Begin Again

A penetrating study of how the words of James Baldwin continue to have (often painful) relevance today. Baldwin's genius glimmers throughout as Glaude effectively demonstrates how truth does not die with the one who spoke it. -Kirkus Reviews (starred review) Even if you don't agree with Glaude's interpretations, you'll find yourself productively arguing with them. He parses, he pronounces, he cajoles. He spurs you to revisit Baldwin's work yourself. -The New York Times Not only is Baldwin brought rushing forth from the page, with all the beauty of his prose and complexity of his thought, but Glaude's voice joins him with a force and clarity of its own...., Baldwin and Glaude offer us a path forward that is both exceedingly difficult and genuinely hopeful. -The Post and Courier Begin Again is a groundbreaking and informative guide to Baldwin and his era. -Washington Post Begin Again is...filled with the type of passion, lyricism, and fire that James Baldwin commands and deserves.... This phenomenal work [is]a timeless and spellbinding conversation between two brilliant writers. -Edwidge Danticat, author of Brother, I'm Dying and Everything Inside One need not agree with everything in these pages to learn much from them, and for Americans seeking to understand our past, our present, and the possible futures before us, Begin Again challenges, illuminates, and points us toward, if not a more perfect union, at least a more just one. - Jon Meacham, author of The Soul of America and Destiny and Power Glaude's work is urgent, pained, and strangely hopeful. He is issuing a call to reckoning: not just with the dishonesty of America's founding promises, but with the tolls that its intrinsic racism has taken on the artists and thinkers who have come before. -Rebecca Traister, author of All the Single Ladies and Good and Mad The magic of Begin Again is that it allows us to ponder Baldwin both in his perilous era and in our own. Remarkable, and remarkably relevant. -Tracy K. Smith, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Life on Mars Begin Again is an unparalleled masterpiece of social criticism. Glaude thinks alongside America's finest essayist, matching the master's firepower, brilliance, courage, and sensitivity at every turn....This book is precisely the witness we need for our treacherous times. -Imani Perry, author of Breathe and Looking for Lorraine In this powerful and elegant book, Glaude weaves together a biography, a meditation, a literary analysis, and a moral essay on America....It is at times both loving and angry, challenging and uplifting, and always beautiful. Both Baldwin and this book speak directly to today. -Walter Isaacson, author of Steve Jobs and Leonardo da Vinci Begin Again is a rugged literary miracle. In evocative prose, Glaude showed me how we might use the unexceptional yet brutal nightmare of Trumpism to not simply better understand the work and life of James Baldwin, but how that discovery must lead us as people to 'begin again' and walk collectively toward actual liberation. -Kiese Laymon, author of Heavy This book is, undoubtedly, the best treatment we have of Baldwin's genius and relevance. -Cornel West, author of Democracy Matters and Race Matters