A Brief History of Seven Killings
New York, New York: Riverhead Books, 2014. First Edition, First Printing. Hardcover. Very Fine/As New / Dust Jacket Very Fine/As New. Item #5235
ISBN: 9781594486005
All profits from the sale of this edition will be donated directly to the Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund.
Signed by the author in person at an independent bookstore. In Very Fine/As New condition with no discernible flaws to either the book or the dust jacket. Dust jacket intact with price and protected in a removable archival cover. Dust Jacket is a true first, without the later “Booker Man Prize” label.
In an interview with NPR, Marlon James explores the historical incident that inspired this title: "Two days before the concert [The Smile Jamaica Concert], these gunmen, around seven or eight, burst into Bob Marley's house on Hope Road, machine guns blazing...They shot nearly everybody. Bob Marley got shot in the chest and the arm. His wife got shot in the head. Miraculously, everybody survived."
Set against the tumultuous backdrop of 1970s Kingston, the narrative unfolds through the diverse perspectives of over a dozen characters including local gang members, CIA operatives, and a Rolling Stone journalist. The novel received extensive critical praise, earning the 2015 Man Booker Prize as well as the OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature, the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award, and the Minnesota Book Award. It was also a finalist for the 2014 National Book Critics Circle Award.
James also authored the highly regarded novels “The Book of Night Women” and “John Crow’s Devil.” He currently serves on the faculty of Macalester College, where he teaches literature.
James’ most recent literary undertaking, the Dark Star Trilogy, beginning with "Black Leopard, Red Wolf," explores myth, power, and identity through an epic fantasy. The first installment is currently being adapted for television by producer Michael B. Jordan.
While speaking to Esquire’s Addrienne Westfield in 2022, James reflected on the renewed interest in speculative fiction, particularly during the pandemic: "It was happening before the pandemic, too. A lot of writers of color were writing fantastical stories or incorporating fantastical elements into true stories, like Carmen Maria Machado’s "In the Dream House." My theory is that what we're really doing is bigger than fantasy writing—it’s myth-making. We have a way of always turning to myth-making as a response to things we can't understand. "Lord of the Rings," for example, came out of World War I. Even before the pandemic, we were trying to figure out what this century's all about. When we have these big, nearly unanswerable questions, we can’t help but return to gods and monsters to try to figure them out.”
In an episode of the Trillbilly Workers Party podcast “Screwy Stuey & The 6 Million $ Man Do Gatlinburg,” guest Sturgill Simpson offered a passionate recommendation of the book.
Price: $950.00 other currencies