[SuchFriendsAreDangerous]

Just finished "Another Country" by James Baldwin.. The narration and particular the use of sensory details and rich descriptive adjectives is uniquely fantastic. I also liked the deep character development and insights HOWEVER I felt some of the grittier aspects were a bit forced abruptly or even contrived. Now I realize this is biased on having read all the literature AFTER Baldwin where drugs, promiscuity, homosexuality are commonplace themes so the sheer groundbreaking aspect of his use of these themes should be applauded, however, strictly judging the art by its own merits, I think he either should have better developed how these themes fit into his otherwise well-developed characters OR just not bothered to include it. It makes the narrative become rather incoherent at times. Also, I really don't like how characters suddenly break into dialogue and conversation about deeply existential, political, and societal issues almost arbitrarily in the middle of otherwise trivial conversations with people they had barely met! Who does that in real life?