Name: Chris Dailey's review of A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James
Item: A Brief History of Seven Killings
Rating: 5
Author: Chris Dailey

Marlon James

Set against the backdrop of 1970s reggae culture, disco, sex and excess comes this remarkable re-imagining of the attempted assassination of Bob Marley.

A Brief History of Seven Killings

Devin Ware

Winner of the Booker Prize

One of the New York Times’s 100 Best Books of the 21st Century

One of Entertainment Weekly’s Top 10 Books of the Decade

One of The Atlantic’s Great American Novels of the Past 100 Years

A “thrilling, ambitious . . . intense” (Los Angeles Times) novel that explores the attempted assassination of Bob Marley in the late 1970s, from the author of Black Leopard, Red Wolf

In A Brief History of Seven Killings, Marlon James combines brilliant storytelling with his unrivaled skills of characterization and meticulous eye for detail to forge an enthralling novel of dazzling ambition and scope.

On December 3, 1976, just before the Jamaican general election and two days before Bob Marley was to play the Smile Jamaica Concert to ease political tensions in Kingston, seven gunmen stormed the singer’s house, machine guns blazing. The attack wounded Marley, his wife, and his manager, and injured several others. Little was officially released about the gunmen, but much has been whispered, gossiped and sung about in the streets of West Kingston. Rumors abound regarding the assassins’ fates, and there are suspicions  that the attack was politically motivated.

A Brief History of Seven Killings delves deep into that dangerous and unstable time in Jamaica’s history and beyond. James deftly chronicles the lives of a host of unforgettable characters – gunmen, drug dealers, one-night stands, CIA agents,  even ghosts – over the course of thirty years as they roam the streets of 1970s Kingston, dominate the crack houses of 1980s New York, and ultimately reemerge into the radically altered Jamaica of the 1990s. Along the way, they learn that evil does indeed cast long shadows, that justice and retribution are inextricably linked, and that no one can truly escape his fate.

Gripping and inventive, shocking and irresistible, A Brief History of Seven Killings is a mesmerizing modern classic of power, mystery, and insight.

A Novel

Chris Dailey

Challenging and brutal book about contemporary Jamaica that ultimately proves worth the effort. Spanning three decades the "non-history" story is ostensibly about the attempted assassination (and the fallout) of Bob Marley, but really is about modern Jamaica told through a multitude of perspectives. The novel is ultimately about the impact of post-colonialism on the island nation and delves into race, politics, brutality, family, individuality, fame, obsession, power and much more. The varying perspectives and use of language make it a difficult read but if you're able to wade through it, it's ultimately rewarding with powerful scenes (some of which you can't unread). It's true modern novel.

Briar's Reviews

I can honestly say I did not find this book enjoyable, but it was written in the most amazing format and the author has an amazing talent.

This book was very well written, and if I had to base my ratings on how well the book was written, it would be 10 out of 5. When I was reading the book, the descriptions were magical and took me away to another world, and I could not believe the amount of detail one person could put into one single page. I was taken away into another world and I truly enjoyed the form of description. I rarely find authors these days with this amount of talent.

But, the book was not a topic I was fond of. I picked up the book and decided to enter for the contest on Goodreads to get it because it sounded like an amazing topic to learn about, but it ended up being too boring of a topic for me.

While the book was well written, I found it very hard to follow the story or know what was going on. In the first 100 pages, I found myself even wondering what the book was about anymore. This book felt more along the lines of a book I would be forced to read in High School with explanations by the teacher of what was actually going on, since I couldn't follow it.

I give it one star out of five, mainly because I was to bored to continue reading it. It was a forced read and I was bored out of my mind trying to finish it. 

The book did give powerful messages and themes, and anybody who likes books that have powerful themes and messages and like books following true events but are in a fictional universe would love this book! It was just not for me.

I still cannot praise the author enough for his talent, but the book wasn't for me!!

Amazing book, not my type of read, sadly.

My book was an uncorrected advance proof (which I adore these types of books, so I was very honored to receive an advanced copy).

I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.

Something something an assassination attempt on Bob Marley. 

I can tell this is a brilliant novel, but I don't know enough about Jamaican history and culture to really *get* it. I finished the entire book and only understood maybe 40% of what was going on throughout. The novel features a lot of political intrigue, drug/crime underworld activities, graphic sex (of heterosexual and homosexual flavors, more of the latter), hella violence, some ghosts, and much more. There are a dozen narrators (but none are Bob Marley) - it's really difficult to keep track of everyone and who is part of which rival factions. The writing is great, though. The descriptions are visceral and the dialogue is gripping. Unfortunately the literary genius qualities of this novel are mostly lost on me. 

Ashlyn

Something something an assassination attempt on Bob Marley. 

I can tell this is a brilliant novel, but I don't know enough about Jamaican history and culture to really *get* it. I finished the entire book and only understood maybe 40% of what was going on throughout. The novel features a lot of political intrigue, drug/crime underworld activities, graphic sex (of heterosexual and homosexual flavors, more of the latter), hella violence, some ghosts, and much more. There are a dozen narrators (but none are Bob Marley) - it's really difficult to keep track of everyone and who is part of which rival factions. The writing is great, though. The descriptions are visceral and the dialogue is gripping. Unfortunately the literary genius qualities of this novel are mostly lost on me. 

Liz Prinz

There is nothing brief about this 686 page book. However, it is truly an epic. The structure of having multiple characters narrating worked, but slowed down the action in the middle of the book and made it feel like a bit of a slog for a while. I thought the narrators who were not part of the gangs (especially Alex Pierce and Nina Burgess) were well chosen and provided a bit of relief from the gang warfare and politics. I also felt the book had just enough mystery without being nonsensical -- I had to think about what was happening, but I could figure it out if I paid attention.

Yedi Cinayetin Kisa Tarihcesi

Irem

Kitabı oldukça uzun bir sürede okudum. Bunda en büyük etken, Pegasus'un bütün kitaplarını büyük punto ve satır arasıyla basarken bu kitapta yaklaşık üçte biri boyutunda bir punto kullanıp satır boşluğunu toptan es geçmesi de oldukça etkiliydi tabii ki. 

Marlon James'in ironik- kara mizaha kayan anlatım tarzını ve inanılmaz gözlem gücünü çok sevdim. Zaten okumaya ısrarla devam etmemdeki etken buydu. Ancak kitabın daha kolay okunabilmesi için Jamaika kültürüne ve argosuna dair belli bir bilginiz olması gerekli. Kitap acımasız bir vahşete sahip ancak bir o kadar da büyüleyici. Romanın ana noktası 1976 yılının aralık ayında ülkesindeki barış konserlerinde sahneye çıkmak için ülkeye giden Bob Marley'e yapılan suikast girişimi. Tabii kitap boyunca Bob Marley ile "şarkıcı" olarak karşılaşıyoruz. Çok farklı karakterler tarafından anlatılan, çok sesli ve karmaşık bir yapısı var. Ancak ilk bölümü atlattıktan sonra kitabın ritmini daha kolay yakalıyor insan. Jamaika'nın bütün gerçekliğini; yoksulluğu, ırkçılığı, cinsiyetçiliği, homofobiyi ve vahşeti anlatıyor. İsmine aldanıp da bir cinayet/polisiye okumayı düşünüyorsanız hayal kırıklığına sebep olabilir. Ancak genel yapısıyla oldukça etkileyici ve sarsıcı bir roman. Sabır gösterirseniz, karşılığını veren kitaplardan.

*WINNER OF THE MAN BOOKER PRIZE 2015* JAMAICA, 1976 Seven gunmen storm Bob Marley’s house, machine guns blazing. The reggae superstar survives, but the gunmen are never caught. From the acclaimed author of The Book of Night Women comes a dazzling display of masterful storytelling exploring this near-mythic event. Spanning three decades and crossing continents, A Brief History of Seven Killings chronicles the lives of a host of unforgettable characters – slum kids, one-night stands, drug lords, girlfriends, gunmen, journalists, and even the CIA. Gripping and inventive, ambitious and mesmerising, A Brief History of Seven Killings is one of the most remarkable and extraordinary novels of the twenty-first century.

Lisa Sieverts 

A "thrilling, ambitious . . . intense" ("Los Angeles Times") novel that explores the attempted assassination of Bob Marley in the late 1970s. In "A Brief History of Seven Killings," Marlon James combines masterful storytelling with his unrivaled skill at characterization and his meticulous eye for detail to forge a novel of dazzling ambition and scope. On December 3, 1976, just before the Jamaican general election and two days before Bob Marley was to play the Smile Jamaica Concert to ease political tensions in Kingston, seven unnamed gunmen stormed the singer's house, machine guns blazing. The attack wounded Marley, his wife, and his manager, and injured several others. Little was officially released about the gunmen, but rumors abounded regarding the assassins' fates. "A Brief History of Seven Killings" is James's fictional exploration of that dangerous and unstable time in Jamaica's history and beyond. Deftly spanning decades and continents and peopled with a wide range of characters--assassins, drug dealers, journalists, and even ghosts--James brings to life the people who walked the streets of 1970s Kingston, who dominated the crack houses of 1980s New York, and who reemerged into a radically altered Jamaica of the 1990s. Brilliantly inventive, "A Brief History of Seven Killings" is an "exhilarating" ("The New York Times") epic that's been called "a tour de force" ("The Wall Street Journal").

Jade Flynn

A history Jamaica would rather forget, James prowls the murky corners of Kingston's underground with relentless, graphic and brutal fiction. Peopled with some of the nastiest, captivating and complex characters you'll ever come across, sharing their grim endeavours in dense patois. A labyrinth of pure genius.

Daryl Houston

I remember at some point while reading this book thinking that it was sort of a cross between As I Lay Dying and 2666 and perhaps some literature from Jamaica that I hadn't encountered yet, so it was sort of rewarding to read an explicit nod to the Faulkner in the book's closing acknowledgments. I do like both the Bolaño and the Faulkner, but I'm not sure that the grit of the former and the narrative trick of the latter are a great fit at great length. Length, then, is my main complaint with James's book. I learned more about Jamaican history and about Bob Marley and about the Rastafarian religion (who knew it was an actual religion and not just a pot-centric lifestyle?) than I had ever known, and for that I'm grateful. I enjoyed learning to read the Jamaican patois without stumbling (I've internalized "bombocloth" and am likely to have trouble suppressing that swear word from my own vocabulary). And I found the story somewhat interesting, if also somewhat spare in spite of all the words in its telling. I just really think I would have liked 350 or even 400 pages of the book rather than almost 700. It became a burden and I found myself reading to end it rather than reading to savor it. This book is another for which I really wish I could give partial stars. It's a better book than 2 stars but, for me, maybe not up to 3.

Caelan

On 3 December 1976, just weeks before the general election and two days before Bob Marley was to play the Smile Jamaica Concert to ease political tensions, seven gunmen from West Kingston stormed his house with machine guns blazing. Marley survived and went on to perform at the free concert, but the next day he left the country, and didn’t return for two years. Not a lot was recorded about the fate of the seven gunmen, but much has been said, whispered and sung about in the streets of West Kingston, with information surfacing at odd times, only to sink into rumour and misinformation. Inspired by this near-mythic event, A Brief History of Seven Killings takes the form of an imagined oral biography, told by ghosts, witnesses, killers, members of parliament, drug dealers, conmen, beauty queens, FBI and CIA agents, reporters, journalists, and even Keith Richards' drug dealer. Marlon James’s bold undertaking traverses strange landscapes and shady characters, as motivations are examined – and questions asked – in this compelling novel of monumental scope and ambition.

Devin Ware &
A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James

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