United States
![Kashana Cauley - [object Object] author](https://res.cloudinary.com/readsomnia/image/upload/authors/a_a_kashana_cauley.jpg)
The Survivalists: A Novel
A Phenomenal Book Club Pick
"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?
"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?
Editorial Reviews
A Phenomenal Book Club Pick
Vulture, AMost Anticipated Book of the Year
Zibby's Mag, A Most Anticipated Book of 2023
"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
"One of the Best New Books to Read in 2023." -Today
"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
"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 . . ...
Vulture, AMost Anticipated Book of the Year
Zibby's Mag, A Most Anticipated Book of 2023
"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
"One of the Best New Books to Read in 2023." -Today
"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
"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 . . ...
