Welcome to Litsy!

Always a favorite!

Love spending time with these families. Fave reread: slim book thick with language & emotion, throwing shade & spreading tenderness. Arbitrary, wrongful incarceration. Gorgeousness & pain. Frank‘s end still feels abrupt & off, but offers up the families‘ despair while giving the lovers another day. 1974

143 “When two people love each other, when they really love each other, everything that happens between them has something of a sacramental air.”

I went into this mostly blind to what it was about, an innocent man behind bars, his fiance pregnant and family fighting to get him out. I love Baldwin and his writing here is as impeccable as ever. The characters are vivid and you feel for each of them, there are some scenes that would not be written today, it has the definite feel of a book written before #MeToo but also the feel of books needed about our justice system.

I‘ll be thinking about this one for awhile. Hopefully I can chat about it with my friend who also read it recently.

Happy #independentbookstoreday
I listened to the tagged book on my way to and from, especially since it is #deweys24hourreadathon today too.

A timeless story, both in terms of young love and, unfortunately, the oppression Black people are subjected to in this country. I really loved Tish and her family and what a true picture Baldwin paints of the lengths a supportive family will go to protect their loved ones.

#ArtfulAugust Day 8: #Choices Choices indeed from my recent book haul here in ‘Murrica. Too many books, too little time. Full book hunting expedition post now up today: https://wp.me/pDlzr-oyr

This book is a deep romance, and I loved it. Not an easy story, and set alongside the pain of reality as a Black family in the US. But this is a beautiful love story.

“But these days, of course, everybody knows everything, that‘s why so many people so lost.”

Brilliant. Beautiful, heartbreaking, lovely. My first James Baldwin, but it won't be my last

And the audiobook, read by Bahni Turpin, is wonderful

#authoramonth

This was my last book of July, and it was a doozie. Having never read Baldwin before, I was surprised at the smooth unveiling of the storyline, how it drifted from past to present seemlessly, and that mix of joy and love and heartbreak he delivered. “If it can get worse, it can get better,“ maybe, but that despair at the end! 😭
#AuthorAMonth

#20in4 #Readathon starts today and goes thru Tuesday! Thank you, @Andrew65 , for hosting. 😊 I'm gonna try to make some progress on all these books I'm #CurrentlyReading. I don't know how much time I'll have, especially since today I'm chaplain on-call at the hospital, but at least my commute gives me about 3 hours of audiobook time each day! I'll definitely finish the tagged, and it'll definitely break my heart. #20in4Readathon

The way James Baldwin writes about pregnancy, you'd think he'd been through it multiple times! I so deeply relate to Tish...This book is so beautiful and heartbreaking. I have less than 1.5 hours left in the audiobook, so I should finish it today.

I'm less than 15 minutes into this audiobook, and I already love it so much...

Read my first Baldwin novel for #AuthorAMonth. I've read a few short stories & essays previously. It was fantastic - powerful and moving. His writing is so distinctive, almost lyrical and stream-of-consciousness at times. The only thing that bothered me as a reader was writing from a female point of view, some of the thoughts he attributed to Tish & other women didn't feel "true." Especially some of their thoughts about the men. ⬇️ @Soubhiville

#AuthorAMonth I can‘t express how maddening this story is. All too often this situation played out this way. I‘m ashamed I put off Baldwin‘s works until now, but so happy to correct this. 5 ⭐️

@Soubhiville

This is another beautiful story by James Baldwin. Written nearly 50 years ago, it's still relevant today. Which says something really not good about our society. The #audiobook is read by Bahni Turpin who is always amazing.

#AuthorAMonth with @Soubhiville

#BookSpinBingo square 18
@TheAromaofBooks

#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks #AuthorAMonth2021 @Soubhiville

This book was such a poignant beautiful read that left me broken and fixated on how relevant it still is to today, which also deeply saddened me because as a society I wish we had moved beyond the injustices portrayed in Baldwin's classic.

This is the first book I've ever read by Baldwin and I understand why he is so wildly cherished as an author. His words are powerful.

Fonny is in jail for a crime he didn‘t commit...while Tish, the woman he deeply loves and plans to marry, is pregnant and just trying to survive. A very relevant book...even today. With that said...I just couldn‘t “get into” it. I am tired and just want to read lighter stories. Ha, the happy non-thinking kind.

#authoramonth @Soubhiville

Baldwin‘s writing draws you in and you can‘t help but feel for these characters and want for them to be successful in getting Forney out of jail. As much as I enjoyed the story, I found the ending to be really abrupt and that brought down the rating. #AuthorAMonth #BookspinBingo

So much of this is beautifully romantic prose - juxtaposed with anger, frustration & pain as a result of racism & police brutality. But the ending admittedly felt pretty jarring. Perhaps that was the point. #AuthorAMonth

I wanted to like this. I did. I'm not a prude, but too much language just isn't my thing. But I was determined to finish it for #Authoramonth. However, as much as I appreciate Mr. Baldwin's contributions to literature, I won't be reading any more.

⭐⭐/⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This book was so well written. I loved how Baldwin showed us things with his words rather than telling us. The story itself was really sad. I can‘t believe we haven‘t fixed this yet. #AuthorAMonth2021

Painful and bittersweet story of 19 yo Tish and young sculptor Fonny, the father of her baby. But their true love is interrupted by the wrongful arrest and imprisonment of Fonny for murder. Though it‘s a common theme, unjustified imprisonment is a familiar part of our real world 💔😥. Narrator Bahni Turpin is, as always, awesome 👏🏻
#authoramonth2021 @Soubhiville
#bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

Sad and painful story about racism, and at the same time very tender story about young love/lovers and the meaning of community. Prose is excellent, but the saddest part of this story is how relevant still is … #AuthorAMonth

#JulyJourneys #JulyTBR

Looking forward to another great bunch of books. Along with these the rest will come off my #BookSpinBingo board. Happy July and happy reading everyone!

"If Beale Street Could Talk" is my first James Baldwin book; I was unaware of everything he captured. This could have easily been a book about today's current climate and not something that he had written in 1974 - 1974?!?

This won't be my last James Baldwin, just the first.

#readharder

#Bookspin July @TheAromaofBooks

I should be back on track for August.

Still relevant after almost 50 years. #blitsy #blacklitsy

“I look at myself in the mirror.”
#FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl

If Beale Street Could Talk is a dynamic book with a young couple, Tish & Fonny, who seem to be the center of the book. Fonny has been falsely imprisoned & is trying to remain optimistic yet is realistic knowing what justice is like for Black people in America. The other center of the book is the powerful & bitter struggle between Tish & Fonny's families, specifically their mothers. As Joyce Carol Oates wrote in her review of the book👇

Baldwin's book is about Tish & Fonny. At the beginning of the book Tish visits Fonny in prison, where he is serving a sentence for a crime he didn't commit, to tell him that she's pregnant with his child. As Tish & Fonny struggle to remain optimistic they initially take guidance from the #matriarch of each family, who are polar opposites. Whereas Tish's mom is loyal, forgiving & generous, Fonny's mom is suspicious, zealous & mean spirited. 👇

1) The 4 pictured are my favorites so far. The year is only a quarter over. It's going to be a great reading year!!
2) Pre-covid I would occasionally read in outdoor cafes or parks. Looking forward to doing so again.
3) Undecided.
@MoonWitch94 #thoughtfulthursday

Wow this book. Discussed with my senior living bookclub tonight. Once we got past the language and crazy sex scenes (Fonny‘s parents 😳) we started talking about the meat of the story. One participant described it as a fairy tale love story structure, but where the obstacle is institutionalized racism. It‘s lyrically written, difficult, and powerful.

The tagged book comes to mind! An American Marriage as well. My most recent read The Kindest Lie is also about a variety of different kinds of Black love.

#IntegrateYourShelf @ChasingOm @Emilymdxn

Thank you @Chelleo How amazing to come home and find this waiting for me. #bhms #blitsyswap

What a way to end the month! I was so moved by this I am seriously contemplating a read through of Baldwin's fiction (previously read Another Country & a smattering of short stories) this year. Were there a few issues here & there with it? Probably. But the overall effect is just astonishing & the novel remains unfortunately as topical as when it was initially published. Raw, tender, immediate, lyrical...this is the Baldwin I first experienced👇

This book 💙💔

my first baldwin! what beautiful writing. i definitely want to rewatch the movie.

As relevant today as the 1960s. Are we going backwards?

My first Baldwin and I‘m obsessed with his writing!

This was my first Baldwin and it definitely won‘t be my last. I was blown away by it. Published in 1974 and still so relevant that it makes me really angry but the book itself is just brilliant. Tbh I‘m not sure I know exactly what happened at the end but I know what I want it to mean.
I found this on Libby and immediately put it on hold, when it came in I was pleasantly surprised to find out the narrator is Bahni Turpin! One of my favourites.

James Baldwin was a genius and this story is beautiful and heartbreaking all at once. Whenever I hear James speak or read his words it always hits me how little has changed. This book could‘ve taken place in 2019.

What a wonderfully written book, poetic almost at times. A story of injustice that could unfortunately have been set now.

"...her face began to change. It became bonier and more private, much more beautiful. Her long narrow eyes darkened with whatever it was they were beginning to see."

This was my first exposure to James Baldwin's writing and I absolutely loved it. He flawlessly changed points of view and the story kept my attention. His writing style is so descriptive and beautiful. I want to read more of his work!

Next up. Seems like a fitting read. Also want to watch the movie.

Juneteenth is a celebration of remembrance,action,celebration for black lives. Happy juneteenth #juneteenth #2nd independence

Maybe I don't cry, but it hurts. ✊🏾
Maybe I won't say, but it feel.✊🏾
Maybe I don't know, but I care.✊🏾