Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah: Difference between revisions

{{Short description|American author (born c. 1991)}}

| birth_date = c. {{Birth year and age|1991}}<ref name=":0">{{Cite webnews |last=Borrelli |first=Christopher |date=2023-05-24 |title='Chain-Gang' author Adjei-Brenyah on writing about violence |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/books/ct-ent-nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-chain-gang-all-stars-20230524-27cjx7n5rrasnk4bha23iujwbu-story.html |url-status=live |access-date=2023-07-02 |websitenewspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]] |archive-date=2023-07-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230702094103/https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/books/ct-ent-nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-chain-gang-all-stars-20230524-27cjx7n5rrasnk4bha23iujwbu-story.html }}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Rao |first=Mallika |date=2023-04-25 |title=Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah Is Asking the Hard Questions |url=https://www.vulture.com/article/nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-chain-gang-all-stars-profile.html |access-date=2023-07-02 |website=Vulture |language=en-us |archive-date=2023-07-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230702094056/https://www.vulture.com/article/nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-chain-gang-all-stars-profile.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

| birth_place = [[The Bronx]], [[New York City]], United States

| notable_works = {{Unbulleted list|''[[Friday Black]]'' (2018)|''[[Chain-Gang All-Stars]]'' (2023)}}

'''Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah''' is an American [[speculative fiction]] author who wrote the short -story collection ''[[Friday Black]]'' (2018) and his debut novel ''[[Chain-Gang All-Stars]]'' (2023). He was named one of "5 under 35 Authors" by the [[National Book Foundation]] in 2018<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |title=5 Under 35 |url=https://www.nationalbook.org/awards-prizes/5-under-35-2018/ |access-date=2023-07-02 |website=National Book Foundation |language=en-US}}</ref> and won the [[PEN/Jean Stein Book Award]] in 2019.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |title=NanaOn Kwameprotecting Adjei-Brenyahthe magic of your creative work |url=https://www.forbesthecreativeindependent.com/profilepeople/writer-nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-on-protecting-the-magic-of-your-creative-work/ |access-date=2023-0711-0219 |website=Forbesthecreativeindependent.com |languagearchive-date=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=On protecting the magic of your creative work2023-11-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231119194608/https://thecreativeindependent.com/people/writer-nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-on-protecting-the-magic-of-your-creative-work/ |accessurl-datestatus=2023-11-19live |website=thecreativeindependent.com}}</ref> ''Chain-Gang All-Stars'' was shortlisted for the 2023 [[National Book Award for Fiction]]<ref name=":7" /> and ''[[The New York Times]]'' named it one of the ten best books of 2023.<ref>{{Cite webnews |last=The New York Times Books Staff |date=November 28, 2023 |title=The 10 Best Books of 2023 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/28/books/review/best-books-2023.html |access-date=November 28, 2023 |websitenewspaper=The New York Times |archive-date=November 28, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231128142545/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/28/books/review/best-books-2023.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Adjei-Brenyah was born in the [[The Bronx|Bronx]], [[New York City]], but grew up in [[Spring Valley, New York|Spring Valley]], New York. Both of his parents are from [[Ghana]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite news |last=Alter |first=Alexandra |date=2018-10-19 |title='Friday Black' Uses Fantasy and Blistering Satire to Skewer Racism and Consumer Culture |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/19/books/friday-black-nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-debut-collection.html |access-date=2023-07-02 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=2023-07-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230702094058/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/19/books/friday-black-nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-debut-collection.html |url-status=live }}</ref> His father was a [[Criminal defense lawyer|defense attorney]] and his mother was a kindergarten teacher.<ref name=":0" /> Adjei-Brenyah started writing from a young age and wrote for his high school's literature magazine.<ref name=":1" />

Adjei-Brenyah went to the [[University at Albany, SUNY]], for his undergraduate degree, where he learned from [[Lynne Tillman]].<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /> He later attended the graduate writing program at [[Syracuse University]] with the goal to study with [[George Saunders]] in the creative writing program. Saunders later became his thesis adviser and mentor.<ref name=":0" /> Adjei-Brenyah later went on to teach in the same program.<ref name=":2" />

Adjei-Brenyah's published works are set in near-future [[dystopia]]s. They often explore the topics of exploitation, capitalism, and the societal acceptance of violence.<ref name=":0" /> His non-fiction writing includes a foreword to ''How a Game Lives'', a collection of critical essays by [[Jacob Geller]].<ref name=TheGamer>King, Andrew. [https://www.thegamer.com/jacob-geller-book-youtube-creators-physical-media-how-a-game-lives/ "After Jacob Geller's Book, More YouTube Creators Should Release Their Work In Physical Form"], ''The Gamer'', 15 March 2024. Retrieved 1 June 2024</ref><ref>[https://www.lostincult.co.uk/ ''How a Game Lives''], Lost in Cult. Retrieved 2 June 2024.</ref>

Adjei-Brenyah's debut book is a collection of 12 [[Satire|satirical]] short stories exploring many topics, including [[Racism in the United States|racism in modern-day America]], [[consumerism]], [[school shooting]]s, and generational violence.<ref name=":2" /> [[Vulture (website)|Vulture]] described the book as "an irreverent, genre-bending approach to ripped-from-the-headlines subject matter".<ref name=":1" />

Adjei-Brenyah's first novel is set in a dystopian America where imprisoned people have the choice to leave prison by joining a gladiatorial system called the "CAPE" or Criminal Action Penal Entertainment program where they take part in televised duels to the death as part of alliances called Chain Gangs. If they manage to survive three years of battles, then they are freed.<ref name=":3">{{Cite webmagazine |last=Bellot |first=Gabrielle |date=2023-05-23 |title=Chain-Gang All-Stars Is Gladiator Meets the American Prison System |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2023/05/chain-gang-all-stars-book-review/674143/ |access-date=2023-07-02 |websitemagazine=[[The Atlantic]] |language=en |archive-date=2023-06-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230630085855/https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2023/05/chain-gang-all-stars-book-review/674143/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite magazine |last=Parham |first=Jason |title=Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah Is the New Maestro of the Genre Novel |language=en-US |magazine=Wired |url=https://www.wired.com/story/nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-chain-gang-all-stars-wired30/ |date=May 2, 2023|access-date=2023-07-02 |issn=1059-1028 |archive-date=2023-07-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230702094058/https://www.wired.com/story/nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-chain-gang-all-stars-wired30/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The book has a large cast and is written from the perspective of multiple people participating in the program, as well as activists fighting against it, fans, and the people running it.<ref name=":3" />

The book is a fictional novel but features many footnotes citing current laws and factual statistics about the [[Incarceration in the United States|incarceration system in the United States]].<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Shariatmadari |first=David |date=2023-07-08 |title=Author Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah on policing in America: 'It's a kind of poison' |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/jul/08/author-nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-on-us-policing-its-a-kind-of-poison |access-date=2023-11-19 |issn=0261-3077 |archive-date=2023-11-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231119195235/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/jul/08/author-nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-on-us-policing-its-a-kind-of-poison |url-status=live }}</ref>

''Chain-Gang All-Stars'' was shortlisted for the 2023 [[National Book Award for Fiction]].<ref name=":7">{{Cite web |last=Harris |first=Elizabeth A. |date=October 3, 2023 |title=Here Are the Finalists for the 2023 National Book Awards |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/03/books/national-book-award-finalists-2023.html |access-date=October 3, 2023 |website=The New York Times |archive-date=October 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231003151412/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/03/books/national-book-award-finalists-2023.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |date=September 15, 2023 |title=The 2023 National Book Awards Longlist: Fiction |url=https://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/the-2023-national-book-awards-longlist-fiction |access-date=September 18, 2023 |magazine=The New Yorker |archive-date=September 17, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230917074624/https://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/the-2023-national-book-awards-longlist-fiction |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=September 15, 2023 |title=Here's the longlist for the 2023 National Book Award for Fiction. |url=https://lithub.com/heres-the-longlist-for-the-2023-national-book-award-for-fiction/ |access-date=September 18, 2023 |website=Literary Hub |archive-date=September 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230929135630/https://lithub.com/heres-the-longlist-for-the-2023-national-book-award-for-fiction/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Nguyen |first=Sophia |date=October 3, 2023 |title=Here are the finalists for the 2023 National Book Awards |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/books/2023/10/03/national-book-awards-shortlist/ |access-date=October 3, 2023 |newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-10-05 |title=The End of the World, According to Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah |url=https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/books/a45236201/nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-profile/|first=Leah |last=Greenblatt |access-date=2023-11-19 |website=Esquire |language=en-US |archive-date=2023-11-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231119194749/https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/books/a45236201/nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah-profile/ |url-status=live }}</ref> ''[[Kirkus Reviews]]'' namedchose itthe novel as one of the best books of 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Best of 2023 |url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/best-of/2023/fiction/books/ |access-date=2023-11-21 |website=[[Kirkus Reviews]] |language=en |archive-date=2023-11-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231120033011/https://www.kirkusreviews.com/best-of/2023/fiction/books/ |url-status=live }}</ref> ''The New York Times'' named it one of the 10 best books of 2023.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Staff |first=The New York Times Books Staff|date=November 28, 2023 |title=The 10 Best Books of 2023 |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/28/books/review/best-books-2023.html |access-date=November 28, 2023 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=November 28, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231128142545/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/28/books/review/best-books-2023.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

|<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ciabattari |first=Jane |date=2019-01-22 |title=National Book Critics Circle Announces Finalists for 2018 Awards |url=https://www.bookcritics.org/2019/01/22/national-book-critics-circle-announces-finalists-for-2018-awards/ |access-date=2023-07-10 |website=National Book Critics Circle |language=en-US |archive-date=2023-07-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230710063133/https://www.bookcritics.org/2019/01/22/national-book-critics-circle-announces-finalists-for-2018-awards/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

|<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |title=Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah |url=https://www.forbes.com/profile/nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah/ |access-date=2023-07-02 |website=Forbes |language=en |archive-date=2023-07-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230702094056/https://www.forbes.com/profile/nana-kwame-adjei-brenyah/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite webnews |last=Schaub |first=Michael |date=2019-02-27 |title=PEN America presents literary awards to Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, Nafissa Thompson-Spires |url=https://www.latimes.com/books/la-et-jc-pen-america-award-winners-2019-20190227-story.html |access-date=2023-07-23 |websitenewspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |language=en-US |archive-date=2023-07-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230723133645/https://www.latimes.com/books/la-et-jc-pen-america-award-winners-2019-20190227-story.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

|<ref>{{Cite web |title=2019 PRIZE |url=https://www.aspenwords.org/programs/literary-prize/browse-by-year/2019-prize/ |access-date=2023-07-11 |website=Aspen Words |language=en-US |archive-date=2022-03-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220302013658/https://www.aspenwords.org/programs/literary-prize/browse-by-year/2019-prize/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

|<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mem: 10071784 |title=2019 Dylan Thomas Prize shortlist announced {{!}} Books+Publishing |url=https://www.booksandpublishing.com.au/articles/2019/04/03/131044/2019-dylan-thomas-prize-shortlist-announced/ |access-date=2023-07-11 |language=en-AU |archive-date=2019-04-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403064528/https://www.booksandpublishing.com.au/articles/2019/04/03/131044/2019-dylan-thomas-prize-shortlist-announced/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

|<ref>{{Cite web |last1=University |first1=© Stanford |last2=Stanford |last3=California 94305 |title=Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah and Jennifer Croft awarded the 2020 William Saroyan International Prize for Writing by Stanford Libraries |url=https://library.stanford.edu/node/172192 |access-date=2023-07-10 |website=Stanford Libraries|publisher=Stanford University |language=en |archive-date=2023-07-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230710063139/https://library.stanford.edu/node/172192 |url-status=live }}</ref>

|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-07-17 |title=Waterstones debut fiction prize shortlist announced |url=https://www.booksandpublishing.com.au/articles/2023/07/17/234206/waterstones-debut-fiction-prize-shortlist-announced/ |access-date=2023-07-23 |publisher=Books+Publishing |archive-date=2023-07-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230723065611/https://www.booksandpublishing.com.au/articles/2023/07/17/234206/waterstones-debut-fiction-prize-shortlist-announced/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-07-17 |title=The ten contenders for the National Book Award for Fiction |url=https://www.nationalbook.org/2023-national-book-awards-longlist-for-fiction/ |access-date=2023-09-18 |publisher=National Book Foundation |archive-date=2023-09-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230915141033/https://www.nationalbook.org/2023-national-book-awards-longlist-for-fiction/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Announcing the Goodreads Choice Winner in Best Science Fiction! |url=https://www.goodreads.com/choiceawards/best-science-fiction-books-2023 |access-date=2023-12-25 |website=[[Goodreads]] |archive-date=2023-12-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231225061643/https://www.goodreads.com/choiceawards/best-science-fiction-books-2023 |url-status=live }}</ref>

|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Announcing the Goodreads Choice Winner in Best Debut Novel! |url=https://www.goodreads.com/choiceawards/best-debut-novel-2023 |access-date=2023-12-25 |website=[[Goodreads]] |archive-date=2023-12-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231225061719/https://www.goodreads.com/choiceawards/best-debut-novel-2023 |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Category:21st-century African-American speculative fiction writers]]

[[Category:UniversityAmerican atspeculative Albany,fiction SUNY alumniwriters]]