Sonny's Blues [Short Story Review]

[I spoil the main themes of this story.]

"Sonny's Blues" is a short story written by James Baldwin. It was published in 1957.

Relatable. This is a story about how sometimes someone in your family can just go down a rotten path, and there is not much you can do but watch it happen. The good news in this story is that after all the bad things happen, there is a clear chance for recovery. In the case of "Sonny's Blues," the problem was drug use.

Sonny is the brother of the protagonist, and after he is able to return to his family, things are pretty rough. It kind of feels like your own brother has turned into a stranger, but at the same time, there seems to be a little bit of him there that you remember. The narrator does his best to cling to this in the hope that Sonny won't drop back into old habits, and it certainly does look like something that could happen.

What is very important about Sonny in this story is that he actually does want to change. That doesn't mean he will, but he is putting an effort into it. Sometimes those ideas of his connect with the narrator and sometimes there is a very bitter disconnect. It isn't easy... for anybody.

Now, this story takes place well within the jazz and blues era of music, and these guys are all musicians in their own way. Sonny plays the piano, and if he can just get his life going straight, that might lead to an opportunity in the right direction. But like I said... it's hard, and he really does need to do most of the effort himself.

The great thing about this story is it really does have a good ending. It isn't perfectly conclusive, but it is one of hope. Sonny just manages to find a pathway out of his bad habits through "the blues." It shows that he has found a way to express his sorrows and take back his life. The last section of the story was really well-written, and I loved it.

I do recommend this one. It has more to do with music than it seems at first. You can't really have music in a written story, but somehow, I could hear it in my head as the descriptions were given. That was pretty awesome.

This blog was written on September 8, 2026.

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