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*WINNER OF THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FOR FICTION 2021*
‘Truly one hell of a book.’ CANDICE CARTY-WILLIAMS, author of QUEENIE
‘Powerful, timely, and provocative’ ABI DARÉ
‘An important book and everyone should read it’ IMRAN MAHMOOD
‘More than lives up to its title’ CHARLES YU
* * * * *
THIS IS A TRUE STORY.
An author goes on a book tour for his new bestseller Hell of a Book – which, as people keep telling him, is one hell of a book.
THIS IS A COMING-OF-AGE STORY.
One morning, he meets The Kid – a young Black boy who looks just like the one on the news who was shot by the police. And The Kid wants him to tell his story.
THIS IS A SAD STORY.
It’s the story of a boy who spent most of his life trying to hide, and to not be seen. And it may not be that different from the story of our author.
THIS IS A LOVE STORY.
But to find out why, you’ll have to read it for yourself.
THIS IS A STORY UNLIKE ANYTHING YOU’VE EVER READ. THIS IS A HELL OF A BOOK.
* * * * *
‘Poignant and beautiful … A story of race, family, love, and justice. It’s original and Jason Mott is a talent.’
Jenna Bush Hager, Read With Jenna/Today Show Book Club
‘An extraordinary emotional roller coaster of a read – I tore through this profoundly moving novel in a day but have been thinking about it ever since.’
Abi Daré, author of The Girl with the Louding Voice
‘Playful, searching, raw and necessary, this writing, this voice, this novel twisted me up and turned me inside out, dazzled me, surprised me and moved me.’
Charles Yu, author of Interior Chinatown
‘A beautiful and deeply moving book’
Imran Mahmood, author of You Don’t Know Me
‘How to possibly describe this novel without simply borrowing from its moniker? It is, after all, a hell of a book‘ Entertainment Weekly
‘Stunning, humorous, insightful, poetic, cinematic’
Publishers Weekly (starred review)
‘Hell of a Book consistently proves itself to be more than the sum of its parts: a farce that provokes contemplation, a publishing parody that rings true; an honest and emotive meditation on systematic racial injustice and the myriad ways in which it breaks the human soul. Sharp, funny, evocative and never anything less than utterly poignant’
Irish Times
‘For all its moments of levity, Mott has written a deadly serious story … Hell of a Book offers a disturbing portrait of a nation that’s been lying to itself all its years. In this way, the novel feels like a plea – intense, moving, urgent, and vital.’
Washington Independent Review of Books
‘A surrealist feast of imagination that’s brimming with very real horrors, frustrations and sorrows, it can break your heart and make you laugh out loud at the same time, often on the same page. This is an achievement of American fiction that rises to meet this particular moment with charm, wisdom and truth’
BookPage (starred review)
‘A twisty and startling narrative about the blurry lines between reality and fiction’ TIME Magazine
AN ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY ‘MUST READ’ | A READ WITH JENNA TODAY SHOW BOOK CLUB PICK | GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOKS OF THE MONTH | USA TODAY BOOKS ‘NOT TO MISS’ | THE NY POST BEST SUMMER READING BOOKS | EBONY MAGAZINE BOOK CLUB | FORTUNE’S ‘MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS’ | THE ROOT’S PAGETURNERS | REAL SIMPLE’S BEST NEW BOOKS TO READ IN 2021 | A TIME MAGAZINE MUST-READ
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Reviews
Hell of a Book more than lives up to its title. Playful, searching, raw and necessary, this writing, this voice, this novel twisted me up and turned me inside out, dazzled me, surprised me and moved me
How to possibly describe Mott's fourth novel without simply borrowing from its moniker? It is, after all, a hell of a book.
A black author embarks on a cross-country book tour to promote his new book, but he's followed by a (possibly imaginary) child. The author's story is intertwined with the narrative of Soot, a young black boy living in a rural town. Mott has written a clever meditation on race and violence in America.
Beautiful and deeply moving . . . I'd go as far as to say it's an important book and everyone should read it.
Maddening, disorienting and illuminating
Powerful, timely and provocative
Hell of a Book consistently proves itself to be more than the sum of its parts: a farce that provokes contemplation, a publishing parody that rings true; an honest and emotive meditation on systematic racial injustice and the myriad ways in which it breaks the human soul. Sharp, funny, evocative and never anything less than utterly poignant, Mott's novel chronicles the experience and cost of racism for black Americans with a clarity that is justifiably unsettling. Hell of a Book is distinctly American tale of racial trauma told with a dry, almost painful humour that scrapes at the reader's heart.
A twisty and startling narrative about the blurry lines between reality and fiction
Brilliant and inventive ... You'll cry tears of laughter.
In a structurally and conceptually daring examination of art, fame, family and being black in America, Mott somehow manages the impossible trick of being playful, insightful and deeply moving, all at the same time. A highly original, inspired work that breaks new ground
For all its moments of levity, Mott has written a deadly serious story ... Hell of a Book offers a disturbing portrait of a nation that's been lying to itself all its years. In this way, the novel feels like a plea - intense, moving, urgent, and vital.
Hilarious and moving, thoughtful and madcap . . . a hell of an accomplishment.
A dizzying yet dazzling exploration of exploration itself.
A profound exploration of love, friendship, and racial violence . . . A story that is at once a paean to familial love and friendship and a reckoning with racism and police violence. By turns playful and surprising and intimate, a moving meditation on being Black in America.
Stunning . . . Mott's poetic, cinematic novel tackles what it means to live in a country where Black people perpetually "live lives under the hanging sword of fear." Absurdist metafiction doesn't get much better.