RIOTS I HAVE KNOWN

A satirical literary debut novel set during a prison riot, narrated by a Sri Lankan inmate who has inadvertently sparked violence based on his prison literary journal and barricaded himself in the penitentiary's computer lab, from which he speaks.

Set during a prison riot and narrated by the convicted murderer who edits the prison literary journal, Riots I Have Known is an utter gem of contemporary social satire. Our narrator, a Sinhalese expat, is a wonderfully verbose character whose gift for gab and literary digression takes us on a roller coaster of plot and language that shows these high-wire acts can be enormously satisfying. The story of the riot - and why our unnamed narrator is sitting in the prison media center alone telling us about it and his life both in and out of the klink is laugh-out-loud hilarious.

Ryan Chapman is the Managing Director of Marketing and Digital Projects at BOMB Magazine and has written for Buzzfeed, GQ.com, and other publications.