The Conversations with Baldwin Book Club is a book club reading the work of 20th-century American author James Baldwin. It is part of the wider Conversations with Baldwin festival celebrating the life and work of author and activist James Baldwin.

James Baldwin (1924 – 1987) was an American essayist, novelist, and playwright whose eloquence and passion on the subject of race in America made him an important voice in the 20th century.

The book we will be reading is Giovanni’s Room. Published in 1956, Giovanni’s Room was groundbreaking and controversial at the time for its representation of gay relationships, bisexuality, and its cast of entirely white characters from a writer whose first novel, Go Tell It On the Mountain (1953), launched him as an electrifying writer of black American life.

This event is part of Conversations with Baldwin, a festival celebrating the life and work of 20th-century author and activist James Baldwin. Conversations with Baldwin is produced by Words of Colour and supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England.

For more information on the rest of the programme, visit: wordsofcolour.co.uk/conversations-with-baldwin

Want to get the book? Buy a copy here, or borrow a copy from Hackney Libraries.