- Publisher : Soft Skull (January 10, 2023)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 288 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1593767277
- ISBN-13 : 978-1593767273
“A great and engrossing read, Kashana humanizes a way of life that is often made fun of and makes the reader understand why someone would go to such great lengths to prepare for the future, so much so she almost sold me on those Life Preserver soy bars!” —Trevor Noah
A single Black lawyer puts her career and personal moral code at risk when she moves in with her coffee entrepreneur boyfriend and his doomsday-prepping roommates in a novel that's packed with tension, curiosity, humor, and wit from a writer with serious comedy credentials
In the wake of her parents’ death, Aretha, a habitually single Black lawyer, has had only one obsession in life—success—until she falls for Aaron, a coffee entrepreneur. Moving into his Brooklyn brownstone to live along with his Hurricane Sandy-traumatized, illegal-gun-stockpiling, optimized-soy-protein-eating, bunker-building roommates, Aretha finds that her dreams of making partner are slipping away, replaced by an underground world, one of selling guns and training for a doomsday that’s maybe just around the corner.
For readers of Victor LaValle’s The Changeling, Paul Beatty’s The Sellout, and Zakiya Harris’s The Other Black Girl, The Survivalists is a darkly humorous novel from a smart and relevant new literary voice that's packed with tension, curiosity and wit, and unafraid to ask the questions most relevant to a new generation of Americans: Does it make sense to climb the corporate ladder? What exactly are the politics of gun ownership? And in a world where it’s nearly impossible for young people to earn enough money to afford stable housing, what does it take in order to survive?
Review
A Phenomenal Book Club Pick
Named a Most Anticipated Book of the Year by Bustle, Vulture, Salon, and more
One of Electric Literature's Books by Women of Color to Read This Year
Goodreads, A Buzziest Debut Novel of the Year
“A great and engrossing read, Kashana humanizes a way of life that is often made fun of and makes the reader understand why someone would go to such great lengths to prepare for the future, so much so she almost sold me on those Life Preserver soy bars!” —Trevor Noah
"This is a banger of a book!" —Samantha Irby
"[A] lethally witty debut . . . One might expect a novel about gun-toting, conspiracy-minded loners to lampoon its key players, but the book succeeds because Cauley appears as curious and empathetic toward the survivalists as she is toward her protagonist . . . Cauley, a former writer for The Daily Show With Trevor Noah, displays an enviably versatile sense of humor. The novel is most fun when her wit bolsters the narrative’s sociopolitical underpinnings, as when she describes a 'house full of mysterious, unexplainable rich-people' paraphernalia, 'like gazebos.' Funny because they’re true, such jabs give the book its verve but also its depth. " —Laura Warrell, The New York Times Book Review
"Learn her name, because Cauley is one of the funniest writers at work today, period." —Bethanne Patrick, Los Angeles Times
"Cauley’s book is as comedic as is it caffeinated . . . The Survivalists has notes of darkness and a well-balanced acidity that shouldn’t come as a surprise to readers of Cauley’s opinion pieces for GQ, The Atlantic, and The New York Times, among others . . . Cauley’s prose is often laugh-out-loud funny . . . the author is wonderfully attuned to matters of Blackness and the ways a current generation lives, enjoys, and—yes—suffers." —Lisa Kennedy, The Boston Globe
"A swift and sharp debut . . . There’s no shortage of thrills and survivalist hijinks here, but it’s really Aretha’s magnetic charm and droll outlook that keep you hooked." —Patrick Rapa, The Philadelphia Inquirer
"[A] witty, incisive look at work politics, Blackness, relationships, gun ownership, Hurricane Sandy, parent loss and more . . . After reading her novel, you'll want to inhale everything she writes . . .this smart, funny novel will stay with you." —Zibby Owens, Good Morning America
"One of the Best New Books to Read in 2023." —Today
"[A] fiercely funny, engrossing novel." —Sophia June, Nylon
“Cauley is one of the smartest and funniest writers working today, and this novel is a chance for fans to spend even more time with her cutting critiques of the flaws in American culture. This novel asks uncomfortable questions about the lengths we must go to survive as everything around us is falling apart." —Isle McEroy, Vulture, A Most Anticipated Book of the Year
"Hilarious, dark, and thrilling, all while touching on relevant topics including capitalism, housing, and more, Cauley’s debut novel is a worthwhile read." —Katie Tamola, A Shondaland Best Book of the Month
"Cauley knows how to craft a story that is tense, funny as hell, and wise." —Rufus Hickok, Bust
"If you need a laugh after the last few years, Cauley’s dark comedy about doomsday preppers is what you need this winter." —Adam Vitcavage, Debutiful
"An ambitious Black lawyer gets sucked into the extralegal schemes of Brooklyn preppers in this first novel by a former writer for The Daily Show With Trevor Noah . . . Cauley's experience as a Manhattan antitrust lawyer infuses the office scenes with authentically cutthroat competition, and her comedy-writing chops shine in hilariously succinct characterizations . . . But what really sets this debut novel apart is its finely tuned balance between extremes: humor and drama, conspiracy and reason, careful preparation and total chaos. Funny and fresh, Cauley's prose moves dynamic characters through a vivid, living New York City." —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"Well-crafted . . . Aretha is a successful Black corporate attorney assigned to squash a bunch of homeowners’ insurance claims following Superstorm Sandy. Meanwhile, after countless failed dates, she meets and falls in love with coffee entrepreneur Aaron, who lives with his business partner, Brittany, in the Brooklyn house they collectively own . . . Cauley’s understanding of plot is impeccable and she keeps the tension taut as Aretha gets more involved with the group . . . It’s a good story." —Publishers Weekly
"This debut by former Daily Show writer Cauley is compulsively readable as it tracks Aretha's dizzying downward spiral with incisive observation, logic, and dark humor and delves into the perils of the thrill of the fringe and the limits of anyone's power to control their environment." —Booklist
"The brilliant and outrageously funny Kashana Cauley shines her laser on all the things that make our country suck, but her wit and calm intelligence make The Survivalists such a warm hot toddy of a novel." —Gary Shteyngart
“The Survivalists is a gun blast of a book. With enough power to keep a whole city running, Kashana Cauley questions what it means to live in fear, or through it, and how much of ourselves we sometimes have to lose in order to reveal our most brilliant parts. Even more impressive is her masterful precision in capturing something we’ve all felt: the need for escape from everyday monotony. This is a delightfully irreverent novel that will leave you feeling alive, prepared for anything, and, most important, understood.” —Mateo Askaripour, author of Black Buck
About the Author
Kashana Cauley is a former Midtown antitrust lawyer and Brooklyn resident. She is a writer for the Fox comedy The Great North, a contributing opinion writer for the New York Times, and a GQ contributor. She’s written for The Daily Show with Trevor Noah and Pod Save America on HBO as well as The Atlantic, The New Yorker, Pitchfork, and Rolling Stone, and has published fiction in Esquire, Slate, Tin House, and The Chronicles of Now. Kashana now lives in Los Angeles.
