SPOILERS PRESENT
I read Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin in preperation for Waterstones Deansgate’s ‘Required Reading’ bookclub
I bought the Penguin Clothbound Classics version
This book was brilliant and affected me deeply. I did not know what it was really about before reading it, and I found the subject matter very difficult. I grew up in an area, time and had an upbringing that was very homophobic, and at least some of that homophobia has stayed with me - is ANY man who identifies as heterosexual entirely free from all social imprinting aspects of homophobia? I would hope that we are getting to an age where that is increasingly not the case, but in 2025 there are still entire countries where homosexuality is punishable by death.
Anyway.
Reading through this book I felt a huge amount of empathy for the complex and difficult lives of people living as homosexuals in an era that was almost entirely unaccepting of homosexuality. The fear, the shame, the way they had to ‘hide’ their true feelings, to repress them, to pretend they do not exist, to hate them when they recognise them in themselves, to hate others before of how they make they themselves feel. How can any reasonable and decent person who has a heart NOT feel empathic and sympathetic towards such a cruel and harsh existence?
So I think the real villain of the book is societies attitudes towards homosexuality, and the imprinted fear and shame that has so starkly affected the lead character, David.
In a world where he was free of this internalised homophobia deeply impressed on him by society, and free of this twisted half-love half-hatred, and free to choose the person he wanted and love them in a unperverted genuine affectionate way, then Giovanni and David would have been happy together, and Giovanni wouldn’t have ended up the way he was.
In reading it, it has made me understand a lot more and be compassionate towards the secrecy and repressed pain that still exists, must exist, even today, in LGBT+ relationships, and which large swathes of society would simply not be aware of unless you have read such a powerful and intimate exposition of such a relationship as described in this book.
I think there is a huge theme of privilege and class in the book as well. Giovanni is portrayed as of a different social class to David and his friends, and so much of Giovanni’s fate is decided because of that - he has to endure so much because he is not of a class where he can expect to be provided for on his own, and must struggle and suffer. David doesn’t have to work at all, and was never really in any danger of poverty - it was kind of a fake ‘bohemian for a summer’ middle class ‘slumming it’ existence for David, whereas for Giovanni was constantly fighting for survival, and gets exploited in numerous ways because of this.
David has the ability to ‘dip his toe’ in “Giovanni’s Room” and walk away from the misery he creates because of his privileged position, not only because of his pre-existing relationship with Hella, but also because he has financial security and stability offered by his background.
The book is very well-written and evocative in an almost poetic intensity. I wish my French was better so that I could understand more of the lines in French, although it is not strictly required.
All in all a brilliantly written book, and one that I think more people should read because it gives a powerful insight into a world and a different setting that existed and still exists in reality but we may be totally unaware of prior to reading, and in doing so gives us a better understanding of humanity.