit of a dated feel and a gossipy tone at times.
She weaves together quotes from her lengthy interviews with him along with information from other published articles and relevant biographical detail.
The best part is reading his words. And learning about his life trajectory - from family beginnings in Harlem to his exile abroad, to his transformation into a leading civil rights figure.
She weaves together quotes from her lengthy interviews with him along with information from other published articles and relevant biographical detail.
The best part is reading his words. And learning about his life trajectory - from family beginnings in Harlem to his exile abroad, to his transformation into a leading civil rights figure.
May 2, 2025
A book about Baldwin, written with lyrical beauty on par with Baldwins’ own, without ever trying to be him.
April 16, 2022
for real one of my favorite books, especially his passage on American homosexuality. poetry for doomers, his passion will move you towards something
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews