A Brief History of Seven Killings

"These are some of the books I've given multiple copies of to friends over the years: A Brief History of Seven Killings, by Marlon James."

"Set in Jamaica during the shockingly turbulent 1970s, Marlon James’s Booker Prize-winning book is about the aftermath of the attempted assassination of Bob Marley. In many ways this is too recent a time to even think about finding it a matter for wit or humour, and there is not a single joke in it, but the language is so inventive, and so unrepeatably bad that you can’t help laugh. I should say that I listened to the audio version of this, brilliantly read by an ensemble cast, and doing so will change your own way of thinking about everything for a couple of weeks thereafter. Yes, that’s it exactly. I think they’d all be fun and interesting to talk to. They all know whereof they speak, but there’d be no lectures; no pontificating."