"A work of deep originality and superior craftsmanship whose treatment of racial politics resists ideological classification. . . . A potent brew of mythology, gossip, history, political argument and family drama. . . . A Different Drummer is animated by a force so immense, and fed by so much history, that it transcends encapsulation." --The Wall Street Journal

"This fierce and brilliant novel is written with sympathy as well as sorrow. It's a myth packed with real-world resonance." --The Guardian

"Radical and important." --Financial Times

"Kelley blended fantasy and fact to construct an alternative world whose sweep and complexity drew comparisons to James Joyce and William Faulkner." --The New York Times

"A rare first novel; dynamic, imaginative, and accomplished." --Chicago Sunday Tribune

"Powerful. . . . Unflinching. . . . A gift to literature." --The Observer

"So brilliant is this initial novel that one must consider Mr. Kelley for tentative future placement among the paragons of American letters." --Boston Sunday Herald

"Beautifully written and thought-provoking." --Baltimore Evening Sun

"This first novel just perhaps could play a part in changing our history." --Kansas City Star

"An astounding achievement . . . Timeless, mythic. . . . Still relevant and powerful today." --The Sunday Times (London)

"Breathtakingly good. . . . Must be one of the most assured debuts of all time." --Sjón, author of CoDex 1962

"An imaginative, brilliantly observed world of the 20th-century Deep South in turmoil. . . . Kelley delivers his observations with caustic humour and surprising compassion. The comparisons of his debut to the books of James Baldwin and Faulkner are justified." --The Irish Times

"A rediscovered classic of African American literature. . . . A powerful novel that weaves intricate themes like racism, systemized oppression and identity together." --Bookriot