Go Tell It on the Mountain

by James Baldwin

272 pages

Published Oct. 4, 2001 by Penguin Books Ltd.

ISBN:: 978-0-14-118591-0

(31 reviews)

Go Tell It On The Mountain, first published in 1953, is Baldwin's first major work, a semi-autobiographical novel that has established itself as an American classic. With lyrical precision, psychological directness, resonating symbolic power, and a rage that is at once unrelenting and compassionate, Baldwin chronicles a fourteen-year-old boy's discovery of the terms of his identity as the stepson of the minister of a storefront Pentecostal church in Harlem one Saturday in March of 1935. Baldwin's rendering of his protagonist's spiritual, sexual, and moral struggle of self-invention opened new possibilities in the American language and in the way Americans understand themselves.

1 edition

statori reviewed Go Tell It on the Mountain by James Baldwin

Review of 'Go Tell It on the Mountain' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

It may be a heretical opinion, but my eyes glazed over when Baldwin waxes religious. He has pages and pages of metaphors about "trembling" and "the Saints" that are beautifully written and subtle, but eventually start to seem like extraneous religious fluff. I couldn't help but skim past some of these sections to see when the book would finally get to the point. Despite this, the book has deep character portraits, and integrates the interaction between American racism and the lives of the people portrayed expertly and subtly.

franksbooks reviewed Go Tell It on the Mountain by James Baldwin

Review of 'Go Tell It on the Mountain' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

A great novel about humanity and its hypocrisies

Pentapod reviewed Go Tell It on the Mountain by James Baldwin

Review of 'Go Tell It on the Mountain' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

Picked this up because apparently a classic of American literature. The characters are deep and detailed (and mostly very unhappy) and the author does very well giving you a chance to understand and sympathise with even the worst of them. However, I had a very hard time getting through this book because absolutely every aspect of the story is entirely tied up with religion (evangelical Christian), which not only saves the main character in a rather unbelievable ending but also seems to have caused most of everybody's problems in the first place.

Michael @ Knowledge Lost reviewed Go Tell It on the Mountain by James Baldwin

Review of 'Go Tell It on the Mountain' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

Go Tell It on the Mountain is the first major release by James Baldwin and is a semi-autobiographical novel about growing up in Harlem. James Baldwin never knew his biological father and his stepfather was a strict Baptist minister. Go Tell It on the Mountain mainly follows the character John Grimes (who is the autobiographical character in the novel) but really shifts focus to other characters, to allow the exploration of John’s immediate family.

It took James Baldwin ten years to write Go Tell It on the Mountain and he has often stated that it was not a book he wanted to write but a book he felt he had to get out of his system before he would write anything else. This is a semi-autobiographical novel that focuses mainly of the hypocrisy within the community. James Baldwin’s stepfather was a minister and the way he acted in church was vastly different than when he was at home. He was a strict and abusive parent and this hypocrisy was evident within this novel.

However, there is so much more to this novel than just exploring how different people act when at church. Baldwin has a lot to say about the community and, while racism plays a big part within this debut novel, it was some of the other themes that interested me the most. The struggle between life and faith is a topic that I am fascinated in and while it is not the same as found in the memoir The Dark Path, this is explored in an interesting way within this novel. John Grimes had a spiritual awakening as a teenager and went onto become a preacher, however the hypocrisy he found within the church disheartened him and eventually he walked away from that life.

Yet Go Tell It on the Mountain goes a little deeper in exploring the hypocrisy of the church with subtle references to Baldwin’s sexuality. This is not explored in great detail within this book but it is a major theme in Giovanni’s Room. The way this novel explores the church life is fascinating and he shows great care for his characters; take for example John’s stepfather Gabriel, he may be hypocrite but he still requires some sympathy. He married John’s mother and raised him even if their union would be considered controversial within the church. I love how this novel plays with the religion and the way people differ between their church and home life.

This was my first James Baldwin novel but I have had the opportunity to read some of his short stories in the past. On the surface Go Tell It on the Mountain does sound like it is just focused on the hypocrisy of the church but I love the depth James Baldwin put into this book. The characters are so well crafted that even if you want to hate them you still feel a little compassion towards them. I cannot put my finger on James Baldwin’s writing style; at times it reminds me of dirty realism but all I know is that it makes me want to read more of his novels.

This review originally appeared on my blog; literary-exploration.com/2015/03/22/go-tell-it-on-the-mountain-by-james-baldwin/

Baltipink reviewed Go Tell It on the Mountain by James Baldwin

Review of 'Go Tell It on the Mountain' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

I know this is the book he received the most acclaim for, but this is the only one that didn't grab me and stay with me for years. I think I just didn't relate to the experiences like I did with his other books.