Journalist and author Hilton Als illuminated James Baldwin as a writer and a person during his visit to campus Oct. 23 as part of Northwestern’s “One Book, One Northwestern” program.

Als’ speech represents the latest lecture in a series set to finish Nov. 15. The three final events of the series include a film screening, a political theory discussion and a keynote address on Baldwin’s view of America. Als’ lecture, however, focused on Baldwin’s two sides rather than the issues he raises within his book Go Tell It On the Mountain.

“One was a writer, which is to say, a person who likes to be alone. And then there was the other person who really just wanted to be loved deeply and well by other people. …So I’ve written two sides of James Baldwin.”

Als, a former staff writer for The Village Voice and editor-at-large at Vibe magazine, won a Guggenheim for creative writing in 2002, among other awards, and has been working with The New Yorker since 1989. Als has served as the magazine’s theatre critic since 2002.

Als read two essays during his lecture. The first researched and reflected on Baldwin’s work throughout his European exile. The second of the essays was a fictional response to factual information about Baldwin and his work.

Hear Als speak:

Huey Copeland, an assistant professor in Northwestern’s Art History department, introduced Als as an author whose connection to his readers compares to Baldwin’s influence.

“Like many folks with more than a passing interest in contemporary culture, I’ve been in the thrall of his unmistakable writerly voice ever since,” Copeland said.

The “One Book, One Northwestern” events are free and open to the public. See http://www.amstp.northwestern.edu/onebook/index.html for scheduling information.