#Nnedi Okorafor is right there

[projectazar]

I'm furious about these responses. People need to read more black women authors.

hello fellow non-Black tumblr users. welcome to my saw trap. if you'd like to leave, please name one (1) Black woman author who is not Maya Angelou, Toni Morrison, bell hooks, Octavia Butler, or N.K. Jemisin. bonus points if she's published a book in the last five years.

[goldom]

"When I was seventeen and able to give my consent to remove the arm stump, over my parents’ pleas to keep this withered useless piece of flesh and bone, the doctors gave me my cybernetic limb. When they explained the procedure and showed me the robotic arm, I asked, “Why cover it with flesh?” My parents couldn’t afford it, I didn’t need it. I am part machine. I am proud to be part machine. I was born twisted and strange by their standards. And after so much recovery, I was somehow amazing."

—from Noor, by Nnedi Okorafor

[abookishidentity]

Books read and finished in May 2025

-Confounding Oaths by Alexis Hall started May 1, 2025 and finished May 5, 2025- 4/5 stars. I liked this book better than the first one. The reason why things were happening didn’t piss me off like in the last book. A fairy godmother fulfilling a wish a little too well is something I can wrap my head around. My only gripe about this book is that it gets a little repetitive. Mr. Caesar’s sister disappears and or is taken away and they have to find her way too many times in this book. It makes the book feel a bit long. I am glad that we get to see Miss Bickle again. She was the best character in the previous book and I loved that she was in this book too. Just not as much. She’s hilarious. 

-When She Woke by Hillary Jordan started May 5, 2025 and finished May 7, 2025- 4/5 stars. This is The Scarlet Letter but more on the dystopian side that’s probably like The Handmaid’s Tale. So it’s a bit of a bummer to read. I like the growth of the main character in this book. She goes through so much shit. She has sex with the married reverend and then, unlike the scarlet letter, she has an abortion. She is then colored red as this is considered serious murder in this society. People are colored different colors based on their crimes which is interesting. They have to keep going in to get recolored every so often otherwise they start to mentally deteriorate and then die. In this world, there was a pandemic that made people infertile so having babies is quite a serious endeavor even after there was a cure. This book is mostly the main character trying to survive and get to a place where she could live peacefully. She is heavily encouraged to name the man who impregnated her (the reverend) and her abortionist. She doesn’t give either of them up. I highly suspect that even if she named the reverend people wouldn’t believe her. So it’s nice that at some point the reverend confesses all his sins on TV and falls from grace that way. Overall, a pretty good book.  

-When the Moon Hits Your Eye by John Scalzi started May 8, 2025 and finished May 10, 2025- 4/5 stars. I enjoyed this book a lot more than I thought I was going to. Then again, it’s John Scalzi who is one of my favorite authors. This book is what happens when suddenly and out of nowhere the moon turns to cheese. Or a cheese-like substance. Each chapter is for each lunar cycle and we read about different characters. I thought these chapters wouldn’t connect with each other but they do. Some characters show up again and I like that. It was entertaining. John clearly did some research on certain things and I appreciate that. The characters were interesting. The ending made me question if the ending was suppose to be interpreted however you wanted. I want to interpret it in which the billionaire did really die in space when the moon cheese hit him and his ship. 

-Road to Ruin by Hana Lee started May 11, 2025 and finished May 13, 2025- 4/5 stars. Mad Max vibes with magic. I thought there were going to be more scenes of people trekking against the dusty lonely road. I’m glad it was minimal. Overall I liked this book. I guess it makes sense that if you are reading and delivering letters to two members of royalty you would fall in love with both of them. And both of them would care for you. Saving each other in various ways is always very lovely to read. A very interesting read. 

-Escape Velocity by Victor Manibo started May 14, 2025 and finished May 17, 2025- 3/5 stars. Victor’s other book, The Sleepless was a lot more interesting and I loved that book. This book was fine. I like what he was trying to do in the book.  It’s just if you advertise the book as rich bitches in space getting what they deserve then I would expect that to be the whole book. It was a lot of build up and it only happened the last 50-70 pages of the book. It didn’t feel like enough. Instead we get too much of the rich bitches fucking each other (in different ways) in the past and present. These rich bitches don’t use protection but I guess they could afford the consequences of unprotected space sex. The backgrounds of these rich bitches don’t feel like they matter if they are all simply going to die at the end. I liked Ava but she was part of the rich bitches so yeah. 

-Bindle Punk Bruja by Desideria Mesa started May 18, 2025 and finished May 21, 2025- 4/5 stars. I wish the main character was able to use her magic more but she was limited and still a novice at using it. When she did, it was cool even if it was charm magic that made men stupid. Her taking out the KKK at the end was pretty damn cool. A lot of the book felt a bit repetitive. She held a nightclub/speakeasy. The night either went great or terribly wrong. I don’t know. Maybe because I’m not a drinker or a party person so I didn’t really care for those parts. I like how diverse everyone was. This book took place in the 1920s so naturally the main character and other women in this book had to deal with sexist and chauvinist bullshit. That got old after a while. It seems rather cruel that the main character had to deal with the KKK and mobsters. Her brother almost died several times so I feel bad for him. But overall it’s a good book. I just wish it focused on one antagonist. Mainly the mobsters. 

--The Best of all Possible Worlds by Karen Lord started May 22, 2025 and finished May 24, 2025- 4/5 stars. I liked this book a lot. It’s always fun to read about aliens. I like how different authors will come up with different aliens species and backgrounds. The aliens in this book have psychic powers and read minds and affect people’s perceptions of the world. Anytime I read aliens that remind me of Star Trek, I am happy. One of the aliens reminded me of Spock from Star Trek. Maybe that’s why I liked it so much. There was also some time travel in this book which was cool. Each chapter felt different from the previous. It reminded me of Becky Chamber’s first book in the Wayfarers series. I need to check out this author’s other works. I like her writing style. 

-The Full Moon Coffee Shop by Mai Mochizuki started May 24, 2025 and finished May 25, 2025- 3/5 stars. This is a translated book. I think some things get lost in translation. I wasn’t a huge fan of the book. It wasn’t for me. I thought talking cats would be interesting but they sounded preachy at times. The characters in this book needed therapy and not talking cats talking about astrology and shit. The book reminded me of What you are looking for is in the library by Michiko Aoyama. 3-4 stories about different characters learning lessons about why their life sucks and what they should do about it. The books are trying too hard to be inspiring. 

-Noor by Nnedi Okorafor started May 25, 2025 and finished May 27, 2025- 4/5 stars. The main character is quite interesting with her body modifications and what not that she had to get in order to live. Of course a major evil corporation is behind it all. Interesting world. Interesting characters. It was a good book. Very realistic that taking down the major evil corporation cannot happen so easily and so soon. 

-When Among Crows by Veronica Roth started May 28, 2025 and finished May 29, 2025- 4/5 stars. This book is quite interesting as I have never read about Polish mythological creatures before. I don’t think I have read a book like this before. It was a quite short book so things moved on quite quickly. Characters sharing awkward sexual tension even though they just met is quite weird to me but oh well. It’s queer so that makes it more intriguing. I like how it ends. 

[specialagentartemis]

would love to hear more about your scifi authors of color recommendations!

That’s a really broad topic! I have some list posts of Black Women Writing SFF and Queer Asian Authors Writing SFF, but if you want to hear a couple of my own absolute favorite sci-fi authors:

Ted Chiang is one of my favorite authors ever. He writes short stories, and his collections are Stories of Your Life and Others and Exhalation, and they’re brilliant. “Story of Your Life” is easily in my top 3 sci-fi short stories of all time.

I’ve only read N. K. Jemisin’s short stories as well, but her collection How Long ‘til Black Future Month? is just banger after banger after banger. It’s hard to choose a favorite but the one about the lifetime achievement award, Death and the octopi, and the Muslim space colonists stick in my mind vividly. 

And speaking of short stories, I’m hype that Isabel J. Kim is FINALLY getting the recognition she deserves with this year’s Hugo nom! Her short stories are brilliant, ranging from a cool idea explored well to a kaleidoscopic turning of old familiar tropes into fractured rainbows of imagery and meaning. “Homecoming is Just Another Word for the Sublimation of the Self” and “Calf Cleaving in the Benthic Black” are my favorites of hers that I’ve read.

Simon Jimenez is the author of one of my favorite sci-fi novels ever, The Vanished Birds. It’s beautiful and sad and I gushed about how much I love it here. 

Nnedi Okorafor is an author I have appreciated the freshness and lyricism of everything I’ve read by her, my favorites being the Binti trilogy and Remote Control. She writes Africanfuturism, a term she insists on because she’s writing sci-fi rooted in the places and peoples and futures of Africa.

Yoon Ha Lee’s Machineries of Empire trilogy is SUCH good military sci fi space opera… love to finish that someday…

Samuel Delany is an author from the classic era of sci-fi, a contemporary of people like Asimov and Heinlein. His Babel-17 is some incredibly creative linguistic sci-fi space opera from the late 60s. It’s so enthusiastic, packed with Cool Ideas, and so fun to read. 60s sci-fi can be great if you don’t have to sift through racist and sexist nonsense!

An Owomoyela is a short story writer who deserves more recognition. “All That Touches The Air” returns to my brain periodically.

Premee Mohamed is another author I discovered through short stories, specifically “The Redoubtables,” which was chilling and evocative and immediately made me go look for what else she’d written. The Annual Migration of Clouds and And What Can We Offer You Tonight are both really bitter and sad, and bittersweet and hopeful, and so compelling. 

I saw Cadwell Turnbull on a Readercon panel and he was so interesting I bought his debut novel The Lesson right then and there.  It’s an alien invasion story set in the Caribbean and it takes a really unique spin on it. More like alien settlement, then invasion, but it’s not like the humans got a choice.

It’s obvious but Octavia Butler’s “Bloodchild” is brain-rewriting for real. 

Long list but I genuinely love all these authors. There is so much out there! Also I am currently reading the Magebike Courier duology by Hana Lee and having a great time.

[alpaca-clouds]

The Stories We Are Missing

I hate Disney. I really do. I hate them, because they are shitty to a lot of workers. I hate them, because they consolidate so many IPs only to then make the most generic stuff with them. I hate them, because they don't invest in new ideas anymore. And I hate them for being such cowards.

However... I will give them credit for producing Iwájú and Kizazi Moto. Two afrofuturist series. Iwájú being one series that actually just tells one story - while Kizazi Moto is an anthology series like Love Death + Robots on Netflix. Well, that is all that it has in common with LD+R is that it is a scifi anthology series. It has less issues with the sexism and racism of LD+R.

And thinking about this has brought me to the one aspect of our lack on Solarpunk media, that I think gets ignored too much. Again, because white people. And this is... Well, the lack of well published afrofuturist and amazofuturist stories - or movies. And I would assume also the equivalent for other indigenous cultures. (I think the name right now is "Pacificafuturism" for the polynesians, I have no idea whether the indigenous people still living in Asia have something along the lines.)

The irony is that I actually think, well... Let's face it: There is a reason why Disney of all people is investing in some Afrofuturist projects. And that reason is that there is a big audience for this stuff. Disney probably just saw how Black Panther was printing money and was like: "I guess we'll make more of that!"

Now what does this have to do with Solarpunk?

Well, I will remind you: Solarpunk originated with Amazofuturism. And futuristic indigenous stories tend to have a lot of Solarpunk vibes at the very least. Not all of those stories will be Solarpunk, no, but even those that are not will offer us things to learn. Because I will say it once again: We really, really do have a big issue in a lot of SciFi/Fantasy that way too white and way too stuck in the storytelling conventions of western society.

And here is the thing: I doubt most people will be able to name a lot of afrofuturist media other than Black Panther, and maybe the series above. Or maybe you actually can think of some novels like the ones from N. K. Jemisin, Octavia E. Butler, or Nnedi Okorafor. But not much more.

Now, in terms of Afrofuturism there is a bit more - but the other things? Most Amazofuturism is only ever published in Portugese or maybe Spanish in some cases. And I am honestly not certain if there is even anything that is not self-published out there in terms of Pacificafuturism. (I mean, I know a few Maori movies that I guess you could consider, but...)

What I am trying to get at: I think we need more indigenous futurism/indigenous scifi. Not only so that we read more that breaks out of western storytelling conventions, I think we also just need other perspectives on the future. Because our western, white perspective is limited - and we got to imagine the future for way too long.

[fernthewhimsical]

Hopepunk Primer pt. 3

How to practice Hopepunk

Find joy in the small things. The flowers growing through concrete, the way the sunlight hits the grass. There is beauty and joy in the small things, but it takes a bit of training to find them. Mindfulness or a gratitude journal (or even a Tumblr sideblog) helps with this training. Hope can be learned, I promise.

Be a pebble. [8] Imagine a tall glass that is half-full with water. Imagine you are a crow. You try to drink the water but you can't reach, the glass is too deep. So you take a pebble and throw it in. The water level rises slightly. Other crows come in with pebbles, and with each pebble the water level rises until finally you all can drink from the glass. There is a lot of focus nowadays in activism circles to be aware of every horrible thing that is going on in the world and to work on each and every one of them. The tough reality is: we can't. We're only human and right now we are all very prone to burn-out. We can't bring change if we are burnt out or have compassion fatigue. So be a pebble. Stay small, perhaps even stay local. If everyone focuses on one thing and focuses their efforts and energy there, we will make it. We'll make the water rise so everyone can drink. Be a pebble.

Stop doom scrolling. It's ineffective and only serves to make us feel more hopeless and demoralized.

Be responsible for your own internet experience. This is related to doom scrolling. Unfollow people who make you feel hopeless and like the fight is useless. Block trolls and don't engage them. Find people who make you feel inspired, invigorated, hopeful. Blacklist tags, block, delete.

Look into hopepunk media. Be inspired by the stories told. Some examples are movires: Lord of the Rings, Mad Max: Fury Road, Pacific Rim. Series: Sense8, the Good Place, Star Trek. Books: Binti by Nnedi Okorafor, A conspiracy of truths by Alexandra Rowland, the Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin. Music: Torches by X Ambassadors, This Yeah by the Mountain Goats, Be More Kind by Frank Turner.

Build/Find your Community. Share what you have, ask for what you need. We're in this together. If you grow your own fruits and vegetables share them with friends and neighbours. Exchange favours like doing a grocery run or offering to watch the kids for a night. Make a tiny library or give & take cabinet. Share skills and resources. This can be done both online and in person, but making a difference locally is easier with boots on the ground, so to speak.

Create. Live authentically. Do things just to do the thing. So much needs to be "content", these days. So much needs to be a "side hustle" or "monetized". Resist. Create because it makes you feel good. Because you want to. Create bad art, sing off key, swing your arms wildly and call it dancing, write edgy poetry, create Mary Sue self-inserts. Live.

Resist capitalism. Reuse, recycle, repair, thrift, make, trade, etc.

Vote. If you really want to make a difference get out there and vote. Especially in the US they do not want you so rebel and vote. Not just for the president. Voting locally for your representatives will have more of an influence.

Unionize. Alone you beg, together you negotiate. Only together can we make change

Spread hope. Do random acts of kindness, compliment people, share positive things that happened, spread love and joy where you go.

[8] Be a pebble and Vaspider's original post

Further reading:

Alexandra Rowland's Hopepunk Manifesto What is Hopepunk by Vox.com Hopepunk-Humanity blog on Tumblr Hopepunk: A Genre, Philosophy and Movement by Lexi Drumonde (Video) Intro to Hopepunk by Morgan Hazelwood (Video)

Part 1: Intro and history Part 2: Philosophy of Hopepunk Part 3: How to practice hopepunk and further reading Part 4: Extra! Hopepunk and magic

[gyokujyn]

9 People I'd Like to Know Better

I was tagged by @sparkagrace

Last song I listened to: Steal by Maribou State feat. Holly Walker because YouTube autoplayed it and I fucking love that song. It just makes me want to be a bit high and dancing in the rain.

Favorite color: Octamarine, but green and purple will do in a pinch.

Currently watching: Trying to get my brain to let me watch the new season of Andor by watching the previous season. It hasn't worked yet, but I'm stubborn.

Last movie: Thunderbolts*. Twice. Not in a row. I'm not that unhinged.

Currently Reading: Just finished reading Hat Full of Sky by Sir Terry Pratchett to the kiddos for the second time (at their request), but I am between books for myself at the moment. I have been about to start reading Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor for like 6 months, but I have to accept that my brain does not want to read books right now.

Sweet, spicy, or savory: They all have their place, but at this exact moment, I am craving a hot fudge sundae with peanuts. Do with that what ye will.

Relationship: I'm polyamorous and about to celebrate 25 years of marriage with my longest partner.

Current obsessions: Surprisingly still Bucky Barnes...

Last Googled: "stone cold killer lyrics didn't know you could be so cold" trying to track down the name of the song and artist for proper tagging.

Currently working on: About to sit down to work on my MTH project.

No pressure tags: @bromcommie @katie-delaney @blackwood4stucky @amaraangelicus @thepiper0fhameln @humanshapedmonster @sleepysongbirdsings @buckitten @stuckyfingers

[caribeandthebooks]

March 2025 Reading Wrap-Up

I read 4 books and got 1 Kindle/Goodreads challenge achievements this month!

Now lets look at the breakdown :)

Reading Challenge Progress: I committed to reading 20 books in 2025 so currently I'm ahead by 12 books!

Top Genre read as at March 2025: Literary Fiction

My first read for March and Book #9 was Death of the Author by Nnedi Okorafor. Rating: 4.5/5

Loved this one! Lost a half point because I never locked in but otherwise it's a solid story and I love how the stories feed into each other. Her family though, all I'll say is that I didn't know what the interviews were alluding to until the book ended and honestly no matter what she did I was gonna be on her side because the way they treated her had my eyebrows on the roof. Nnedi delivers yet again! Love that for her and love that for me.

Death of the Author helped me earn the Essential Reader achievement.

Book #10 was My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite. Rating: 3.75/5

Women's History Month is an excellent to celebrate women's rights and women's wrongs. I'm shocked I forgot to include this in the March TBR but what matters is I remembered to bring her in for a quick read! This book was hilarious to me because this man said "the red flags can't stop me, I can't see". This wasn't a mystery or a thriller, it did what is said on the tin. Which is fine, because I thought it was funny. Also yay for locs representation in a book!

Book #11 was Spark Joy by Marie Kondo. Rating: 4/5

I got this book forever ago in a PopSugar subscription box when those were still a thing. I miss them but I guess my bank balance doesn't. This book helped me come to terms with the fact that my and my families aversion to disposing of things is likely coming from a place of lack. I will be employing these tips in my next spring clean for sure. I just...dunno when that will be. But I won't her tips to waste, I promise!

Book #12 was The Midnighters by Hana Tooke. Rating: 4.5/5

I picked up this book as part of a reading prompt to choose a book based on it's book cover. This book did not disappoint! An adorable story set in the Czech Republic and the Epilogue is from a cat's POV! What's not to love!

I was committed to only reading black authors this month and I did that! Next month it will be only female authors in honor of women's history month!

That's all until next time! What have you been reading?

[nihilisticlinguistics]

Significant progress on @batmanisagatewaydrug's 2025 book bingo since my last update a few weeks ago.

I had a...challenging time for a while, I have to admit. The next book on my list was We Do This Til We Free Us by Mariame Kaba for the Social Justice and Activism square...which came in on Libby the day of the inauguration. It took several days for me to gather the mental energy to think about resistance, but once I got into the swing of it I found that it was not so daunting as I feared. As Kaba says, hope is a discipline, and it still took a lot of discipline to center her work in my thoughts during the initial chaos of Trump Presidency #2. It's a remarkable and thoughtfully composed book, a sort of anthology of her writings over the last 10 (or more) years. I look forward to adding this one to my collection, so I can revisit its teachings again and again.

After that, I rolled right into my Literary Fiction square with Ralph Ellison's novel Invisible Man. What a powerful, insightful story--to me, certainly on par with and reminiscent of The Grapes of Wrath in its incisive cultural critique and vivid characterization. I found it weird, hectic, and unsettling, all while rendering with great accuracy the ways that people reify, exploit, and resist America's racist society.

I definitely needed a palate cleanser after two hard-hitting books about Racism in the USA, so I was thrilled when my library hold for Nnedi Okorafor's Zahrah the Windseeker came in. This YA fantasy book was for my Published in the Aughts square, and it's super cute. Zahrah, born with a magical influence in her life, develops the power to levitate which sets off a whirlwind exploration through a forbidden jungle to save her best friend's life. It's whimsical and fun and I am in love with Okorafor's worldbuilding here. I want a computer that's also a plant that grows up with me. I want to hang out with the gorilla village. I think anyone who is into Tamora Pierce's Circle of Magic series would also enjoy Zahrah the Windseeker.

And in the last two days I absolutely breezed through Traci Chee's wonderful novel A Thousand Steps Into Night, which I read for my Fantasy square. Folks, this book had my heart very early on thanks to the charms of the heroine, Otori Miuko, and her quest to remain human despite an encroaching demon curse had me locked in, start to finish. Stories of a 'long journey toward a fixed locational goal' often get repetitive, but Chee kept the story's developments feeling fresh the whole way through, with a willingness to toss in and develop new side characters and expand the story world at every turn. I'm obsessed with the choice to throw in time travel halfway through and I think more authors should do that. Highly, highly recommend!

[missanthropicprinciple]

Nine Books I Want to Read in 2025 (some of which I have already started) - open tagged by @deeahhnuh

Killing Time by Della Van Hise - Can't wait to read this coveted recalled Star Trek novel - I was lucky enough to get a copy. The text of this first edition was up on Internet Archive but it might have been pulled. Keep your eyes peeled!

The Price of the Phoenix by Sondra Marshak and Myrna Culbreath - I've already started this one and I'm enjoying it so far. It doesn't have the best ratings but it's extremely Spock/Kirk focused and it's not even censored as far as I'm aware.

The Warm Hands of Ghosts by Katherine Arden - I have the US edition but the UK edition is cool too. This novel is surprisingly complex and can be difficult to follow but I need to know what happens!

Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving by Pete Walker - This book is part of my own personal journey and it's been incredible so far. But I've been putting it off for ages. It's quite long so I'll have to read one chapter at a time and take breaks. The author is very sensitive and kind.

Traitor's Purse by Margery Allingham - Apparently this is a "can't put this down once you start" kinda books where Albert Campion has amnesia after WWII. There are other novels in the series I should read first but I think I'll just dive into this one.

The Tiger in the Smoke by Margery Allingham - This is often considered her best work. One of the various covers caught my eye a few years ago but now I have a copy and I'd like to see how good it is.

The Girl from the Other Side by Nagabe - There are 12 books in the series. Currently on 6. I know 11 is going to kill me.

The Binti Trilogy by Nnedi Okorafor - I've been meaning to read more Afrofuturism and Africanfuturism. Started reading this last year and really liked it. I need to throw myself into that universe when I have less distractions.

Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Novels and Stories, Volume I and 2) - Been working on these for a while but I really want to get to the end so I can say I've read the complete canon. I've been enjoying most of them. 

A note about links: While I do use Goodreads, it is owned by Amazon so I am linking to the ethical Awesome Books if you'd like to purchase some of these books. Also linking to Wikipedia, etc.

Tagging anyone in general! But specifically: @cinemaocd @notwiselybuttoowell ....who is reading right now?!

[leohtttbriar]

just curious, have you read binti by nnedi okorafor? i’m a bit reminded of her worldbuilding style when i read your star trek fics, if that makes sense

when i saw this i had not read binti by nnedi okorafor but now i have!! and it was beautiful and i really found the world-building fascinating as well as the rest of the story. and i have to thank you so much for bringing these stories to my attention!

i'm not going to claim that my star trek fics are like this bc that is so deeply flattering that i can only shy away from it (how is someone supposed to react to a part of their writing being compared to a quality of an award winning novella--i can't accept that fully but oh wow thank you so much), but i will say that there are details in okorafor's story that appeal to me and drag my interest and inspire me to want to write more. and i think if wanted to try to boil down what these details are it'd come out to something like: physical reality is more creative than the general narrative of physics supposes.

(apologies for how long this got--i am incapable of stopping once i start)

obviously the word "creative" invokes something like a designer, someone who put it all together. and i definitely don't believe in god but i also think that "god" serves as a interpretive interlocutor between how people expect physical reality to be and how it's beyond us--at least to people who aren't consistently enmeshed in theoretical physics or any other field/area of science that engages more with abstraction than materiality. and i love how okorafor takes the aesthetics of spirituality and extends that to tech. how she collapses the space between tech and art:

[...]

okorafor even invokes "god" multiple times, all in relation to the himba people that binti is a part of. and the way she reworks the theme of "innovation" is the expression of "god" in tech--creativity in material realities:

even just the suggestion that innovation and technology can be "small, private" and for "traveling inward" to explore the universe is fascinating enough--then she adds on this idea of "treeing"--of meditating so deeply on mathematics that physical parts of the world can "harmonize" with other parts through that power of mind and noticing and "inward" travel. it's wonderful.

she then has mathematics and harmonizing language with this conceit of "information" being found in certain material and how that material can be the medium of communication:

[...]

and that's not even getting to the way the red clay functions in the story and as a part of the world. the clay has information, data, and healing purpose, but the first time binti is asked to explain it to one of the meduse she says:

so all of this adds up to binti being in the right place and the right time in order to return what was stolen and save lives--when she says she's a master harmonizer, it's a layered claim in the story: she can create astrolabes, she can communicate with her edan--very old tech, she can physically communicate from her people to the meduse with the otjize she kept with her as she traveled outward in the universe, and she can use language.

[...]

i tend to be more interested in language as a physical gesture. as a thing that is wholly reliant on the body. i've always been more drawn to phonetics than semantics, and all the potentially significant ways a body can express itself. i just like meter and sound and gesture etc. obviously that's a part of how okorafor engages with "language" in this story but largely "language" arrives through mathematics--through something as abstract and rational and creative as mathematics--through a practice with "getting closer to 'god.'" and that's so beautiful in terms of the idea of "harmonizing," implying a peace and understanding between conscious beings that always exists so long as someone can tap into it.

binti's role in the story reminded me a little of the narrative/cultural role of the "peaceweaver" in early medieval poetry/culture. the sort of diplomatic conceit behind marriages of daughters to neighboring kings, but instilled in the actual person of the daughter/new wife, the woman who is now "weaving" peace through her ties to both kingdoms. binti of course isn't acting as diplomat through this cultural custom (the politics of medieval power structures are not really there to cause this role to exist to begin with) but the word "peaceweaver" is a word that suggests a creative engagement in material reality. she is weaving material together, she is weaving people together; the word poetically collapses the space between her abilities in a feminine craft and her abilities in her political role. and there's something like that happening with binti's "harmonizing"--her role as "harmonizer."

[...]

so despite the fact that the conceit of "language" is depicted as something that is an abstract truth that can be accessed, okorafor is still arguing that "communication" is a product of the person. so long as the person is not barrier-ed or diminished. so long as that person has always been able to communicate their self to the world around them, in such a way that the person does not keep that self apart from the world. "treeing"--engaging with fractals, self-similar mathematical patterns in perpetuity--being both the accessing of material truth and "god"--allowing for treating with other people. between people. with a result of cultural harmony.

with binti's edan i was reminded also of the golden compass in his dark materials. pullman depicts the compass as a piece of tech more than a piece of magic, even if magic definitely exists in-universe. and the way lyra has a special relationship to this tech, then looses it, then decided to figure the relationship out the hard way: binti's relationship with the edan is very like this but also okorafor writes it so that binti has already done the hard work of figuring out the tech, with her studies and meditation throughout her life (practices of her people), and by the end of the story she just needs to understand her understanding. and there's something about the fact that she is using "god" instead of fully rejecting it, as the story demands lyra does, because the relationship one can have to an object, a piece of tech, can be personal--and the personal is necessarily spiritual (the emergent property of self-consciousness, implementing an abstract meaning on that which might not inherently contain it--the "to be" rather than "not to be").

and the way binti's body is warped at the end of the story, changing her relationship to everything around her, mirrors the way she has carried her people's clay with her as communicative tool and personal expression and cultural honoring of her land and family and loved ones. she is still looking inward for the universe, it's just now the universe has become a part of her body.

anyway i was deeply interested in this story because i the speculative/sci-fi question that has most attracted me is the question of how biology and culture interact and how that interaction can produce something like technology or progress. it's an eco-critical question at the core because it's a question of how to be in the world and of the world while still not limiting the creativity that is as natural to our mind as any other part of the human body. it's how i read something like this novella as well as something like sir gawain and the green knight. it's like: when you're studying any aspect of biology, there's a tendency to see the description of, say, cellular respiration, and think, even unspoken, "who the hell came up with this. this is so impossibly complex. how does it even work??"

and the answer is "it works because that's how matter works. it works because that is how matter is. it works because it was inevitable for matter to behave this way in the conditions created because matter behaves this way and that is what is and that is it."

and so the "creativity" in that reality is not so much authored as it is the ongoing process of everything. trying to interpret and apply a culture that respects that is like...the project of climate activism, i guess. but maybe i'm getting to far into the umbrella Issue here. i just wanted to say that i loved this novella and i'm so so flattered by what you said and i find world-building details like the one's okorafor wrote to be fascinating and inspirational! <3333

[abookishidentity]

Books I recently checked out of the library

The Full Moon Coffee Shop by Mai Mochizuki- I honestly forget how I came to find this book. It sounds relaxing to read. And the fact that there are talking cats in it makes it much more imperative that I read it. It will probably remind me of the other translated books that I have read.

Noor by Nnedi Okorafor- I have read more than one book by this author now and I keep coming back because she has cool ideas for books. This book just sounds fun and interesting to read.

When Among Crows by Veronica Roth- I have read other books by Veronica Roth mainly the divergent trilogy and so it's interesting to see how YA authors write books more intended for adults.

Dreadful by Caitlin Rozakis- I have never read this author before. Goodreads has recommended me this book several times and I am now just getting to it. This books sounds right up my alley and I'm excited to read it.

The Sol Majestic by Ferrett Steinmetz- Never read this author before either. The first three books on this list are relatively short so I had to get a fifth book because of that. It sounds like this book will be a love letter to cooking and food as well. Pretty sure this book came to my attention because of Intersteller Megachef. The plot is different but the love for food is the same I'm pretty sure.

Money saved: $104.97

[mr-saavik]

Midyear Book Freakout Tag 2024

Haven't done this in a few years and no one asked for it but here we go

1) Best book:

Lots of contenders for this, but I think it has to be A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf. Fantastic writing on a great subject

2) Best sequel:

I haven't really read any traditional sequels where a story continues on from another, but any of the Sherlock Holmes books/short story collections works for this. Maybe The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes or The Hound of the Baskvilles as favorites? Idk

3) New releases you want to read

Henry Henry by Allen Bratton, but idk when I'll get to it because I'd need to get an interlibrary loan

4) Most anticipated release

I'm lowkey bad at keeping up with whats coming out BUT I am excited to read Failure to Comply by @librarycards

5) Biggest Disappointment

Probably Disability Visibility edited by Alice Wong because I had heard it was great and a good introduction to writings on disability, but ended up being a very mixed collection of writings and a lot of it just felt meh

6) Biggest Surprise

Perhaps Zong! by M. NourbeSe Philip? Not surprise in the sense that once I knew what it was I thought I wouldn't like it, but surprise in the sense I had never heard of it until I was assigned to read it in a class about literature of the Middle Passage

7) Favorite new author

Virginia Woolf. I've read Orlando before but I don't really remember it; reading A Room of One's Own made me realize I love her writing style

8) Newest fictional crush

Closest answer I can give to this is Sherlock Holmes because I do love that bitch but idk if "crush" is the right word for it or if he counts as new if I was familiar with his character from the Granada tv series

9) Newest favorite character

To not repeat saying Sherlock Holmes, I'm going to say Merricat Blackwood from We Have Always Lived in the Castle even though I've read that before, so again, it doesn't really count as new

10) A book that made you cry

None despite historically being a known crier

11) A book that made you happy

Uhhhhh I guess one of the Sherlock Holmes ones? I tend to read sad shit and reviewing what I've read so far this year there isn't really "happy" material besides that

12) Most beautiful book you've bought or received

Big fan of these two

13) What books do you need to read by the end of the year?

Well. Finish what I'm currently reading (Slouching Towards Bethlehem by Joan Didion, Noor by Nnedi Okorafor, Moby Dick by Herman Melville, The Return of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle), also read Before We Were Trans by Kit Heyam because I have it out from the library, same with The White Album by Joan Didion because it is also in the massive book of nonfiction work from Didion I have out from the library, and I think Sara @colors-changing-hue & I are going to attempt to finish all of the Sherlock Holmes books by the end of the year but we've been slow on that recently so we'll see if that happens (to complete the series we'd nees to finish The Return of Sherlock Holmes and then read The Valley of Fear, His Last Bow, and The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes). Besides all of that for fun, once classes start back up I will be reading a lot of Shakespeare for my class on his early plays, some medieval romances for a class on that genre, and probably some books about Hitchcock because I'm taking a class on his films and the professor teaching it usually assigns a few whole books to read besides articles & stuff

[fullibooked]

Ikenga by Nnedi Okorafor tells the story of a boy looking for his father's killer, by becoming something other than his usual 12 year old self. I was very interested in this tale, set in Nigeria, with its magic totem/icon (the titled Ikenga), and how similar in protective vibe it was to stories of golems and other totems. I love seeing how across continents there really is the same threads of community and humanity running through the stories of old. This one brought the Ikenga into a modern Nigeria, with a kid who loves superheros, and asks questions about destruction, violence, trust and hope. The figure I have looking down at Nnambi is hand carved granite that my Grandmother watched being made while on her many worldy travels, (not entirely sure from where, Mum's best guess is Kenya, so at least we're on the right continent). Clearly not an Ikenga, but I do what I can. Nnedi Okorafor's work for children is gentler and kinder than the brutal realities she writes for adults, but she still doesn't skimp on the big feelings. Grief, vengence, rage, shame, and pride all play their part in this young story, as does responsibility. And it does it all with good intent and good execution.

[lizard-reads-the-world]

2025 January reads

Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor ★★★★4.5

My first dive into this author's catalog, and I wasn't disappointed. This is in some ways a classic fantasy journey - awakening, training arc, the Journey, etc. The worldbuilding is gorgeous and the setting is a fantasy version of the Sahara. Has some heavy themes but also wholly engrossed me in the story.

Death of the Author by Nnedi Okorafor ★★★★4.5

I also skipped ahead to Okorafor's newest novel this month. This book features a disabled (paraplegic) author whose first novel gets wildly popular, and the fallout from that. It's packed with themes ranging from AI and technology, to ableism and the demand for celebrities to "perform" their identity. The story structure gets meta, alternating between Zelu, her novel, and interviews with family. I loved Zelu's "selfish" struggle for independence, and was appalled much of the time by her family. Unique genre-defying book.

Don't Want You Like a Best Friend and You're the Problem, It's You by Emma R. Alban ★★★★ 4

These were my two audio reads. These are great for anyone who wants Jane Austen but more gay (they're Victorian, not Regency era, but the vibe is similar). There is plenty of angst given the state of society and the pressure to get a spouse to save your family, but there is enough fun and delightful characters that can I call these a romp? I thought the guys got to be spicier, which wasn't quite fair. And the ending so... domestic, haha. I enjoyed both!

Tar Hollow Trans by Stacy Jane Grover ★★★★ 4

I wanted to read more trans books this year, and I'm also wanting to research Appalachia for a tentative writing project, so this book hit both. This is my first (I think) book that is a "collection of essays", so I'm not quite sure how to review that, as many of them are personal reflections. I resonated with a lot of points that she makes about stereotypes surrounding rural queers and Appalachia.

Scarlet Lies by Lani Young ★★★★★ 5

The preview to this one pulled me in, even if I don't usually pick up m/f romances. Scar's voice is so hilarious. I love that she's a fat, brown, unapologetic Samoan woman and she gets the man of her dreams. Lani Young's books are always a love letter to Samoa while also acknowledging its flaws. There are heavy themes under the surface, like past abuse, and also fatphobia (both self-deprecating and from family) so be aware of those, but this story was still so fun.

Vā: Stories by Women of the Moana (anthology) ★★★★ 3.5

I read snippets of this through the whole year last year and finally finished it. I LOVE the cover art. Per the blurb, it contains stories by "Cook Island, Chamorro, Erub Island (Torres Strait), Fijian, Hawaiian, Māori, Ni-Vanuatu, Papua New Guinean, Rotuman, Samoan and Tongan writers." I think Māori and Samoan had the highest representation but there were plenty from other islands, too. Mostly stories, with some poetry. Mostly contemporary, many of which had heavy themes (abuse, domestic violence, grief and loss), but there were also several myth-based stories and one sci-fi. I can't remember all the stories to pick favorites right now but Lani Young's were among my faves.

DNF - The Story of the Forest by Linda Grant ★★ 2

I waited 2+ months for the hold on this and don't understand why. The book is based on the author's family history, in which Great-Gran Someone, back in Latvia, kissed a Bolshevik boy in the forest one day. The author seemed to want to base a novel around this story, but... there is nothing more to it. The family goes to England, and over several generations works to assimilate and social climb in the most blasé middle class way. I also disliked the 3-person omniscient narration that distances us from the characters (except when a man thinks something perverted, then we're all over that). I couldn't keep going after halfway through.

[gyokujyn]

Catch Up Tag Game

Tagged by @bromcommie

Favorite color: Purple and green are the boring answers. Octarine, a yellow-ish green-ish purple color only visible to wizards and cats, is the nerdy answer. I really like things with opalescence and play of fire is probably the most accurate answer.

Last song: That I listened to or that I sung?

I last listened to True Love by P!nk because I have been beta reading Vanity Fair and I always listen to the fanmix I put together for it while I beta to get myself in the right headspace.

Last song I sung was... omg, I don't remember... Ros said something and it reminded me of a song so I started singing it at em in retaliation for earworming me but now it's gone...

Last book: I am just about to start Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor, but I've been just about to start it for like 6 months now because I am so burnt out. I honestly am not sure what was the last book I read because it's been so long... Maybe the Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin? Or Amatka by Karin Tidbeck?

Last movie: Took the kiddos to see Minecraft a couple weeks back. It was exactly the movie I should have expected from Jack Black and Jason Momoa.

Last TV show: Rewatching West Wing for the billionth time. Although, I will say that I finally finished Agatha All Along and I wish it had been as good as Tumblr had me expecting, but it was just the okayest.

Sweet/savory/spicy: What's your favorite season (and why)? Fall because I enjoy harvest activities, Halloween, the general weather, spooky times, etc.

Last thing I googled, or duckduckgo’d—duckduckwent?—looked up: Patroclus. Like, from the Iliad. I was absolutely certain his name was spelled Patrocles and I had to Google it to prove myself right wrong, apparently. I've been pronouncing his name wrong my whole damn life and no one told me.

Looking forward to: Being in a place to start writing/making art/generally being creative again. I've been burnt out for a while now and pushing myself to keep going has just made things worse, so I'm taking a long and very unhappy break and trying to let myself recharge and not judge myself for failing to be "productive." Spoiler: it is not going well.

Current obsessions: other than my same old shit, I don't really have anything going on right now. For the first time that I can think of, I don't have a single money-sink hyperfixation of the moment.

Favourite crisp: What’s your go-to comfort music/song/playlist? I listen to a lot of trip hop, alt, folk rock, pop punk, and downtempo. I like just about any kind of music with funk roots and I love mashups, both in the traditional sense of two or more songs remixed together but also things like Post Modern Jukebox and anachronistic covers of songs.

Last song you sang out loud: The one I mentioned earlier, but honestly that kind of thing happens all the time here. One of my kids is coming down with a cold and we were trying to figure out if he needed to go to Urgent Care and the youngest (6) started belting out Flagpole Sitta by Harvey Danger ("I'm not sick but I'm not well") which started us all singing. Later on, there was an argument about closing the door (so as to keep germs contained) and everything devolved into a P!atD singalong. Unscripted musical numbers are a regular occurrence in our home.

The last book I opened: Physically? A Hat Full of Sky by Sir Terry Pratchett. I just finished reading it to the kiddos last week. Now we're reading Animorphs #8, but it's a digital copy so no opening required.

Earbuds, headphones, or nothing? Do you get more caught up listening to music by yourself, with friends, or in a crowd? I'm not sure I understand the context of the question, but if there is music with lyrics, I will not listen to you because I have fallen victim to the Siren's call, regardless of where I am or what I am supposed to be doing. I can read, game, etc. and listen to music, but my ears only have bandwidth for one input at a time.

Last place I went to other than home: Heathen Easter with friends last weekend, I think.

A colour that looks good on you: Baby shit green. I can't help it, it goes well with my complexion and brings out the green in my eyes.

Last trailer you saw: Probably Thunderbolts*? I don't actually watch a lot of media, honestly.

Anybody wanna play?