Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah Explained

Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
Birth Date:c. [1] [2]
Birth Place:The Bronx, New York
Language:English
Alma Mater:University at Albany, SUNY, Syracuse University
Genre:Speculative fiction

Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah is an American speculative fiction author who wrote the short story collection Friday Black (2018) and his debut novel Chain-Gang All-Stars (2023). He was named one of "5 under 35 Authors" by the National Book Foundation in 2018 and won the PEN/Jean Stein Book Award in 2019.[3] Chain-Gang All-Stars was shortlisted for the 2023 National Book Award for Fiction and The New York Times named it one of the ten best books of 2023.[4]

Early life and education

Adjei-Brenyah was born in the Bronx, New York but grew up in Spring Valley, New York. Both of his parents are from Ghana.[5] His father was a defense attorney and his mother was a kindergarten teacher. Adjei-Brenyah started writing from a young age and wrote for his high school's literature magazine.

Adjei-Brenyah went to the University at Albany, SUNY, for his undergraduate degree, where he learned from Lynne Tillman. He later attended the graduate writing program at Syracuse University with the goal to study with George Saunders in the creative writing program. Saunders later became his thesis adviser and mentor. Adjei-Brenyah later went on to teach in the same program.

After college, Adjei-Brenyah became interested in prison abolition and worked at the Rockland Coalition to End the New Jim Crow.

Writing career

Adjei-Brenyah's published works are set in near-future dystopias. They often explore the topics of exploitation, capitalism, and the societal acceptance of violence. His non-fiction writing includes a forward to How a Game Lives, a collection of critical essays by Jacob Geller.[6] [7]

Friday Black

See main article: Friday Black. Adjei-Brenyah's debut book is a collection of 12 satirical short stories exploring many topics, including racism in modern-day America, consumerism, school shootings, and generational violence. Vulture described the book as "an irreverent, genre-bending approach to ripped-from-the-headlines subject matter".

Chain-Gang All-Stars

See main article: Chain-Gang All-Stars. Adjei-Brenyah's first novel is set in a dystopian America where imprisoned people have the choice to leave prison by joining a gladiatorial system called the "CAPE" or Criminal Action Penal Entertainment program where they take part in televised duels to the death as part of alliances called Chain Gangs. If they manage to survive three years of battles, then they are freed.[8] [9] The book has a large cast and is written from the perspective of multiple people participating in the program, as well as activists fighting against it, fans, and the people running it.

The book is a fictional novel but features many footnotes citing current laws and factual statistics about the incarceration system in the United States.[10]

Chain-Gang All-Stars started as a short story for inclusion in Friday Black but became too long. Adjei-Brenyah has said that he developed it into a novel because he felt he needed to spend more time exploring the main character, Loretta Thurwar.

Chain-Gang All-Stars was shortlisted for the 2023 National Book Award for Fiction.[11] [12] [13] [14] [15] Kirkus Reviews named it one of the best books of 2023.[16] The New York Times named it one of the 10 best books of 2023.[17]

Awards and nominations

Awards for Adjei-Brenyah's writing!Year!Work!Award!Result!Ref.
2018Friday BlackNational Book Foundation

5 Under 35

[18]
John Leonard Prize for Best First Book[19]
2019PEN/Jean Stein Book Award[20] [21]
Aspen Words Literary Prize[22]
Dylan Thomas Prize[23]
2020William Saroyan International Prize for Writing[24]
2023Chain-Gang All-StarsWaterstones Debut Fiction Prize[25]
National Book Award for Fiction[26]
Goodreads Choice Award for Science Fiction[27]
Goodreads Choice Award for Debut Novel[28]
2024Aspen Words Literary Prize[29]

Publications

References

  1. Web site: Borrelli . Christopher . 2023-05-24 . 'Chain-Gang' author Adjei-Brenyah on writing about violence . live . 2023-07-02 . Chicago Tribune . 2023-07-02 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230702094103/https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/books/ct-ent-nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-chain-gang-all-stars-20230524-27cjx7n5rrasnk4bha23iujwbu-story.html .
  2. Web site: Rao . Mallika . 2023-04-25 . Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah Is Asking the Hard Questions . 2023-07-02 . Vulture . en-us . 2023-07-02 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230702094056/https://www.vulture.com/article/nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-chain-gang-all-stars-profile.html . live .
  3. Web site: On protecting the magic of your creative work . 2023-11-19 . thecreativeindependent.com . 2023-11-19 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231119194608/https://thecreativeindependent.com/people/writer-nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-on-protecting-the-magic-of-your-creative-work/ . live .
  4. Web site: The New York Times Books Staff . November 28, 2023 . The 10 Best Books of 2023 . November 28, 2023 . The New York Times . November 28, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231128142545/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/28/books/review/best-books-2023.html . live .
  5. News: Alter . Alexandra . 2018-10-19 . 'Friday Black' Uses Fantasy and Blistering Satire to Skewer Racism and Consumer Culture . en-US . The New York Times . 2023-07-02 . 0362-4331 . 2023-07-02 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230702094058/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/19/books/friday-black-nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-debut-collection.html . live .
  6. King, Andrew. "After Jacob Geller's Book, More YouTube Creators Should Release Their Work In Physical Form", The Gamer, 15 March 2024. Retrieved 1 June 2024
  7. https://www.lostincult.co.uk/ How a Game Lives
  8. Web site: Bellot . Gabrielle . 2023-05-23 . Chain-Gang All-Stars Is Gladiator Meets the American Prison System . 2023-07-02 . The Atlantic . en . 2023-06-30 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230630085855/https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2023/05/chain-gang-all-stars-book-review/674143/ . live .
  9. Parham . Jason . Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah Is the New Maestro of the Genre Novel . en-US . Wired . 2023-07-02 . 1059-1028 . 2023-07-02 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230702094058/https://www.wired.com/story/nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-chain-gang-all-stars-wired30/ . live .
  10. News: Shariatmadari . David . 2023-07-08 . Author Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah on policing in America: 'It's a kind of poison' . en-GB . The Guardian . 2023-11-19 . 0261-3077 . 2023-11-19 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231119195235/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/jul/08/author-nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-on-us-policing-its-a-kind-of-poison . live .
  11. Web site: Harris . Elizabeth A. . October 3, 2023 . Here Are the Finalists for the 2023 National Book Awards . October 3, 2023 . The New York Times . October 3, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231003151412/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/03/books/national-book-award-finalists-2023.html . live .
  12. September 15, 2023 . The 2023 National Book Awards Longlist: Fiction . September 18, 2023 . The New Yorker . September 17, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230917074624/https://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/the-2023-national-book-awards-longlist-fiction . live .
  13. Web site: September 15, 2023 . Here's the longlist for the 2023 National Book Award for Fiction. . September 18, 2023 . Literary Hub . September 29, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230929135630/https://lithub.com/heres-the-longlist-for-the-2023-national-book-award-for-fiction/ . live .
  14. News: Nguyen . Sophia . October 3, 2023 . Here are the finalists for the 2023 National Book Awards . October 3, 2023 . The Washington Post.
  15. Web site: 2023-10-05 . The End of the World, According to Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah . 2023-11-19 . Esquire . en-US . 2023-11-19 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231119194749/https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/books/a45236201/nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-profile/ . live .
  16. Web site: Best of 2023 . 2023-11-21 . . en . 2023-11-20 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231120033011/https://www.kirkusreviews.com/best-of/2023/fiction/books/ . live .
  17. News: Staff . The New York Times Books . November 28, 2023 . The 10 Best Books of 2023 . en-US . The New York Times . November 28, 2023 . 0362-4331 . November 28, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231128142545/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/28/books/review/best-books-2023.html . live .
  18. Web site: 5 Under 35 . 2023-07-02 . National Book Foundation . en-US . 2023-07-02 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230702094059/https://www.nationalbook.org/awards-prizes/5-under-35-2018/ . live .
  19. Web site: Ciabattari . Jane . 2019-01-22 . National Book Critics Circle Announces Finalists for 2018 Awards . 2023-07-10 . National Book Critics Circle . en-US . 2023-07-10 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230710063133/https://www.bookcritics.org/2019/01/22/national-book-critics-circle-announces-finalists-for-2018-awards/ . live .
  20. Web site: Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah . 2023-07-02 . Forbes . en . 2023-07-02 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230702094056/https://www.forbes.com/profile/nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah/ . live .
  21. Web site: Schaub . Michael . 2019-02-27 . PEN America presents literary awards to Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, Nafissa Thompson-Spires . 2023-07-23 . Los Angeles Times . en-US . 2023-07-23 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230723133645/https://www.latimes.com/books/la-et-jc-pen-america-award-winners-2019-20190227-story.html . live .
  22. Web site: 2019 PRIZE . 2023-07-11 . Aspen Words . en-US . 2022-03-02 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220302013658/https://www.aspenwords.org/programs/literary-prize/browse-by-year/2019-prize/ . live .
  23. Web site: Mem: 10071784 . 2019 Dylan Thomas Prize shortlist announced Books+Publishing . 2023-07-11 . en-AU . 2019-04-03 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190403064528/https://www.booksandpublishing.com.au/articles/2019/04/03/131044/2019-dylan-thomas-prize-shortlist-announced/ . live .
  24. Web site: University . © Stanford . Stanford . California 94305 . Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah and Jennifer Croft awarded the 2020 William Saroyan International Prize for Writing by Stanford Libraries . 2023-07-10 . Stanford Libraries . en . 2023-07-10 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230710063139/https://library.stanford.edu/node/172192 . live .
  25. Web site: 2023-07-17 . Waterstones debut fiction prize shortlist announced . 2023-07-23 . Books+Publishing . 2023-07-23 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230723065611/https://www.booksandpublishing.com.au/articles/2023/07/17/234206/waterstones-debut-fiction-prize-shortlist-announced/ . live .
  26. Web site: 2023-07-17 . The ten contenders for the National Book Award for Fiction . 2023-09-18 . National Book Foundation . 2023-09-15 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230915141033/https://www.nationalbook.org/2023-national-book-awards-longlist-for-fiction/ . live .
  27. Web site: Announcing the Goodreads Choice Winner in Best Science Fiction! . 2023-12-25 . . 2023-12-25 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231225061643/https://www.goodreads.com/choiceawards/best-science-fiction-books-2023 . live .
  28. Web site: Announcing the Goodreads Choice Winner in Best Debut Novel! . 2023-12-25 . . 2023-12-25 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231225061719/https://www.goodreads.com/choiceawards/best-debut-novel-2023 . live .
  29. Web site: Schaub . Michael . 2024-03-14 . Aspen Words Literary Prize 2024 Finalists Revealed . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20240315001112/https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-and-features/articles/aspen-words-literary-prize-2024-finalists-revealed/ . 2024-03-15 . 2024-04-28 . . en.

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