Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah Knihy

Loretta Thurwar a Hamara Stacker alias Staxxx jsou hvězdy Galejnické extraligy, základního kamene nesmírně populárního a krajně kontroverzního výdělečného Trestaneckého estrádního programu (TEP). Je to návrat gladiátorů a vězni bojují o nejvyšší cenu ze všech — osobní svobodu. V rámci TEPu vězni cestují a zápasí spolu na život a na smrt před natřískanými stadiony, zatímco venku protestují mravně uvědomělí demonstranti. Thurwarku a Staxxx, členky stejného týmu a zároveň milenky, má publikum ze všech nejradši. A pokud všechno dobře dopadne, Thurwarku čeká už jen několik zápasů a bude volná, což je pro ni břemeno stejně těžké jako její smrtonosné kladivo. Jenže korporátní vlastníci TEPu se při udržování stávajících poměrů nezastaví před ničím a překážky, které jí kladou do cesty, mají ničivý dopad.

Two top women gladiators fight for their freedom within a depraved private prison system reminiscent of America's own. Loretta Thurwar and Hamara "Hurricane Staxxx" Stacker are stars of CAPE, or Criminal Action Penal Entertainment, a controversial program in the profit-driven private prison industry. Prisoners compete as Links in Chain-Gangs, engaging in death-matches for the ultimate prize: their freedom. Thurwar and Staxxx, both teammates and lovers, are fan favorites, with Thurwar eyeing her release after a few matches, a burden she carries along with her lethal hammer. As she prepares to leave her fellow Links, she contemplates how to preserve their humanity against the backdrop of these brutal games. However, CAPE's corporate owners will go to any lengths to maintain their status quo, creating devastating obstacles for Thurwar. The narrative shifts between the Links in the field, protestors, and CAPE employees, offering a kaleidoscopic and critical view of the American prison system's unholy alliance of systemic racism, unchecked capitalism, and mass incarceration. It serves as a clear-eyed reckoning with the true meaning of freedom in this country.

The instant New York Times bestseller 'An unbelievable debut' New York Times Racism, but "managed" through virtual reality Black Friday, except you die in a bargain-crazed throng Happiness, but pharmacological Love, despite everything A Publisher's Weekly Most Anticipated Book for Fall 2018 Friday Black tackles urgent instances of racism and cultural unrest, and explores the many ways we fight for humanity in an unforgiving world. In the first, unforgettable story of this collection, The Finkelstein Five, Adjei-Brenyah gives us an unstinting reckoning of the brutal prejudice of the US justice system. In Zimmer Land we see a far-too-easy-to-believe imagining of racism as sport. And Friday Black and How to Sell a Jacket as Told by Ice King show the horrors of consumerism and the toll it takes on us all. Fresh, exciting, vital and contemporary, Friday Black will appeal to people who love Colson Whitehead's Underground Railroad, the TV show Black Mirror, the work of Kurt Vonnegut and George Saunders, and anyone looking for stories that speak to the world we live in now. 'An excitement and a wonder' George Saunders 'The writing in this outstanding collection will make you hurt and demand your hope' Roxane Gay 'The fiction debut of the year. Bravo young man. We await your encore' Mary Karr