The Cross of Redemption : Uncollected Writings – James Baldwin

The cross of redemptionThe Cross of Redemption is a revelation by an American literary master: a gathering of essays, articles, polemics, reviews, and interviews that have never before appeared in book form.

James Baldwin was one of the most brilliant and provocative literary figures of the past century, renowned for his fierce engagement with issues haunting our common history. In The Cross of Redemption we have Baldwin discoursing on, among other subjects, the possibility of an African-American president and what it might mean; the hypocrisy of American religious fundamentalism; the black church in America; the trials and tribulations of black nationalism; anti-Semitism; the blues and boxing; Russian literary masters; and the role of the writer in our society.

Prophetic and bracing, The Cross of Redemption is a welcome and important addition to the works of a cosmopolitan and canonical American writer who still has much to teach us about race, democracy, and personal and national identity. As Michael Ondaatje has remarked, “If van Gogh was our nineteenth-century artist-saint, Baldwin [was] our twentieth-century one.” Amazon.com

If you liked Ta-Nehisi Coates, Beyond the World and Me, you will love Baldwin’s essay, The White Problem. Ron Sheehy

1 Comment on "The Cross of Redemption : Uncollected Writings – James Baldwin"

  1. This is a great find. Baldwin was one of the best observers of the black American experience. More, he could convey this experience in such compelling manners as to dare the reader to ignore it; such that to ignore it (race relations, social differentiation, racism, oppression, power, internalization, and …) was a personal flaw in the character of the reader.

    I look foward to reading this supreme trove of his observations.

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