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The Fire Next Time
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The Fire Next Time Paperback - 1992

by James Baldwin

At once a powerful evocation of his childhood in Harlem and a disturbing examination of the consequences of racial injustice, The Fire Next Time, which galvanized the nation in the early days of the Civil Rights movement, stands as one of the essential works of our literature. (Vintage)February


About this book

The Fire Next Time is a book by James Baldwin. It contains two essays: "My Dungeon Shook - Letter to my Nephew on the One-Hundredth Anniversary of Emancipation", and "Down At The Cross - Letter from a Region of My Mind". The first of these is written as a letter to Baldwin's 14-year-old nephew, discussing the central role of race in American history. The second essay deals with the relations between race and religion, focusing in particular on Baldwin's experiences with the Christian church as a youth, as well as the Islamic ideas of others in Harlem. Both essays had been previously published in The Progressive and The New Yorker before being published in book form.

Summary

“Basically the finest essay I’ve ever read. . . . Baldwin refused to hold anyone’s hand. He was both direct and beautiful all at once. He did not seem to write to convince you. He wrote beyond you.” —Ta-Nehisi Coates At once a powerful evocation of James Baldwin’s early life in Harlem and a disturbing examination of the consequences of racial injustice, the book is an intensely personal and provocative document from the iconic author of If Beale Street Could Talk and Go Tell It on the Mountain. It consists of two “letters,” written on the occasion of the centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation, that exhort Americans, both black and white, to attack the terrible legacy of racism. Described by The New York Times Book Review as “sermon, ultimatum, confession, deposition, testament, and chronicle...all presented in searing, brilliant prose,” The Fire Next Time stands as a classic of literature.

From the publisher

NATIONAL BESTSELLER - The book that galvanized the nation, gave voice to the emerging civil rights movementin the 1960s--and still lights the way to understanding race in America today. - "The finest essay I've ever read." --Ta-Nehisi Coates

At once a powerful evocation of James Baldwin's early life in Harlem and a disturbing examination of the consequences of racial injustice, the book is an intensely personal and provocative document from the iconic author of If Beale Street Could Talk and Go Tell It on the Mountain. It consists of two "letters," written on the occasion of the centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation, that exhort Americans, both black and white, to attack the terrible legacy of racism. Described by The New York Times Book Review as "sermon, ultimatum, confession, deposition, testament, and chronicle ... all presented in searing, brilliant prose," The Fire Next Time stands as a classic of literature.

From the jacket flap

A national bestseller when it first appeared in 1963, The Fire Next Time galvanized the nation and gave passionate voice to the emerging civil rights movement. At once a powerful evocation of James Baldwin's early life in Harlem and a disturbing examination of the consequences of racial injustice, the book is an intensely personal and provocative document. It consists of two "letters," written on the occasion of the centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation, that exhort Americans, both black and white, to attack the terrible legacy of racism. Described by The New York Times Book Review as "sermon, ultimatum, confession, deposition, testament, and chronicle...all presented in searing, brilliant prose," The Fire Next Time stands as a classic of our literature.

First Edition Identification

The Fire Next Time was first published in 1963 by Dial Press. 

Details

  • Title The Fire Next Time
  • Author James Baldwin
  • Binding Paperback
  • Edition [ Edition: Repri
  • Pages 128
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Vintage, New York
  • Date 1992-12-01
  • ISBN 9780679744726 / 067974472X
  • Weight 0.3 lbs (0.14 kg)
  • Dimensions 7.9 x 5.2 x 0.4 in (20.07 x 13.21 x 1.02 cm)
  • Ages 14 to 14 years
  • Grade levels 9 - 9
  • Reading level 1300
  • Themes
    • Ethnic Orientation: African American
  • Library of Congress subjects African Americans, United States - Race relations
  • Library of Congress Catalog Number 92050566
  • Dewey Decimal Code 305.896

Media reviews

"So eloquent in its passion and so scorching in its candor that it is bound to unsettle any reader."--The Atlantic

Citations

  • Ebony, 11/01/2005, Page 42
  • New Yorker (The), 02/09/2009, Page 106
  • Newsweek, 11/03/2008, Page 16

About the author

JAMES BALDWIN (1924-1987) was a novelist, essayist, playwright, poet, and social critic. His first novel, Go Tell It on the Mountain, appeared in 1953 to excellent reviews, and his essay collections Notes of a Native Son and The Fire Next Time were bestsellers that made him an influential figure in the growing civil rights movement. Baldwin spent much of his life in France, where he moved to escape the racism and homophobia of the United States. He died in France in 1987, a year after being made a Commander of the French Legion of Honor.

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The Fire Next Time
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The Fire Next Time

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