Deacon King Kong
{{Short description|2020 literary fiction novel by James McBride}}
{{Use American English|date=December 2024}}{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2024}}
{{Infobox book
| author = James McBride
| isbn = 9780735216723
| pub_date = March 3, 2020
| genre = Literary fiction
| language = English
| publisher = Riverhead Books
| set_in = Brooklyn, 1969
| dewey = 813/.6
| isbn_note =
(hardcover 1st ed.)
| congress = PS3613.C28 D43 2020
| pages = 370 pp.
(hardcover 1st ed.)
| oclc = 1122690620
}}
Deacon King Kong is a novel by James McBride. It notably won the Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence for Fiction, Anisfield-Wolf Book Award for Fiction, and Thurber Prize for American Humor.
Narrative
The story unfolds in September 1969 Brooklyn and centers around volatile Cuffy Lambkin, nicknamed "Sportcoat". Sportcoat, a heavy drinker and church deacon, shocks his community by publicly shooting a young drug dealer, Deems Clemens, in broad daylight at the Cause Houses housing project. The incident sets off a chain of events involving the church community, local gangsters, the police, and residents of the housing complex. As secrets about Sportcoat, Deems, and others come to light, the novel explores their interconnected lives during a period of social and personal upheaval.
Release
It was published in the United States on March 3, 2020.
Critical reception
The novel was by and large praised by critics. According to Book Marks, the book received a "rave" consensus, based on thirty-two critics: twenty-four "rave", seven "positive", and one "mixed".{{Cite web |title=Deacon King Kong|url=https://bookmarks.reviews/reviews/deacon-king-kong/|access-date=16 January 2024 |website=Book Marks}} In the May/June 2020 issue of Bookmarks, the book was scored four out of five. The magazine's critical summary reads: "But, with its hilarious, digressive energy masking its serious undertones, Deacon King Kong is a work of both chaos and beauty".{{Cite web |title=Deacon King Kong|url=https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Deacon+King+Kong.-a0681582697|access-date=14 January 2023 |website=Bookmarks}}{{Cite web |title=Deacon King Kong|url=https://www.thefreelibrary.com/The+Heaven+%26+Earth+Grocery+Store.-a0811485258|access-date=14 January 2023 |website=Bookmarks}}
Awards
References
External links
- [https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51045613-deacon-king-kong?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=p6fHYrsTVb&rank=1 Deacon King Kong] on Goodreads
- {{LibraryThing work|id=23669729}}
Category:American historical novels
Category:Novels set in Brooklyn