Litsy

A Brief History of Seven Killings | Marlon James

pick

17-22 Oct 25(audiobook)
I attempted to read this shortly after it won the Booker, but lost focus (busier times). The full cast audiobook worked well, although at times it was difficult to keep track of the large cast of characters.
Loosely based on the story surrounding the attempted assassination of Bob Marley in Jamaica in the 70s, it is violent, coarse and very disturbing at times but utterly compelling in a Tarantino-esque manner.

SamAnne I am wowed my Marlon James. At the same time, his graphic violence can be too much for me. I have this one but have not dived in. 1w

mjtwo The sexual violence, particularly in the first third, was pretty tough @SamAnne . It is a great book though - deserving of its accolades. 7d

12 likes2 comments

bookish_wookish

Catch a Fire: The Life of Bob Marley | Timothy White

Now I love my 90‘s hip hop but I really love reggae/dancehall. If you get in my car 99% of the time Bob Marleys Tuff Gong Radio will be on! I‘ve loved all things Bob since the early 90‘s and whenever my parents see something they buy it for me. At a tag sale my Dad found this book and bought it for me! What i didn‘t realize is this book was published in 1983 (Bob died in 81) and the author interviewed him and his family for the book!

TheBookHippie ♥️🎶 3mo

24 likes1 comment

Billypar

A Brief History of Seven Killings | Marlon James

Calling all Marlon James fans! His first step into writing/ producing television is a detective show where the title character is after a missing child. It's a 5-episode limited series that James uses to take all the detective/police show tropes he likes while throwing away anything predictable or stale, leaving only the good parts. It's intense, with a killer performance by Tamara Lawrence. On Max or Channel 4 in the UK. I highly recommend!

Ruthiella Sounds great. Did you ever listen to his podcast with his editor (or agent) Jake? It was delightful. I‘m sorry they are both too busy to continue. 10mo

Billypar @Ruthiella I did! The two of them were a good pair - very entertaining. I didn't listen to all the episodes, but it's caused me to bump up Mrs. Caliban and Wide Sargasso Sea on my tbr. 10mo

28 likes2 comments

Julsmarshall

A Brief History of Seven Killings | Marlon James

pick

Wow! Powerful, stark, brutal, brilliant. This #chunkster shares a glimpse of Jamaica in the 60s-70s from multiple perspectives: a ghost, gangsters, journalists, the CIA, and a woman with various identities, following the story to NYC in the 80s. An epic examination of the impact that governments, criminals, and artists can have on a community that is just trying to get by. Dark and upsetting but worth it. #BookspinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

Kitta Loved this one! 13mo

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 13mo

44 likes1 stack add2 comments

Nathan_Opland-Dobs

Brief History of Seven Killings | Marlon James

pick

☝️

6 likes

Liz_M

Brief History of Seven Killings | Marlon James

A fun list, kind of weird given how it was created. Really didn't like the number one book.

Karisimo Do you have a link to this? 1y

Liz_M @Karisimo The 100 Best Books of the 21st Century https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/books/best-books-21st-century.html?unlo... 1y

staci.reads Wow! Impressive! Thanks for sharing the link! 1y

Karisimo Thanks @Liz_M 1y

27 likes4 comments

charl08

A Brief History of Seven Killings | Marlon James

Tempting.
(Can't believe it's been ten years since he won the Booker!)

Ruthiella If you can go, I would. I listened to his podcast back when he was still doing it and he is so charming and funny. You wouldn‘t think he could write such violence. 1y

43 likes1 comment