Overview
The best of the best from a powerful voice in the American literary landscape who fearlessly tackled race, sex, politics, and art in his internationally acclaimed novels, short stories, plays, and essays.
" Baldwin] uses words as the sea uses waves, to flow and beat, advance and retreat, rise and take a bow in disappearing...the thought becomes poetry and the poetry illuminates thought." --Langston Hughes
James Baldwin was and remains a powerfully prophetic voice in the American literary landscape. His literary achievement is a lasting legacy about what it means to be American. Vintage Baldwin includes the short story "Sonny's Blues"; the galvanizing civil rights examination "My Dungeon Shook: Letter to My Nephew on the One Hundredth Anniversary of the Emancipation"; the essays "Fifth Avenue, Uptown: A Letter from Harlem," "The Discovery of What It Means to Be an American," and "Nobody Knows My Name: A Letter from the South"; and excerpts from the novel Another Country and the play The Amen Corner. "If Van Gogh was our 19th-century artist-saint, James Baldwin is our 20th-century one." --Michael Ondaatje
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Details
- ISBN-13: 9781400033942
- ISBN-10: 1400033942
- Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
- Publish Date: January 2004
- Dimensions: 8.08 x 5.16 x 0.56 inches
- Shipping Weight: 0.47 pounds
- Page Count: 208
Related Categories
New Vintage paperback series marks 50 years in the book business
Here's an interesting bit of literary trivia: trade paperback books—those appealing, affordable little volumes that bibliophiles just love to collect—first made their way onto the market in 1954. That year, publishing magnate Alfred A. Knopf announced a debut list of very special titles, a group of hardback classics that would be reissued in handsome paperbound editions by a new division of his company. That imprint was none other than Vintage Books, and its inauguration 50 years ago was a watershed moment in the world of literature.
Of course, readers are now familiar with the Vintage miracle—the magical transformation of great hardcover titles into irresistible paperbacks, complete with eye-catching jackets and distinctive typefaces. Now, in celebration of its 50th anniversary, Vintage is giving book lovers another reason to browse the shelves: Vintage Readers, a group of attractive, budget-friendly anthologies designed to give an overview of a particular author's work. Vintage Readers covers an international roster of writers, with volumes on V.S. Naipaul, Martin Amis, Joan Didion, Richard Ford, Haruki Murakami, Langston Hughes, Oliver Sacks and others. Each of these special literary samplers offers selections of essays, short stories, poems and novel excerpts, featuring lesser-known material and work never before collected in book form. The volumes also include brief author biographies. There are 12 books in the series so far, each just over 200 pages in length and priced at $9.95. This month, BookPage pays tribute to the Vintage vision by spotlighting some of the entries in the new lineup.
Sandra Cisneros
A favorite with fiction lovers, best-selling author Cisneros is a one-of-a-kind writer whose work distills the Latina experience. Cisneros' work has been translated into more than a dozen languages, and she has won numerous awards. Vintage Cisneros (ISBN 1400034051), with excerpts from the novels Caramelo and The House on Mango Street, poems from My Wicked Wicked Ways and Loose Women, and stories from Women Hollering Creek, is the perfect introduction to one of the strongest voices in contemporary literature.
James Baldwin
A groundbreaking African-American author, Baldwin produced classic works of both fiction and nonfiction over the course of his career. His writings on race during the 1960s were definitive, provocative and explosive, and they're featured in Vintage Baldwin, which includes excerpts from his nonfiction works Nobody Knows My Name and The Fire Next Time. Baldwin's fiction is also represented here, with the timeless short story "Sonny's Blues" and an excerpt from the novel Another Country.
Barry Lopez
Although he made his name as an essayist and nature writer, Lopez has also produced several masterful collections of short stories. Vintage Lopez (ISBN 1400033985) provides a broad sampling of his work, with choice pieces from the nonfiction books About This Life and Crossing Open Ground, as well as the National Book Award-winning Arctic Dreams. The volume also features a generous helping of Lopez's fiction, with stories from Field Notes and his recent book Light Action in the Caribbean.
Alice Munro
Mistress of the modern short story, Munro writes narratives brimming with crystalline moments of revelation. This National Book Award-winning writer has earned international acclaim by bringing her corner of Canada to life. Vintage Munro (ISBN 1400033950) spans the beloved author's long and distinguished career, featuring stories from much-praised collections like The Moons of Jupiter, The Progress of Love, Open Secrets and her most recent book, Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage.
New Vintage paperback series marks 50 years in the book business
Here's an interesting bit of literary trivia: trade paperback books—those appealing, affordable little volumes that bibliophiles just love to collect—first made their way onto the market in 1954. That year, publishing magnate Alfred A. Knopf announced a debut list of very special titles, a group of hardback classics that would be reissued in handsome paperbound editions by a new division of his company. That imprint was none other than Vintage Books, and its inauguration 50 years ago was a watershed moment in the world of literature.
Of course, readers are now familiar with the Vintage miracle—the magical transformation of great hardcover titles into irresistible paperbacks, complete with eye-catching jackets and distinctive typefaces. Now, in celebration of its 50th anniversary, Vintage is giving book lovers another reason to browse the shelves: Vintage Readers, a group of attractive, budget-friendly anthologies designed to give an overview of a particular author's work. Vintage Readers covers an international roster of writers, with volumes on V.S. Naipaul, Martin Amis, Joan Didion, Richard Ford, Haruki Murakami, Langston Hughes, Oliver Sacks and others. Each of these special literary samplers offers selections of essays, short stories, poems and novel excerpts, featuring lesser-known material and work never before collected in book form. The volumes also include brief author biographies. There are 12 books in the series so far, each just over 200 pages in length and priced at $9.95. This month, BookPage pays tribute to the Vintage vision by spotlighting some of the entries in the new lineup.
Sandra Cisneros
A favorite with fiction lovers, best-selling author Cisneros is a one-of-a-kind writer whose work distills the Latina experience. Cisneros' work has been translated into more than a dozen languages, and she has won numerous awards. Vintage Cisneros (ISBN 1400034051), with excerpts from the novels Caramelo and The House on Mango Street, poems from My Wicked Wicked Ways and Loose Women, and stories from Women Hollering Creek, is the perfect introduction to one of the strongest voices in contemporary literature.
James Baldwin
A groundbreaking African-American author, Baldwin produced classic works of both fiction and nonfiction over the course of his career. His writings on race during the 1960s were definitive, provocative and explosive, and they're featured in Vintage Baldwin, which includes excerpts from his nonfiction works Nobody Knows My Name and The Fire Next Time. Baldwin's fiction is also represented here, with the timeless short story "Sonny's Blues" and an excerpt from the novel Another Country.
Barry Lopez
Although he made his name as an essayist and nature writer, Lopez has also produced several masterful collections of short stories. Vintage Lopez (ISBN 1400033985) provides a broad sampling of his work, with choice pieces from the nonfiction books About This Life and Crossing Open Ground, as well as the National Book Award-winning Arctic Dreams. The volume also features a generous helping of Lopez's fiction, with stories from Field Notes and his recent book Light Action in the Caribbean.
Alice Munro
Mistress of the modern short story, Munro writes narratives brimming with crystalline moments of revelation. This National Book Award-winning writer has earned international acclaim by bringing her corner of Canada to life. Vintage Munro (ISBN 1400033950) spans the beloved author's long and distinguished career, featuring stories from much-praised collections like The Moons of Jupiter, The Progress of Love, Open Secrets and her most recent book, Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage.