A Brief History Of Seven Killings

A BRIEF HISTORY OF SEVEN KILLINGS
by Marlon James

 Award: Booker Winner 2015

 Nominations: Carnegie Longlist 2015, Dublin Finalist 2016, National Book Critic Circle Finalist 2014, PEN/Open Book Longlist 2015

 Date Read: May 15, 2020

 "What don't go so, go near so." And so begins this tome by Marlon James. This expression is explained later in the book that any story told, if not exactly true is probably nearly true. 

 James takes on a lot of Jamaican political history and gang warfare here, exploring the political struggles over Jamaica's slums, the ensuing drug wars that spilled over into the U.S. and the personal struggles of those trying to create new lives for themselves whether out of fear or a desire to improve their life circumstances.

 Often violent, depressingly hopeless at times, A Brief History is, without a doubt, an impressive achievement. So many characters are presented that James provides a handy character list at the beginning. I can't help coming away feeling that life is expendable, women accessories/annoyances, and power is the driving force for all human pursuit. 

 At times, the Jamaican patois was hard to discern and the cursing, particularly "bombocloth" and "pussyhole" started to grate on me. Yet, there's no denying James has an incredible talent for navigating complex issues and presenting them to readers in an understandable way, immersing them in Jamaican culture in a way that I have never been before.

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