A review by cjwitch
Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

challenging dark informative tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Speculative Fiction is a genre that I've just recently begun to explore and this book is not just the best of the genre that I have read so far, but one of the best books that I have read, period. Chain-Gang All-Stars is engaging, fast-paced and beautifully written, balancing brutal violence with love and gentleness. It has numerous POVs, including from prisoners, fans of the "games," protesters, and that of people both working in and running the events. It can be hard to follow at times, especially with the few time jumps that occur, but the plot never feels lost or overwrought.

This book will make you uncomfortable. It will frustrate you. It will depress you. And, hopefully, it will make you want to take action. Because this may be speculative fiction, but it is here and now. It is how we treat prisoners. How we disregard life in so many ways. It's how the American legal system is unbalanced and often fails the people who are put at it's mercy.  The footnotes, which give facts about real life events and statistics, heighten that reality even further. 

One of the things that I loved about this book is that, despite everything, it didn't leave me feeling hopeless. There is no guide for how to fix everything. In fact, there is acknowledgement that there is no easy answer and that no one person is likely to be able to figure it out alone.  But it makes you aware and makes you question and that is the beginning of change. 
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