Synopses & Reviews
Pile them up, a Marlon James character says repeatedly, and Marlon does just that. Pile them up: language, imagery, technique, imagination. All fresh, all exciting. This is a writer to watch out for.”Chris Abani, author of
GraceLand, winner of the Hemingway/PEN Award
This is the finest and most important first novel Ive read in years. Jamess writing brings to mind early Toni Morrison, Jessica Hagedorn, and Gabriel García Márquez.”Kaylie Jones, author of Speak Now and A Soldier's Daughter Never Cries
Marlon James spins his magical web in this novel and we willingly suspend disbelief, rewarded by the window he opens to Jamaica (and a world) rarely portrayed in fiction.”Elizabeth Nunez, author of Bruised Hibiscus, winner of the American Book Award
This stunning debut novel tells the story of a biblical struggle in a remote Jamaican village in 1957. With language as taut as classic works by Cormac McCarthy, and a richness reminiscent of early Toni Morrison, Marlon James reveals his unique narrative command that will firmly establish his place as one of today's freshest, most talented young writers.
In the village of Gibbeah--where certain women fly and certain men protect secrets with their lives--magic coexists with religion, and good and evil are never as they seem. In this town, a battle is fought between two men of God. The story begins when a drunkard named Hector Bligh (the "Rum Preacher") is dragged from his pulpit by a man calling himself "Apostle" York. Handsome and brash, York demands a fire-and-brimstone church, but sets in motion a phenomenal and deadly struggle for the soul of Gibbeah itself. John Crow's Devil is a novel about religious mania, redemption, sexual obsession, and the eternal struggle inside all of us between the righteous and the wicked.
Synopsis
Fiction. African-American Studies. This stunning debut novel tells the story of a biblical struggle in a remote Jamaican village in 1957. With language as taut as classic works by Cormac McCarthy, and a richness reminiscent of early Toni Morrison, Marlon James reveals his unique narrative command that will firmly establish his place as one of today's freshest, most talented young writers. Set in the village of Gibbeah, were magic coexists with religion and good and evil are never as they seem, JOHN CROW'S DEVIL is a novel about religious mania, redemption, sexual obsession, and the eternal struggle inside all of us between the righteous and the wicked.
Synopsis
A stunning literary debut from Jamaica's most promising young writer.
About the Author
Marlon James was born in Kingston, Jamaica, in 1970. His first novel, John Crow's Devil was a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and the Commonwealth Prize. His second novel, The Book Of Night Women, a New York Times Editor?s Choice, has been released to widespread critical acclaim. His short fiction has appeared in the anthologies Iron Balloons, Bronx Noir, and Silent Voices, and his nonfiction in the Caribbean Review of Books. Currently a professor of literature and creative writing at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, he divides his time between Jamaica, New York City, and the Twin Cities.