Fiction

Chain Gang All Stars

Chain Gang All Stars

  • Downloads：4793
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2024-02-03 14:21:48
  • Update Date：2025-09-14
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
  • ISBN：0593469313
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle

Reviews

Tedi Beemer ，

maybe this is what it takes to RADICALIZE you people

Kortney ，

So good！ And the audio production is second to none。 Excellent narrators。

Janna G。 Noelle ，

Both imaginative and highly observant of the real world， Chain-Gang All-Stars in part is like The Hunger Games for adults， in which convicted prisoners currently serving jail time are promised freedom if they survive three years of service in a program of corporate brand-sponsored gladiatorial fights to the death against each other that are broadcasted and fanatically enjoyed by live and TV viewers United States。The story takes place in a near-futuristic society of “soldier-police”， recognizable Both imaginative and highly observant of the real world， Chain-Gang All-Stars in part is like The Hunger Games for adults， in which convicted prisoners currently serving jail time are promised freedom if they survive three years of service in a program of corporate brand-sponsored gladiatorial fights to the death against each other that are broadcasted and fanatically enjoyed by live and TV viewers United States。The story takes place in a near-futuristic society of “soldier-police”， recognizable corporate entities， and new technological innovations—at least where it comes to imposing maximum drama within the Chain-Gang fights， and maximum suffering， dehumanization， and horror within the American carceral system for those still residing in corrections facilities。 In this， the author skillfully intersperses the action and sensationalism of the “hard action sports” death matches with quieter， more character-driven vignettes revealing the harsh， bleak reality of US prison life and the for-profit prison industry complex （including endnotes to confirm and further explicate the seemingly dramatized experiences of various inmates）， clearly showing why someone would choose to fight to the death for a chance at a more humane life。The story centers on the Hammond-Angola Chain， of whom Loretta Thuwar and Hamara “Hurricane Staxx” Stacker are popular and proficient “Links” in the Chain， particularly Thuwar， who's only a couple fights away from winning her freedom。 Both Black women and lovers， the events leading up to Thuwar's nail-biting final fight are a meditation on punitive correction systems， the humanity of people who commit crimes （especially violent crimes）， and the nature of societal reintegration of criminals—all of which is echoed by a growing protest movement to ban the death fights and stop using capital punishment/public execution as entertainment in the guise of economic stimulus。Chain-Gang All-Stars is an insightful and timely—although at times harrowing—story that extends the current carceral system to a believe future manifestation， which only serves to prove that， in the paraphrased words of one of the key protesters， prisons don’t deter violent crimes， police are obsolete， and social， economic， and mental health problems are wrongly criminalized， particularly among Black and other racialized individuals。With Thuwar and Staxx said to be such an epic romantic pair， I would have liked to see a flashback to when they first met。 I also would have liked the ending to have stretched out just a little bit longer and more clearly， and without the outcome having been previously discussed as a possibility， which weakened its impact when it did happen。 However the important messages of the book more than make up for all of this。 。。。more

Adit Mukherjee ，

Before reading this book， I had never heard the term Chain-Gang before。 I started this book， thinking it would be a fiction， about a version of America that would be difficult to distinguish from the modern one we currently live in。 Instead， I found a book that was angry and yelling in my face how horribly the system is built against the vulnerable。 Some may find the footnotes preachy or over the top， but I found them very necessary to continue to give context and remind the reader that this nig Before reading this book， I had never heard the term Chain-Gang before。 I started this book， thinking it would be a fiction， about a version of America that would be difficult to distinguish from the modern one we currently live in。 Instead， I found a book that was angry and yelling in my face how horribly the system is built against the vulnerable。 Some may find the footnotes preachy or over the top， but I found them very necessary to continue to give context and remind the reader that this nightmare is built on truth。 The inclusion of diverse characters （In every way） through the narrative shows that this broken system that we have today affects all of us in a horrible way。 That when we allow for brutality to answer brutality， we all become monsters。The author does a brilliant job skewering modern companies， media， government， and even us the populace who are too willing to go along with what has been decided。 To be distracted by the Circuses instead of the Fall。 There are hints throughout that the country itself has gone through tremendous changes。 Places are literally named "Drowned" city and Vegas is now ReVegas。Most every character has a unique voice and in this book， perhaps more than in many others that I have read， the ticking down of the clock towards destruction felt like a specter you would not be able to shake。 I mean that in a good way， knowing exactly how long had passed between instances helps contextualize so much of what happens。I also appreciate the author for including in this story the cognitive dissonance that is necessary to perpetuate a system of pain and brutality。 Whether that be through apathy， some contrived sense of justice， or just lying to one self。 A reminder that evil is everywhere and has to be actively met to be defeated。 Evil always has the power， it is up to the good to fight back。My final thought is that this is the second book in book club that I feel was a book where I would be the target audience， but perhaps not the necessary audience。 I do wonder what people whose view of what counts as humanity would think of this book？ Would they find it contrived？ Would they find it unnecessary preachy？ Would they just find it rubbish？My one criticism （and reason to take off that 。25） is that the book took some time to finally reach the launch point of the rollercoaster。 For me it took about halfway to get to a point where the starting gun finally went off （a weird metaphor considering one of the characters）。 。。。more

Dfbushnell ，

I was caught between 3 and 4 stars。 As social satire it was terrific。 The whole concept of "hard action sports" and CAPE seems a totally natural （even believable？） extension of MMA and the professional wrestling esthetic。 He totally nails the fan culture and business side surrounding the "sport。" I loved the serious， smug， knowing individual male fan。 He is a spot on representation of a certain kind of fan。 I found the interpersonal stuff less successful and some of the characters seemed mainly I was caught between 3 and 4 stars。 As social satire it was terrific。 The whole concept of "hard action sports" and CAPE seems a totally natural （even believable？） extension of MMA and the professional wrestling esthetic。 He totally nails the fan culture and business side surrounding the "sport。" I loved the serious， smug， knowing individual male fan。 He is a spot on representation of a certain kind of fan。 I found the interpersonal stuff less successful and some of the characters seemed mainly there to make speeches。 Also， some minor characters kind of disappear after a bit。 I found this definitely worth a read if you don't mind some pretty intense violence。 。。。more

Madison Drummond ，

my stomach is in knots over this one。 excellent， painstaking， heartbreaking writing that all too well captures the atrocities， racism and heartlessness of our prison systems。 a fictional dystopia that doesn’t seem all that unthinkable - especially once reading the footnotes

Angela ，

Speechless

Doug Wells ，

What a whacky， amazing， hard-hitting book。 Ultimately， I continue to shy away from dystopian books - and this is no exception。 That said， it is often brilliant， always cutting and salient。

Natalie Hurd ，

Adjei-Brenyah's novel is a compelling critique of our criminal justice system and an insightful commentary on our relationships to technology， celebrity， and each other。 This was a challenging read， both intellectually and emotionally。 While it was tough to get through at moments， I found it ultimately motivating， and a little hopeful。 Throughout the book Adjei-Brenyah explores acts of protest and complicity， and challenges the reader to think about their role in an unjust society。 This is the f Adjei-Brenyah's novel is a compelling critique of our criminal justice system and an insightful commentary on our relationships to technology， celebrity， and each other。 This was a challenging read， both intellectually and emotionally。 While it was tough to get through at moments， I found it ultimately motivating， and a little hopeful。 Throughout the book Adjei-Brenyah explores acts of protest and complicity， and challenges the reader to think about their role in an unjust society。 This is the first book in a long time that really made me question what I consume as entertainment and how I am （or am failing to） stand up for what I think is right。 。。。more

Naweed ，

“Suck my dick， America。”

Will ，

Gah， the 5-star rating with no ability to give half stars is so stupid！ This book is a 3。5！ Let me give it a 3。5！ Whatever， rounding up because we only have one life to live。This book is worthwhile and has plays around with some important ideas。 Most of all， the notion of restorative justice needs a storytelling canon， since vengeance and bloodthirstiness and crime and punishment have like [gestures vaguely at all of Western literature and society]。 That said， I found a lot of the execution on t Gah， the 5-star rating with no ability to give half stars is so stupid！ This book is a 3。5！ Let me give it a 3。5！ Whatever， rounding up because we only have one life to live。This book is worthwhile and has plays around with some important ideas。 Most of all， the notion of restorative justice needs a storytelling canon， since vengeance and bloodthirstiness and crime and punishment have like [gestures vaguely at all of Western literature and society]。 That said， I found a lot of the execution on these ideas pretty frustrating， either in being whacked-over-the-head-obvious， or in just being muddled。 I'm glad this aspires to more than just Hunger Games But For Adults， and I think Adjei-Brenyah is improving as a storyteller。 This one wasn't entirely a hit for me， but it's got a lot of merit。 。。。more

Alexandra ，

Holy Shit。 Hendrix sums it up for me: “I thought of how the world can be anything and how sad it is that it’s this。”As a reader of this story， are your emotions of horror and awe that much different than one of the Battleground spectators or viewers of Linklyfe？ That’s a feeling that left me rattled， but hats off to Adejei-Brenyah as a writer for masterfully creating such torment。

Liz ，

This。 How to show how horrible our prison system is。 Statistics of incarcerated people are sporadically placed throughout the book making one question is this entertainment。 Hunger Games series touched on this to much acclaim and perhaps then left the idea of how cruel the system is。 This book leaves no doubt。 Very well written and engaging， hard to put down and also hard to read。This is an author to watch for， Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah debut novel is extremely well crafted

Tristan Eagling ，

This may be the perfect book。 I feel like It has been written for me。 I want to tell everyone to read it， but fear they won't like it as much me。 Adejei-Brenyah has taken the tired Gladiator Games trope and made it smart， queer and modern。 At its heart is an unoriginal plot， but somehow it's still one of the most original books I have ever read。The fights are written with a childish anime-like absurdity， and the social commentary is written with a grown-up almost academic preciseness。 I never th This may be the perfect book。 I feel like It has been written for me。 I want to tell everyone to read it， but fear they won't like it as much me。 Adejei-Brenyah has taken the tired Gladiator Games trope and made it smart， queer and modern。 At its heart is an unoriginal plot， but somehow it's still one of the most original books I have ever read。The fights are written with a childish anime-like absurdity， and the social commentary is written with a grown-up almost academic preciseness。 I never thought I would find both in the same book and doubt I ever will again。 There is a chapter where our protagonist reads her fan mail， which serves to bring disparate strands of the story together， while also being darkly hilarious。 It was at that point I knew I had found an author who I would read whatever they wrote。Believe the hype。 。。。more

Jennifer ，

This is an overrated book for me。 Interesting， yes。 But it just drags。 It was hard to stay into the story。 I expected more。

Jeremy Potter ，

Kinda like if The Hunger Games was written by James Baldwin。

Lady Tory ，

Another reminder that not all established ways are normal。 And that good marketing skills can justify in eyes of the masses strange things。There's a good speech by Mari， suggesting that we might not know how to do things the right way， but it shouldn't confine us to the way the world is。 It prevents us from engaging in discussion and discovering a better way。 Another reminder that not all established ways are normal。 And that good marketing skills can justify in eyes of the masses strange things。There's a good speech by Mari， suggesting that we might not know how to do things the right way， but it shouldn't confine us to the way the world is。 It prevents us from engaging in discussion and discovering a better way。 。。。more

Jp ，

"the horror you made was yours forever" but I love you anyways。。。。 "the horror you made was yours forever" but I love you anyways。。。。 。。。more

Sammi JP ，

Thank you， I am depressed now。

Betsy Bowman ，

i’m not going to rate this book because I have no idea how to。 I hated reading it。 Every single second of it。 It’s violent and horrifying and ugly。 I actually didn’t finish it， because it got so violent that I couldn’t handle it。 All that being said， that’s literally the point of this book。 it’s describing a near future American dystopia that feels dystopian， but also feels possible。 There’s a really interesting， narrative structure in this book， and I genuinely cared about a few of the characte i’m not going to rate this book because I have no idea how to。 I hated reading it。 Every single second of it。 It’s violent and horrifying and ugly。 I actually didn’t finish it， because it got so violent that I couldn’t handle it。 All that being said， that’s literally the point of this book。 it’s describing a near future American dystopia that feels dystopian， but also feels possible。 There’s a really interesting， narrative structure in this book， and I genuinely cared about a few of the characters。 And the point is abundantly clear。 We have to do better America， and move past the mythology that inflicting， confinement and violence prevents crime。 。。。more

Mack ，

Not okay after this one

Brian Nac ，

This book is incredible。 Pretty dark and disturbing of course but it will stay with me a long time。

Alysha ，

4。25/5 very unique read， excellent audiobook

Elizabeth ，

One star is too good for this one。 Total garbage。 Might be the worst book I have ever read。 I finished it because Jenna Bush Hager recommended it。 I will never follow her recommendations again。

Ashley Craft ，

“Suck my dick， America”

Ashlie Johnson ，

4。5/5

Owen Theberge ，

Hey， I’m not crying， you are！

Dana ，

I- need to gather my thoughts。

Ashleigh ，

"𝗜𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵， 𝘀𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗼𝗿 𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁。 𝗣𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝘂𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗻。 𝗡𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲。𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗶𝗻-𝗚𝗮𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵。" "𝗜𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵， 𝘀𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗼𝗿 𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁。 𝗣𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝘂𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗻。 𝗡𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲。𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗶𝗻-𝗚𝗮𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵。" 。。。more

Christa Van ，

Haunting but should read。