Chains of the Father

A Novel by Jojo Penwood

One bloodline. Seven generations. Countless wounds.

From the ancient forests of Benin to the crowded streets of modern-day America, Chains of the Father is a sweeping intergenerational saga that traces the inherited trauma, silence, violence, and resilience passed down through seven Black men—bound not only by blood, but by the unseen chains of history.

It begins with Obadele, a noble man stolen from his homeland and shackled into slavery. His strength and dignity are buried under brutality—but a whisper of his spirit survives. Across generations, we meet his descendants: men hardened by the lash, silenced by shame, enraged by injustice, and often incapable of love. Each man carries more than his own scars; he carries the echoes of those before him.

From the cotton fields to the concrete jungle, through war, migration, addiction, incarceration, and protest, the chain tightens. Yet in the seventh generation, a boy named Amari dares to look backward in order to break free. Through therapy, ancestral memory, and a journey back to Benin, Amari seeks not revenge—but healing.

Powerful, poetic, and deeply human, Chains of the Father is a story of legacy, survival, and the revolutionary act of choosing peace.