Chaos in Kinshasa

• We will send 300 review copies (150 pre-pub, 150 post-pub) to reviewers, booksellers, media, librarians, and bloggers; 
  
• We will seek early blurbs from relevant graphic novelists, comic creators, authors, and historians; 
  
• We will submit the book for all relevant awards;
  
• We will actively seek the inclusion of the book in unit studies curriculum; 
  
• We will promote the book at Comic Con, ALA annual, mid-winter ALA, NCTE, NCSS, and African Studies Association annual conferences; 
  
• We will host Goodreads and LibraryThing giveaways; 
  
• We will actively engage relevant book clubs and relevant historical or educational organizations in targeted publicity campaigns;
  
• We will promote the book online via Catalyst's website as well as email lists and social media (blog, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube). 
  
• We will promote the book within traditional educational and homeschooling communities; 
  
• We will submit the book to Library Guild and make it available as an e-ARC on Edelweiss and Netgalley for relevant reviewers; 
  
• The book will be released as part of Catalyst Press’ recently relaunched Panel & Page graphic novel series for African graphic novels and will receive targeted publicity in that regard; 
  
• The book will also be released as part of Catalyst Press' popular African Crime Reads series and will receive targeted publicity in that regard;
• We will promote the book as part of our global, once annually #ReadingAfrica Week campaign; 
  
• We will coordinate with Thierry Bellefroid, Barly Baruti, and Ivanka Hahnenberger to coordinate in-person and/or virtual launch events, readings, panel participations, and attendance to literary and comics festivals where possible. 
  

From beloved Congolese comics creator Barly Baruti and Belgian comics critic Thierry Bellefroid, translated from the original French by Batchelder Award-winning translator Ivanka Hahnenberger

A Harlem gangster’s trip to Central Africa to attend the legendary 1974 Ali-Foreman "Rumble in the Jungle" boxing match becomes a one-way ticket to the seedy underground of Zaire—complete with espionage, murder, and a communist plot to overthrow Zaire's infamous President Mobutu.

When Ernest, a low-level gangster from Harlem, wins tickets to travel to Zaire to attend the "Rumble in the Jungle," the now-legendary bout between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman, he’s eager to reconnect with his African roots and escape the ruthless gang leaders he's indebted to back home. But in Zaire, Ernest becomes entangled in an Angolan coup against the country's embattled president Mobutu Sese Seko—inspired by Che Guevara himself—and soon realizes that Zaire may hold even more dangers for him than Harlem ever could.

A Cold-War-era thriller set against the backdrop of a landmark moment in sports history, Chaos in Kinshasafeatures Barly Baruti’s characteristic art and Thierry Bellefroid's punchy dialogue woven in with the elements of a great gangster story—sex, spies, bribes, and murder. A thrill ride through a pivotal moment in Cold War, African, and sports history.