New Book Explores James Baldwin’s Most Intimate Relationships – See the Cover Here (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

Pulling from new archival material, original research and interviews, the book — the first major biography of Baldwin in three decades — studies the cultural, artistic, political and erotic aspects of these relationships and their impact on Baldwin’s work, the civil rights movement and overarching queer and Black literary histories.

Pulitzer Prize-winning Ilyon Woo, author ofMaster, Slave, Husband, Wifecalls the book"A virtuosic feat of literary imagination, rhapsodic, and transportive … fast-paced and, at times, movingly tender, with love palpable throughout, the total effect is symphonic. This book deserves a standing ovation."

Kai Bird, whoseAmerican Prometheusalso won the Pulitzer Prize, says the book is “a formidable achievement, beautifully written, engrossing, and extremely intimate," adding that the biographer’s “wild and most improbable treasure hunt” to uncover who Baldwin truly was “unearths more than one poignant love story. James Baldwin’s life is revealed in all its triumphs and agonies.”

Boggs, the recipient of the 2023 Whiting Creative Nonfiction Grant, also helped republish Baldwin’s only children’s book,Little Man, Little Man, in 2018. Written with Cazac and first published in 1976, the picture book was written for Baldwin’s nephew, Tejan Karefa-Smart.

The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now!“It wasn’t like anything else he’s written, and the more I read it, it wasn’t like anything else I’d read,” Boggs told theNew York Timesof the picture book in 2018.

James Baldwin.Jenkins/Getty

Jenkins/Getty

Baldwin: A Love Storyis an important addition to the author’s acclaimed legacy.

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.“This book magnifies our understanding of one of the major literary and cultural figures of the twentieth century, whose contributions only continue to grow in influence,” an official synopsis reads.Baldwin: A Love Storywill be published on Aug. 19, 2025 and is now available for preorder, wherever books are sold.

source: people.com