[Waiting on Wednesday] Knockout Games by G. Neri

"Waiting On Wednesday" is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine,

that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This Week's Pick: 

Pre-Order at The Book Depository

Title: Knockout Games

Author: G. Neri
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Release Date: August 1, 2014
Publisher: Carolrhoda Lab
Genre: Young Adult- Contemporary Thriller

Summary via G. Neri's website:

Part Oliver Twist, part Fight Club, set in urban St. Louis, the novel is about a newly transplanted white sophomore girl named Erica who finds herself alienated in an almost all-black school. Her only friend is a video camera-- a gift from her recently estranged father. She withdraws into a world only experienced through her lens, but the camera leads to a run-in with a girl named Destiny, who takes Erica under her wings as the mascot and videographer for the mysterious TKO Club. Erica soon finds out what the club wants her to record: the notorious knockout games where kids pick out a stranger at random and try to knock them out with one punch. At first, Erica is shocked, but any doubts are diminished when she falls for the TKO leader, a Junior everyone calls the Knockout King. She starts filming the club’s games, first as a kind of documentary, then as a way to make friends. But she sinks deeper and deeper into the world of the knockout game as she gains a following online and the respect of the club. Next things she knows, she’s up to her neck in trouble when one of the victims dies and suddenly, it’s murder. Now she has to come to terms with her actions and the wake of victims she and her crew has left behind.

Why I'm Waiting...

I've heard a lot about G. Neri over the years and have never read his work. I think it's time to fix that with this crazy/sad/true-ish story. Based off the the real-life phenomena of the "knockout game," I too want to understand what drives America's youth towards such violent crimes for entertainment. Is it group think? Bordom?

There are also some aspects of multiculturalism that have my interest including a bi-racial relationship.

For more on G. Neri's inspiration for the novel check out his website.