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aishallnot's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
I think this book was an interesting read, however I wish I had read this as a physical or ebook bc one thing ive realized this year is that I can't do audiobooks with novellas unless I have the book in front of me ðŸ˜
The world/premise of the book was really nice. I kinda wish we had more world building and learn more about the other characters, but again this book moves quickly you gotta catch everything that's going on. Besides Black Panther, im somewhat new to afrofuturism and i really just love that aspect within media. I'm not much of a sci-fi girlie but i think I will be if consume media that has the Black diaspora in their own futuristic world.
With that being said, I think I'm going to continue the series
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Murder
Moderate: Xenophobia
nannahnannah's review against another edition
inspiring
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
As with most novellas, I wish this were longer! But that applies to Binti especially, because in just 90 pages Nnedi Okorafor has managed to stuff in the coolest magic system, amazing world building to go with it, an entirely new and unique alien race, and I just want to know more about everything!
Representation:
- the MC and her family are Himba, indigenous people from parts of Namibia & Angola
Binti is the first of the Himba people to ever be accepted to Oomza University, a prestigious university that takes up the surface of an entire planet. But the Himba don’t look outward; they develop their special technology by looking inward and staying on Earth. Plus, the humans at Oomza University would be Khoush, people prejudiced against the Himba because of the sacred otjize clay mixture their women cover themselves with. Despite all this, Binti risks it all -- only to be caught in the crossfire of a war between the Meduse, a jellyfish-like alien race, and the Khoush.
There’s a lot of good things to talk about here. There’s the way the novel deals with the concept of otherness, the way the characters bring their culture to the story in a way that’s rarely done, and there’s the discussion of colonialism, as well as other themes swimming under the surface of Nnedi Okorafor’s deceptively simple words. There’s also the fact that it’s not an easy book to put down once you start reading.
But even though I thoroughly enjoyed Binti, I (as I said above) wish it were longer to further explore some of the amazing things it brought to the table. I want to know more about the universe’s races, about the war between the Meduse and Khoush that was abruptly thrust upon the story, about the technology and what it means to be a harmonizer (aka Binti, someone with a genius for mathematics and bringing people together), and more about Binti’s family. Unfortunately there’s only so much you can do in a novella, and the ending felt rushed.
However, I’m very glad I bought this, because I plan on reading and enjoying it again. I’m even more glad I bought the entire trilogy, though, because now I can read on immediately.
Representation:
- the MC and her family are Himba, indigenous people from parts of Namibia & Angola
Binti is the first of the Himba people to ever be accepted to Oomza University, a prestigious university that takes up the surface of an entire planet. But the Himba don’t look outward; they develop their special technology by looking inward and staying on Earth. Plus, the humans at Oomza University would be Khoush, people prejudiced against the Himba because of the sacred otjize clay mixture their women cover themselves with. Despite all this, Binti risks it all -- only to be caught in the crossfire of a war between the Meduse, a jellyfish-like alien race, and the Khoush.
There’s a lot of good things to talk about here. There’s the way the novel deals with the concept of otherness, the way the characters bring their culture to the story in a way that’s rarely done, and there’s the discussion of colonialism, as well as other themes swimming under the surface of Nnedi Okorafor’s deceptively simple words. There’s also the fact that it’s not an easy book to put down once you start reading.
But even though I thoroughly enjoyed Binti, I (as I said above) wish it were longer to further explore some of the amazing things it brought to the table. I want to know more about the universe’s races, about the war between the Meduse and Khoush that was abruptly thrust upon the story, about the technology and what it means to be a harmonizer (aka Binti, someone with a genius for mathematics and bringing people together), and more about Binti’s family. Unfortunately there’s only so much you can do in a novella, and the ending felt rushed.
However, I’m very glad I bought this, because I plan on reading and enjoying it again. I’m even more glad I bought the entire trilogy, though, because now I can read on immediately.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
also: mass murder, experimentation without consentthecatconstellation's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
A quick sci-fi read with some fantasy notes. I really enjoyed this and am excited to read the others in the series. Interesting characters and plot. Mix of quick plot progression and introspection about identity and home.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, Confinement, Racism, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: War, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, and Grief
tallbox's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Blood, and Violence
Moderate: Racism
btwnprintedpgs's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Murder, Racism, and Violence
Minor: War
jessthanthree's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
inspiring
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Xenophobia, War, and Injury/Injury detail
rebeccajost's review against another edition
dark
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
A good introduction to sci-fi, but I do feel that the book’s brevity is hindering the story somewhat as the scenes missing would’ve been fun to read and would’ve helped me get invested in the characters. This is likely a conscious choice to not distract from the message of the book, but I do wish there was more of the story in this book.
4 stars despite this because I did thoroughly enjoy the story, yet wish there was more of it.
4 stars despite this because I did thoroughly enjoy the story, yet wish there was more of it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Blood, and Death
Minor: Racism and War
mayagraci's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
lovelyannalee's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
A really fun and cool take on identity, culture, colonialism, and knowledge! I really do wish that it was a bit longer because the ending felt a bit rushed and wasn’t as satisfying as I hoped it would be, but I still enjoyed it a lot!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Murder, Gore, Confinement, Child death, Genocide, and Death
Moderate: Colonisation and Racism
Minor: Cultural appropriation
sarahaf712's review against another edition
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia, Racism, Violence, Death, Suicide, and Murder