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lukecalderauthor's review
3.0
Some stories were really good but some were really bad.
They often fell into the same mistake in short story writing where they want to say too much is a short space of time. The result is that the stories felt convoluted and ended suddenly without much progression in the story. The stories that focused on just one or two aspects of Sci Fi turned out to be far more effective.
There were a few good ones that I do recommend reading.
Masquerade Stories - Chiagozie Fred Nwonwu
This is an excellent example of how you can use African culture to feed into the Sci Fi narrative, without bogging the story down with too much exposition. It has such a cool concept.
The Trial - Joan De La Haye
This was by far the most effective story in the anthology, it created a clear picture of the future and provided a stern warning of what the future could become, yet it was one of the shortest in the book. The story focuses on one aspect of the future and explores it well, while still holding your attention with the raw emotive repercussions.
Other honourable mentions:
Home Affairs - Sarah Lotz
Five Sets of Hands - Cristy Zinn
Angel Song - Dave de Burgh
In conclusion: I was a bit disappointed, but I am always keen to see more writing come out of Africa and will continue to keep looking for more.
They often fell into the same mistake in short story writing where they want to say too much is a short space of time. The result is that the stories felt convoluted and ended suddenly without much progression in the story. The stories that focused on just one or two aspects of Sci Fi turned out to be far more effective.
There were a few good ones that I do recommend reading.
Masquerade Stories - Chiagozie Fred Nwonwu
This is an excellent example of how you can use African culture to feed into the Sci Fi narrative, without bogging the story down with too much exposition. It has such a cool concept.
The Trial - Joan De La Haye
This was by far the most effective story in the anthology, it created a clear picture of the future and provided a stern warning of what the future could become, yet it was one of the shortest in the book. The story focuses on one aspect of the future and explores it well, while still holding your attention with the raw emotive repercussions.
Other honourable mentions:
Home Affairs - Sarah Lotz
Five Sets of Hands - Cristy Zinn
Angel Song - Dave de Burgh
In conclusion: I was a bit disappointed, but I am always keen to see more writing come out of Africa and will continue to keep looking for more.
jonmhansen's review
4.0
It's a collection with a pretty wide range, so the good news is, if you don't like a story, there's probably another one you might. I did particularly like "Home Affairs," by Sarah Lotz. YMMV.
alexander42's review against another edition
3.5
Solid collection of short stories; my favorites are Five Sets of Hands, Closing Time, Ofe!, and Proposition 23. There are some other good ones besides those, and a couple stories that were meh. Overall, a solid collection and worth reading.
mayastone's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
Moom! by Nnedi Okorafor: 4/5 prelude to Lagoon.
Home Affairs by Sarah Lotz: 3.5/5
The Sale by Tendai Huchu: 5/5
Five Sets of Hands by Cristy Zinn: 2/5
New Mzansi by Ashley Jacobs: 3/5
Azania by Nick Wood: 3.5/5
Notes from Gethsemane by Tade Thompson: 3.5/5
Planet X by S.A. Partridge: 4/5
The Gift of Touch by Chinelo Onwualu: 4/5
The Foreignerby Uko Bendi Udo: 4.5/5
Angel Song by Dave de Burgh: 2.5/5
The Rare Earth by Biram Mboob: 4.5/5
Terms & Conditions Apply by Sally-Ann Murray: 2.5/5
Heresy by Mandisi Nkomo: 1/5
Closing Time by Liam Kruger: 4/5
Masquerade Stories by Chiagozie Fred Nwonwu: 4.5/5
The Trial by Joan De La Haye: 4/5
Brandy City by Mia Arderne: 4/5
Ofe! by Rafeeat Aliyu: 4.5/5
Claws and Savages by Martin Stokes: 5/5
To Gaze at the Sun by Clifton Gachagua: 4.5/5
Proposition 23 (Novelette) by Efe Okogu: 5/5
Overall Score: 3.77/5 - rounded up to 4
Home Affairs by Sarah Lotz: 3.5/5
The Sale by Tendai Huchu: 5/5
Five Sets of Hands by Cristy Zinn: 2/5
New Mzansi by Ashley Jacobs: 3/5
Azania by Nick Wood: 3.5/5
Notes from Gethsemane by Tade Thompson: 3.5/5
Planet X by S.A. Partridge: 4/5
The Gift of Touch by Chinelo Onwualu: 4/5
The Foreignerby Uko Bendi Udo: 4.5/5
Angel Song by Dave de Burgh: 2.5/5
The Rare Earth by Biram Mboob: 4.5/5
Terms & Conditions Apply by Sally-Ann Murray: 2.5/5
Heresy by Mandisi Nkomo: 1/5
Closing Time by Liam Kruger: 4/5
Masquerade Stories by Chiagozie Fred Nwonwu: 4.5/5
The Trial by Joan De La Haye: 4/5
Brandy City by Mia Arderne: 4/5
Ofe! by Rafeeat Aliyu: 4.5/5
Claws and Savages by Martin Stokes: 5/5
To Gaze at the Sun by Clifton Gachagua: 4.5/5
Proposition 23 (Novelette) by Efe Okogu: 5/5
Overall Score: 3.77/5 - rounded up to 4
comradebiblio's review
3.0
There were startlingly original ideas in some of these selections and I would recommend this anthology for those passionate about or intrigued by the nexus of Afro/sci-fi.
nwhyte's review
4.0
http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/2761996.html
Lots of good stories here, some by writers who I had heard of, many that I hadn't. One or two fell slightly flat, sticking too close to standard sf tropes without bringing much extra to them. But most of them were very good - there is an early pairing of "Home Affairs" by Sarah Lotz and "The Sale" by Tendai Huchu which both look at bureaucracy; "Azania", by Nick Woods, looks at colonisation both in the sfnal and geopolitical senses; "Brandy City", by Mia Arderne, looks at virtual reality and addiction; and the closing novella, "Proposition 23" by Efe Okogu, has a world where citizenship and the right to live are being eroded by technology. I find it immensely reassuring of the future of sf that it speaks as a genre to many writers from the oldest of the continents, and I hope that European and American fandom can start to draw more from this well of talent.
Lots of good stories here, some by writers who I had heard of, many that I hadn't. One or two fell slightly flat, sticking too close to standard sf tropes without bringing much extra to them. But most of them were very good - there is an early pairing of "Home Affairs" by Sarah Lotz and "The Sale" by Tendai Huchu which both look at bureaucracy; "Azania", by Nick Woods, looks at colonisation both in the sfnal and geopolitical senses; "Brandy City", by Mia Arderne, looks at virtual reality and addiction; and the closing novella, "Proposition 23" by Efe Okogu, has a world where citizenship and the right to live are being eroded by technology. I find it immensely reassuring of the future of sf that it speaks as a genre to many writers from the oldest of the continents, and I hope that European and American fandom can start to draw more from this well of talent.
jskstarr's review
4.0
Pretty great African SF stories
Like most anthologies there are gems and duds in this book, but the good stories greatly outweigh the not great ones. Even the not great ones are good enough not to skip.
Like most anthologies there are gems and duds in this book, but the good stories greatly outweigh the not great ones. Even the not great ones are good enough not to skip.
filaughn's review
4.0
This was a really fun anthology! As with any collection, there were some standouts and some flops, but the ratio was pretty good here. Overall there was also a nice mix of different realms of SF work. Time travel, aliens, future technology (often going wrong in some way), future wars, post-apocalyptic scenes - a little of everything. Nnedi Okorafor was excellent, as usual. I added one of Tade Thompson's books to my TBR immediately after reading his excellent short story here. I also really enjoyed Rafeeat Aliyu's Ofe! but wanted more - it would have worked well as part of a longer work.
One of the stories that really didn't work for me was Tendai Huchu's The Sale - I had major issues with this one.The premise includes a repressive government drugging people to keep them compliant. When the main character is dosed, he goes from pushing against the titular sale to docile and content. So far, so good - but the forced drugging includes estrogen (as the only named substance, with others that are unnamed) that results in the MC having breasts and being calm, compliant, and not fighting the government or the sale. It was...not a great move on Huchu's part.
One of the stories that really didn't work for me was Tendai Huchu's The Sale - I had major issues with this one.
jrt5166's review
4.0
Like any anthology, this collection had its ups and downs. Overall though, it was a grand adventure, and I really enjoyed getting to experience a new flavor of SF. I'm recommending a few of these stories to my book club for next year.
morgandhu's review
4.0
In his introduction to the anthology, editor Ivor Hartmann says: "SciFi is the only genre that enables African writers to envision a future from our African perspective. Moreover, it does this in a way that is not purely academic and so provides a vision that is readily understandable through a fictional context. The value of this envisioning for any third-world country, or in our case continent, cannot be overstated nor negated. If you can’t see and relay an understandable vision of the future, your future will be co-opted by someone else’s vision, one that will not necessarily have your best interests at heart. Thus, Science Fiction by African writers is of paramount importance to the development and future of our continent."
It's just as important for those in the first-world countries from whence the co-opting generally comes to read these African futures. To read stories set in futuristic metropolises named Lagos and Tshwane, with characters named Wangari Maathai and Julius Masemola. Stories that come from other histories and perspectives than their own, stories in which white people from Europe or North America are barely present if at all, and have no role to play in the imagined futures. I can only say thank you to Ivor Hartmann for collecting these stories and making them available.
It's just as important for those in the first-world countries from whence the co-opting generally comes to read these African futures. To read stories set in futuristic metropolises named Lagos and Tshwane, with characters named Wangari Maathai and Julius Masemola. Stories that come from other histories and perspectives than their own, stories in which white people from Europe or North America are barely present if at all, and have no role to play in the imagined futures. I can only say thank you to Ivor Hartmann for collecting these stories and making them available.