Giovanni's Room

<p><b>One of the BBC's '100 Novels That Shaped Our World'</b> <p><b>Baldwin's ground-breaking second novel</b><b>, which established</b><b> him </b><b>as</b><b> one of the great American writers of his time</b> <p>David, a young American in 1950s Paris, is waiting for his fiancée to return from vacation in Spain. But when he meets Giovanni, a handsome Italian barman, the two men are drawn into an intense affair. After three months David's fiancée returns and, denying his true nature, he rejects Giovanni for a 'safe' future as a married man. His decision eventually brings tragedy. <p> Filled with passion, regret and longing, this story of a fated love triangle has become a landmark of gay writing. James Baldwin caused outrage as a black author writing about white homosexuals, yet for him the issues of race, sexuality and personal freedom were eternally intertwined. <p>'Exquisite... a feat of fire-breathing, imaginative daring' <i>Guardian</i> <p>'Excruciating beauty' <i>San Francisco Chronicle <br></i><br>'Audacious... remarkable... elegant and courageous' Caryl Phillips</p>