The Fire Next Time and Between the World and Me Reading Guide

Explore the themes of the condition of whiteness, the condition of blackness, and creation and destruction in this guide to James Baldwin's The Fire Next Time and Ta-Nehisi Coates's Between the World and Me. Part of the We the People Book Club, a year-long program contemplating America’s past and possibilities, this guide was created for individual and group use. Questions within each theme facilitate (1) your interpretation of the text, (2) your personal reflections inspired by your reading, and (3) practices for you to try that animate the book's democratic values. Thanks to Julia Davis, Practicing Democracy Fellow, for writing these guides and coordinating the We the People Book Club program.