Books

Alfred A. Knopf. New York. 1953. 303 pages. First edition stated, first printing. Binding and hinges are strong and tight. Rust-color cloth boards are stamped in gold on the front panel and spine. Pages and endpapers are bright and clean. A touch of shelf-rubbing to cloth on the lower front corner tip, and rear shoulder. This original first edition, first printing is wrapped in a bright First Edition Library facsimile DJ. Again, the book is an original 1953 first edition, first printing, housed in a high-quality facsimile DJ. Go Tell It on the Mountain is a 1953 semi-autobiographical novel by James Baldwin that tells the story of John Grimes, an intelligent teenager in 1930s Harlem, and his relationship with his family and his church; on the surface. The novel's depth coupled with Baldwin's style has led the Modern Library to put Go Tell It on the Mountain 39th on its list of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century. Time Magazine included this novel on its TIME 100 Best English-language Novels from 1923 to 2005. A VG+ first edition, the first printing of James Baldwin's first book and magnum opus. A masterpiece of American literature and a rare plum for any serious book collector.

Go Tell It on the Mountain is a semi-autobiographical novel by James Baldwin that examines the role of the Christian Church in the lives of African-Americans, both as a source of repression and moral hypocrisy and as a source of inspiration and community. It also details the social and psychological pressures that lead to the moral and spiritual decline of John Grimes, a teenage boy much like Baldwin himself.