Indian Readers discussion

Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin

Hi all
Bookspective and I are going to buddy read the above mentioned book, starting from the 15th of this month. It's a classic gay romance, and we would be pleased if anyone else would like to join in the read and the discussion following it.

Hi! I'm Madhumita. May I join you'll?

Hey Madhumita, definitely. The more the merrier.

Hi Leena, thanks for the link!

welcome Anulekha

Hi everyone, welcome to this Buddy read.
This is my first James Baldwin book, and I have read some good reviews about this author, so I am looking forward to reading this book.

the same here. And alive heard great stuff about the book, too.

How do we divide the book?

There are 2 parts to the book. Part 1 has 3 chapters and Part 2 has 5 chapters. Would you'll like to read 2 chapters a day and finish the book in 4 days?

Thanks, M. I'm OK with whatever the majority goes with.

Works for me.

Hi everyone,
have you started reading the book?

I read the first 2 chapters yesterday and the first thing that struck me is that the character David is blond ( white American). For some reason, I had expected him to be an image of the author, of course I wasn't expecting this book to be autobiographical. Wonder if I would have accepted a blond David if I had not known the author's background .. 🤔

I agree, too. His description of himself totally blindslided me. But, what writing. Oh boy ! Now I can understand what lyrical writing means. And the sentences are so long drawn. Im actually rereading them to make sense.
The description of the train journey in first personnis something thats different, but I liked it.

And yet—when one begins to search for the crucial, the definitive moment, the moment which changed all others, one finds oneself pressing, in great pain, through a maze of false signals and abruptly locking doors.

Beuatiful lines. Self introspection is just so hard.

"And the very harshness of this judgment, which broke my heart, revealed, though I could not have said it then, how much I had loved him, how that love, along with my innocence , was dying."

We are Cruelest to the people closest to us.

Its interesting how one incident changes a life for better or worse..

People who believe that they are strong-willed and the masters of their destiny can only continue to believe this by becoming specialists in self-deception.

Such fantastic introspective writing. Im blown.

Bookspective wrote: "Hi everyone,
have you started reading the book?

I read the first 2 chapters yesterday and the first thing that struck me is that the character David is blond ( white American). For some reason, I..."

I started reading but could manage only one chapter.
Even I was surprised by David's description. However, I am really liking the writing.
Eager to catch up on the weekend.

take your time. it's really intense. I just finished chapter 2. David is a hypocrite. In fact, the other character, Jacques, too, is a shallow ,hypocritical , manipulative guy.

Hi everyone, how is the reading going? Yes, the 1st part is intense. But it flows well once you get used to the writing and the story sets in.

Leena, I get your point about David being a hypocrite. But I feel David can't be blamed for his behavior. He evidently is grappling with his sexual identity, and this book was written in a time when those with varied sexual orientation were probably clueless themselves.

I am in part 2, chapter 4 and I will try to finish by tomorrow.

There were quite a few parts I had to read again. It is indeed quite intense.
I might finish by the day after tomorrow.

You know, when I read it's a romance, I actually visualised it as a historical, breezy m/m. I never thought of a deep, introspective, charachter analysing book.

Hi all, I've finished reading this book and shall share my thoughts when you all have read it too.

"Somebody,” said Jacques, “your father or mine, should have told us that not many people have ever died of love. But multitudes have perished, and are perishing every hour—and in the oddest places!—for the lack of it."

such lovely lines and so, so true.

Ladies , I'm.sorry I'm.lagging behind. shall finish off today.

Finished . I loved it. I cannit believe the dual plot line hes packed in here.👏👏👏👏 a standing ovation to James Baldwin.

Im waiting for your thoughts, Priya.

Hi everyone,

Hope Anulekha and Madhumitha have finished reading the book.

Yes, the writing is absolutely incredible. I now am a fan of this author's writing and can't wait to read his other works. Nearly every page has a quote worth highlighting, that's insane. And yes as you have mentioned Leena, it's amazing how James Baldwin has managed to bring in so many elements into a perfect novella.

The characters are well thought out and their emotions were truly believable and timeless. I can Imagine someone from this age experiencing a similar mental agony as Giovanni did.

Even David's plight, I hate David but I get why he behaves this way. He grows up in a household that is not supportive and neither does he have any friends to reach out to. Plus, Jacques and Guillame turn out to be opportunistic prick. Of course,This still is no excuse for David to betray Giovanni.

I remember this quote

“ Something had broken in me to make me so cold and so perfectly still and far away.”

This shows that David clearly understands Giovanni's pain.

I also wonder if Giovanni had been more clear about what he expected from this relationship then this would not have ended tragically. I think Giovanni's room is a reflection of his insecurities. Losing a child has robbed him of his faith and forced him to move away to a new city, leaving behind the security of his home and family. And this is what David did not want to get entangled in.

What are your thoughts ladies?

i liked your interpretation of the room and the metaphor representation.
Yes, Giovanni was not very clear regarding the direction of this relationship. even David was opportunistic about it. I cannot excuse Giovanni for leaving his wife at the time she needed him.most. Its interesting how human psyche works, right? After all he hated David leaving him.

Yes Leena, leaving his wife is inexcusable, so David leaving does feel like karma.

Anyway, thanks Leena for this buddy reading. Hope we get to read another book sometime

absolutely. throw out some names as probables.

Hey guys,
It took me some time to finish due to some work commitments.
I enjoyed the book a lot. Even though I did not appreciate David's character, I could relate to him. We all have our insecurities. And given the time when this was written, his insecurity regarding his sexuality was justified.
One thing which was a bit challenging for me was the French phrases. I had to search the internet for their meanings constantly.
But I marvelled at how James Baldwin expressed the characters' emotions.

I loved his language. so lyrical.

For sure. Very flowy and beautifully written.
I will check out Baldwin's other works now.