Giovanni's Room Paperback – 4 October 2001

Good read indeed

'Then I wanted to beg him to forgive me. But this would have been too great a confession; any yielding at that moment would have locked me forever in that room with him. And in a way this was exactly what I wanted.'Giovanni's Room is a brilliant book. It has all the elements in it to be called a perfect piece of literary fiction - sublime language, complex and realistic characters,a heavy dose of tender emotions and the climactic tragedy.This lyrical work is a tumultuous study of humans caught in the miasma of shame, lust, guilt and desire. The protagonist is trapped in what is society's conception of correctness. The city of Paris, the bar houses, the streets and 'Giovanni's room' mimic this congestion. It's breathtaking how the writer has juxtaposed the abstract and the physical.Everything about this book is hauntingly mesmerising and tenderly moving. It is a remarkable gay novel, but it's not just a gay novel. It's about everyone and for everyone.Please read this, I insist you.What I didn't like was the not so subtle misogyny in the book which is definitely unsettling not so much because it is anti women which, well, it is, but more because it creates a sinister relationship between homosexuality and misogyny. It can be misleading and harmful in ways more than one. I can't say if the author intended that but the last thing one expects to find in gay literature is the usual streaks of homophobia laced with comfortable ignorance and insensitivity.But I can't change my stand on how compelling this book is. It's easily one of the best books I have read, a 5 🌟 book if not for the not-so-slightly bugging thing about women and gays, so I give it 4 🌟Here, have a look at this bewichingly beautiful paragraph -"I remember that life in that room seemed to be occurring beneath the sea, time flowed past indifferently above us, hours and days had no meaning. In the beginning our life held a joy and amazement which was newborn every day. Beneath the joy, of course, was anguish and beneath the amazement was fear; but they did not work themselves to the beginning until our high beginning was aloes on our tongues. By then anguish and fear had become the surface on which we slipped and slid, losing balance, dignity, and pride."Have I convinced you enough?

A book filled with a very melancholy palette of all the dark colours briefly interrupted by a few light ones; 'Giovanni's Room' succeeds in narrating beautifully, a deep and intense coming-of-age love story which ordinary fiction cannot bring out even in Volumes. An absolute must-read! Read it even if you're not Queer and read it till the end!

This book, possibly the first major one of its genre, has the capacity to shake the very core of an individual. Baldwin’s exercise of navigating the inner conflict within David is executed precisely and powerfully. The ending of the book is spectacular. One can almost hear the drums slowly reverberating. It is stunning. And it lingers. It will linger within the reader for a long time.

The actual price is 799 for hard bound book. But the 5 stars are for the author and not the seller.

Giovanni’s Room deserves a standing ovation for tackling the highly sensitive subject of homosexuality in the early 1900s. The theme and the idea behind it is certainly laudable. But, this is where the positive ends.James Baldwin’s writing is at best confused. Characters aren’t developed properly and this leads to absolutely chaos in their behaviour.While you do feel sorry for the plight Giovanni and David are in, you certainly don’t feel any emotional connect with either of them. This has more to do with Baldwin’s writing, than the characters themselves.As a whole, Giovanni’s Room is a half-hearted attempt at a story that could have been made heart-breakingly beautiful. Unfortunately, it falls dismally short.But I’m willing to give Baldwin the praise he deserves for tackling such a sensitive topic at a time when it was illegal to even talk about it.Pick up this book if you’re looking to expand your reading horizons, but don’t let your expectations run wild.

Sexual orientation—a subject much talked about, but less accepted. Everyone knows, what is it, how does it come to light, and also when, but nobody talks about why. Why is important to talk about it, why is it important to treat it as a common as periods, and most of all what to do about it...This novel #GiovannisRoom talks about the life of a guy named David, who discovers his sexual orientation through an unforeseen instance in his childhood. He convinces himself of it being a mistake and lives his life for a lie. And so indulges in a heterosexual relationship growing up...It's only after his girl Hella moves away for a short trip when he moves out and discovers his long-suppressed feelings as a man. He meets Giovanni, a handsome barman; to get him acquainted to his own friend Jacques, he holds up a conversation. Only to realise, Giovanni's interest lies only in him...From friends to lovers, was quite easy a transition, but it didn't last long. Hella's comeback with her brought the fear of the past, David's incapability of accepting who he was. Soon, he moved out of Giovanni's room and left a bitter experience of love behind...While he moved on, nothing seemed to be the same. He had the love of his life—Hella, but love was nowhere to be felt. Giovanni's death sentence was the last blow and his life broke down like a house of cards in a go. He lingered with what he knew; only his acceptance came now. In the end, all he was left with, was hope—that the heavy grace of God, which brought him to the place, can carry him out it.

the dimensions of the book are kinda smaller than most books (18cm x 11cm). paper quality is great and font is readable. happy with the purchase. delivered on time.