ISBN: 1328911241 9781328911247

Category: Fiction / Fantasy / Contemporary

Page count: 194

<p><b>INSTANT <i>NEW YORK TIMES </i>BESTSELLER</b><br><br><b>"An unbelievable debut, one that announces a new and necessary American voice." </b>--<b>Tommy Orange, <i>New York Times Book Review</i></b><br><br><b>"An excitement and a wonder: strange, crazed, urgent and funny."</b> --<b>George Saunders</b><br><br><b>"Dark and captivating and essential . . . A call to arms and a condemnation . . . Read this book." </b>--<b>Roxane Gay</b><br><br><b>A National Book Foundation "5 Under 35" honoree, chosen by Colson Whitehead<br> Winner of the PEN/Jean Stein Book Award<br> Finalist for the National Book Critics Circle's John Leonard Award for Best First Book</b><br><br><b>A piercingly raw debut story collection from a young writer with an explosive voice; a treacherously surreal, and, at times, heartbreakingly satirical look at what it's like to be young and black in America.</b><br><br> From the start of this extraordinary debut, Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah's writing will grab you, haunt you, enrage and invigorate you. By placing ordinary characters in extraordinary situations, Adjei-Brenyah reveals the violence, injustice, and painful absurdities that black men and women contend with every day in this country.<br><br> These stories tackle urgent instances of racism and cultural unrest, and explore the many ways we fight for humanity in an unforgiving world. In "The Finkelstein Five," Adjei-Brenyah gives us an unforgettable reckoning of the brutal prejudice of our justice system. In "Zimmer Land," we see a far-too-easy-to-believe imagining of racism as sport. And "Friday Black" and "How to Sell a Jacket as Told by Ice King" show the horrors of consumerism and the toll it takes on us all.<br><br> Entirely fresh in its style and perspective, and sure to appeal to fans of Colson Whitehead, Marlon James, and George Saunders, <i>Friday Black</i> confronts readers with a complicated, insistent, wrenching chorus of emotions, the final note of which, remarkably, is hope.</p>