James Baldwin (1924–1987), author
James Meese (1917–1971), cover artist
Go Tell It on the Mountain
New York: A Signet Book, published by The New American Library, 1954
Manuscripts, Archives, and Rare Books Division, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
Go Tell It on the Mountain
By the time Knopf published Go Tell it on the Mountain in May 1953, Baldwin was back in Paris and broke, frustrated, and alone. Happersberger had moved on to a relationship with a woman with whom he had recently had a child. Although the novel was misunderstood by some reviewers, The New York Times called it “beautiful, furious,” and Ralph Ellison (author of Invisible Man), a new friend of Baldwin’s, declared it a “story of great poignancy.” Moreover, the act of completing Go Tell It on the Mountain helped Baldwin come to terms with long-suffered wounds—above all, those resulting from his stepfather’s cruelty. With Mountain finally behind him, he was freer to explore new terrains of self-expression.
: Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division, Schomburg Center for Research in…
Currently on View at Stephen A. Schwarzman Building
The copyright and related rights status of this item has been reviewed by The New York Public Library, but we were unable to make a conclusive determination as to the copyright status of the item. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use.
