Giovanni's Room - James Baldwin

I long to be again among all those foolish people, running for metros and jumping off of buses and dodging motorcycles and having traffic jams and admiring all that crazy statuary in all those absurd parks. I weep for the fishy ladies in the Place de la Concorde. Spain is not at all like that. Whatever else Spain is, it is not frivolous. I think, that I would stay in Spain forever--if I had never been to Paris. Spain is very beautiful, stony and sunny and lonely. But by and by you get tired of olive oil and fish and castanets and tambourines--or, anyway, I do. I want to come home, to come home to Paris.

An excellent book detailing moral struggles in post war Paris. The writing is exquisite; the story engaging and compelling. Baldwin deservedly ranks as a great American writer. Having never read Baldwin before, I was instantly taken in by his great composition and unique voice. It is raw and gritty. Confusion, dilemmas, and estrangement dominate this predominately dark novel. However, the short book covers a deep array of human emotions and feelings. It is worth reading both for the expert writing as well as the thoughts and feelings it invokes. The book forces the reader to examine what is deep within us and often kept private. The writing is able to effortlessly take a fresh look at morals and sexuality. A very important book well worth one's time.