The Fire Next Time. by Baldwin, James - 1963

New York: The Dial Press, 1963. Early printing of one of the most influential works on race relations published in the twentieth century. Octavo, original cloth. Presentation copy, lengthily inscribed by the author on the dedication page, "For Zine He & Phil Emile: In deep appreciation of their impressive contribution to the continued sanity of two people, & in the hope that we will become friends. Jim Baldwin." Near fine in a very good dust jacket. Jacket design by Paul Bacon. Jacket photograph by Mottke Weissman. Rare and desirable. Signed copies of The Fire Next Time are uncommon; those with such a lengthy inscription exceedingly so. 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.