Another Kind of Madness: A Novel

Ndiya Grayson returns to her childhood home of Chicago as a young professional, but even her high-end job in a law office can’t protect her from half-repressed memories of childhood trauma. One evening, vulnerable and emotionally disarrayed, she goes out and meets her equal and opposite: Shame Luther, a no-nonsense construction worker by day and a self-taught piano player by night. The love story that ensues propels them on an unforgettable journey from Chicago’s South Side to the coast of Kenya as they navigate the turbulence of long-buried pasts and an uncertain future. A stirring novel tuned to the clash between soul music’s vision of our essential responsibility to each other and a world that breaks us down and tears us apart, Another Kind of Madness is an indelible tale of human connection.

‘A full-bodied literary achievement bustling with sweat, regret, and sound.’ - Kiese Laymon

‘[A] beautiful debut novel…Pavlic’s prose is simple yet lyrical, which strikingly depicts not only the intricacies of Ndiya and Shame’s relationship, but also a city and its history, as seen through architectural turnover and musical evolution. This is a moving novel about two people finding the strength to move forward together.’ - Publishers Weekly

‘Pavlic delivers a soulful debut novel about love and restoring hope…In prose by turns lyrical and mesmerizing, Pavlic taps deeply into what it means to be Black in America, tossing in some surprising narrative tricks along the way.’ - Booklist