We’re absolutely thrilled to be welcoming Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah to Manchester for the launch of his stunning new novel CHAIN-GANG ALL-STARS. One of the most anticipated books of 2023, and already a firm favourite in the shop, CHAIN-GANG ALL-STARS portrays a vivid dystopian future where prison inmates battle in front of millions of viewers in order to win their freedom. Nana will be in conversation with Ellah P. Wakatama.

About the book:

Welcome to Chain-Gang All-Stars, the popular and highly controversial programme inside America’s private prison system. In packed arenas, live-streamed by millions, prisoners compete as gladiators for the ultimate prize: their freedom.

Fan favourites Loretta Thurwar and Hamara ‘Hurricane Staxxx’ Stacker are teammates and lovers. Thurwar is nearing the end of her time on the circuit, free in just a few matches, a fact she carries as heavily as her lethal hammer. As she prepares for her final encounters, as protestors gather at the gates, and as the programme’s corporate owners stack the odds against her – will the price be simply too high?

From one of American fiction’s brightest stars, this is an electrifying, page-turning near-future dystopia perfect for fans of The Handmaid’s Tale, Squid Game and Watchmen.

‘A dystopian vision so…illuminating that it should permanently shift our understanding of who we are and what we’re capable of doing’ – Washington Post

‘Electrifying’ – George Saunders

About the author:

Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah is the New York Times bestselling author of Friday Black. He is a National Book Foundation’s ‘5 Under 35’ honoree, a winner of the PEN/Jean Stein Book Award and the William Saroyan International Prize for Writing, and a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle’s John Leonard Award for Best First Book and the Dylan Thomas Prize, among many other accolades. Raised in Spring Valley, New York, he now lives in the Bronx.

Doors: 18.30, event starts: 18.45

Tickets are £3.00 or free when pre-ordering a copy of the book. CHAIN-GANG ALL-STARS will also be available to purchase on the night and Nana will be signing copies after the talk. If you would like a signed copy but cannot make the event, please contact us on 0161 274 3331 or manchester@blackwell.co.uk and we can arrange this for you.