Squeaking in here at the last minute with the book giveaway!

Details for entering are in this month’s newsletter, which goes out Wednesday. Enter by February 28th, 2020, 9 pm Pacific. Winner will be announced on the blog February 29th!

This month’s book is James Baldwin’s Go Tell It On the Mountain.  This is a challenging (and semi-autobiographical) novel about John, the 14-year-old son of a Pentecostal preacher struggling to waken to his own identity and faith.  The novel takes place mainly during a couple of church services where John and the other characters confront memory, desire, expectation, and truth.  Baldwin’s dive into the enormous pressure and emotional manipulation of a Pentecostal upbringing astounded me and took me right back to my own teen years.  (With the caveat that Baldwin’s Pentecostalism is also an escape from a racially charged and oppressive world I have no ability to understand.)  This is a book about race, doubt, sexuality, abuse, and rage, and Baldwin is a profoundly skilled writer. I hope you’ll give it a try.

Good luck!