Friday Black by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

Image Credit: "Dystopia" by Quirin Gertz, used under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Note: This is not the official cover art for Friday Black.

---

Friday Black by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Mariner Books

Expected Publication Date: October 23, 2018

Format Reviewed: E-book

ISBN: 9781328911247

---

This review is based upon an ARC provided by NetGalley and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Five innocent, black children are beheaded with a chainsaw outside the public library, and the white, “stand your ground” assailant is set free. That is the provocative beginning of Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah’s new short story collection, Friday Black. A dark mix of dystopia and reality, this tale, and many that follow it, stretch the bounds of fiction and social commentary. In “Zimmer Land,” for example, American justice becomes an amusement park, while truth and Darwin’s survival of the fittest collide in a surreal “The Era.” Other stories, like “Friday Black,” take a sardonic turn when shoppers are routinely trampled to death in their pursuit of post-Thanksgiving sales. And “Lark Street” pivots from violent to strange when a teenage abortion sets the stage for talking fetuses and psychics.

This fine balance of the familiar and the absurd is where Friday Black excels. Like a house of fun mirrors at the circus, Adjei-Brenyah’s best stories create outlandish distortions that not only entertain, but force readers to view the world from a different perspective. They demand readers see the horror that is so obviously in front of them without the fluff and comfort fiction often provides. Friday Black is cultural criticism with a wild, violent edge.

Filled with satire, fantasy, and science fiction, this collection should interest a wide array of critical readers. This includes literary lovers and readers of non-fiction, who may find the reflection of current events in Adjei-Brenyah’s work illuminating. A modern classic in the making.

Heavy: An American Memoir by Kiese Laymon

Image Credit: "The Man" by lets.book, used under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Note: This is not the official cover art for Heavy.

---

Heavy: An American Memoir by Kiese Laymon

Publisher: Scribner

Expected Publication Date: October 16, 2018

Format Reviewed: E-book

ISBN: 9781501125652

---

This review is based upon an ARC provided by NetGalley and Scribner.

By his own admission, Kiese Laymon did not want to write this memoir; he wanted to write a book of lies. Lies about being a black man in America. Lies about his body, gorged and purged to the point of physical breakdown. Lies about his reckless gambling addiction. Lies about his white, teenage girlfriend and black, collegiate love. Lies about his mother; lies to his mother. Lies about promises made, and lies about promises broken. Kiese Laymon wanted to lie; he wanted to lie about it all. But he told the truth, and what remains is an uncompromisingly honest reflection on black life.

Heavy, as the title suggests, is weighty in its story and composition. Every sentence is an emotional wallop of carefully constructed syllables, and each period serves as an opportunity for the reader to catch their breath. The extreme vulnerability on display is often overwhelming, and in the hands of a lesser writer, could feel exploitative. But Laymon’s mastery of the language keeps him firmly in control of the narrative – and keeps the reader’s eyes on the page. A powerful work reminiscent of those by Roxane Gay and Ta-Nehisi Coates, Keise Laymon’s Heavy is a must-read exploration of the personal, political, and racial intersections of America.

American Overdose: The Opioid Tragedy in Three Acts by Chris McGreal

Image Credit: "Share the Drugs Paul" by Thomas Hawk, used under CC By-NC 2.0

Note: This is not the official cover art for American Overdose.

---

American Overdose: The Opioid Tragedy in Three Acts by Chris McGreal

Publisher: Perseus Books, Public Affairs

Expected Publication Date: November 13, 2018

Format Reviewed: E-book

ISBN-13: 9781541773776

---

This review is based upon an ARC provided by NetGalley and Perseus Books.

The central question of McGreal’s comprehensive investigation into America’s opioid epidemic is straightforward: how did such a such a pressing public health issue go unanswered for decades? How did an issue that blossomed in the 1990s only receive mainstream attention in the 2010s? The answers set forth by McGreal are numerous: reliance on a dubious 1980 addiction study; aggressive corporate pressure; cozy ties between pharmaceutical companies and federal regulators; and simple indifference. This reality is laid bare in interviews with individuals from every angle of the epidemic – from the powerful to the powerless. Addicts and their families tell stories of heartbreak and destruction, while FDA officials and disgraced medical professionals lament missed warnings and regrets. McGreal provides critical commentary as these narratives unfold and concludes with an unflinching critique of those who enabled or ignored the crisis. An extensive tale of morality reported with care and purpose.

As the opioid epidemic gains more mainstream attention, McGreal’s work provides readers with a big picture view of the issue. The subject matter is complex, but nevertheless made accessible through the author’s journalistic prose. An important book for our times, which should be of particular interest to followers of the opioid crisis, sociological issues, and public policy.