Go Tell It on the Mountain by James Baldwin

Zero to Well-Read

Riot New Media Group, Inc.

Arts, Books, Society & Culture

4.7 • 837 Ratings

🗓️ 3 February 2026

⏱️ 89 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Rebecca and Jeff revisit James Baldwin's searing coming-of-age novel about faith, family, shame, and generational inheritance. They discuss Baldwin's complicated relationship to the church, what it means to be “saved” in a world structured to deny freedom, and why the book's questions about power, masculinity, and belief still feel urgent today. Subscribe to our free newsletter, and become a member for access to early, ad-free listening and bonus content. Follow Zero to Well-Read on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. Email us: zerotowellread@bookriot.com Zero to Well-Read is a proud member of the Airwave Podcast Network. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	On today's episode, go tell it on the mountain, James Baldwin's debut novel, believe it or not.
0:05.2	This is a debut novel. If you want to find a copy for yourself, thriftbooks.com has lots of choices.
0:11.3	You can get a standard paperback that's just the text, and that's going to be great.
0:15.0	But if you're looking for something with a little context, something a little special, I've got two picks for you here.
0:20.1	First is the addition from
0:21.9	the Everyman's Library came out in 2016. The special about this one is the introduction by the
0:26.5	great Edwidge Dandikad. The other one you might look at here is the Library of America version.
0:32.7	1998. It's Giovanni's room, go tell it on the mountain, and some other early stories from Baldwin,
0:39.8	and a whole host of critical and biographical and bibliographical information there.
0:45.1	Thanks to Thriftbooks.com for sponsoring this season of Zero to Well Red.
0:50.0	This is your latest idea.
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1:24.9	Welcome to Zero to Well Read, a podcast about everything you need to know.
1:28.3	About the books you wish you read, I'm Jeff O'Neill.
1:31.3	And I'm Rebecca Shinsky.
1:32.8	Today we are discussing a legendary writer's debut novel, Go Tell It on the Mountain, by James Baldwin.
	...

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