Amani’s Reviews > If Beale Street Could Talk > Status Update

the narrative is double linear, following the events before and after Fonny’s arrest and the suspense that builds leading up to the events of his arrest and the efforts Tish makes to release him from the shackles of bogus charges—it’s so intense and moving. i’m consistently near anguish and each acknowledgment of the unfairness of their circumstances just…gets me ☹️

“And, while I may have known this, in one way, a little while ago, now the baby knows it, and tells me that while it will certainly be worse, once it leaves the water, what gets worse can also get better. It will be in the water for a while yet: but it is preparing itself for a transformation. And so must I.”

baldwin’s prose is so immersive in this one, i’m hooked—he’s raw, and real, as always, but he seems so honed in on a larger feeling it’s a wonder watching him weave this story.

love how we just start in Trish’s stream of consciousness & immediately start feeling like we’re swiming through her memories