The Fire Next Time cover art

The Fire Next Time

Preview

Try Premium Plus free
1 credit a month to buy any audiobook in our entire collection.
Access to thousands of additional audiobooks and Originals from the Plus Catalogue.
Member-only deals & discounts.
Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Fire Next Time

By: James Baldwin
Narrated by: Jesse L. Martin
Try Premium Plus free

$16.45 per month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $16.99

Buy Now for $16.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using voucher balance (if applicable) then card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions Of Use and Privacy Notice and authorise Audible to charge your designated credit card or another available credit card on file.
Cancel

About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

'We, the black and the white, deeply need each other here if we are really to become a nation'

James Baldwin's impassioned plea to 'end the racial nightmare' in America was a bestseller when it appeared in 1963, galvanising a nation and giving voice to the emerging civil rights movement. Told in the form of two intensely personal 'letters', The Fire Next Time is at once a powerful evocation of Baldwin's early life in Harlem and an excoriating condemnation of the terrible legacy of racial injustice.

'Jesse L Martin... highlights the rhythmic nature of Baldwin’s prose, and channels his anger and devastation at the unceasing suffering of Black Americans.' (The Guardian)

'A seminal meditation on race by one of our greatest writers.' (Barack Obama)

'Sermon, ultimatum, confession, deposition, testament, and chronicle...all presented in searing, brilliant prose.' (The New York Times Book Review)

©1963 James Baldwin (P)2024 Penguin Audio
African American Studies Freedom & Security Racism & Discrimination Religious Studies United States

Critic Reviews

'Riveting...part of Baldwin's enduring power is that he was not a political thinker. He was interested in the soul's dark spaces much more than in the body politic.' (Colm Toibin)

What listeners say about The Fire Next Time

Average Customer Ratings

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.