Reviews with content warning for Police brutality - The Memory Librarian: And Other Stories of Dirty Computer

American singer-songwriter Janelle Monáe released her third studio album Dirty Computer in 2018, accompanied by a short film of the same name. The film follows a trio of lovers—Jane (Monáe), Zen (Tessa Thompson), and Ché (Jayson Aaron)—living in a future where the government deems anyone that isn't white, monogamous, or heterosexual as "dirty computers." These individuals are constantly at risk of being abducted by law enforcement and taken to the House of New Dawn to have their memories deleted. In The Memory Librarian, Monáe collaborates with a team of established authors—Yohanca Delgado, Alaya Dawn Johnson, Sheree Thomas, Danny Lore, and Eve Ewing—to further explore the world of Dirty Computer outside the context of the film.

Now, as a fan of Monáe's music, I must admit that I was both excited and apprehensive about reading this collection. Monáe has already proved herself to be a skilled lyricist and storyteller with her first two albums, which detail the exploits of android fugitive Cindi Mayweather. However, there is a huge difference between writing songs and writing prose, and while I don't want to imply that collaborative writing projects are inferior to solo ones, I couldn't help but worry that this was a sign that Monáe was out of her depth.

Read the full review at My Cluttered Bookshelf.

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mothreadsbookssometimes's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

The Memory Librarian is wonderfully written, and features such a diverse cast of characters. It is a collection of short stories, featuring mostly queer, POC main characters. I’ve been reflecting on the stories since I started the book and it’s been interesting to think about.
It featured a unique government and technology system that felt realistic, but I really struggled to wrap my head around it for some reason. That was more of a personal issue, though.
My main issue with the book is really the opposite of a problem, and that is that I wanted more in the book. I found that by the time I settled into a story, it ended and switched to the next story and characters.
Quick ratings of each short story (spoiler-free)
The Memory Librarian - 4.5/5; I loved the relationship and it established the world very well.
Nevermind - 4/5; it was a really good story but the ending felt a little weak and I wanted more.
Timebox - 3/5; this was straight out of the Twilight Zone, but I really didn’t get it.
Save Changes - 5/5; my favorite of the stories—the writing was excellent and the plot was so great.
Timebox Altar(ed) : 5/5; it was so full of optimism and the writing style was beautiful.

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talonsontypewriters's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

3.5

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laurareads87's review against another edition

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challenging inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

3.5 stars.

This collection of short stories is best read after (re)watching Dirty Computer, as the text is set in the world of Dirty Computer and includes the characters therein. I appreciate this collection as a hopeful visioning, in many cases focused on the carving out of utopian, pleasurable spaces amidst struggles for liberation from totalitarianism. I like the inclusion of a short essay and some discussion questions at the end of the book, well suited to a book club. With each short story featuring a different co-author, I did find the collection read a bit unevenly, with some stories more compelling than others. The book is best at its most subtle; in a few instances, the analysis felt a bit heavy. Monáe is tremendously talented and I'm not at all surprised her first work of written fiction is solid; I'll happily pick up her next one.

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agw622's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

As a collection of short stories there will of course be some better than others. Most of them are written to really challenge you to think in a world set to allow you to contemplate modern days issues. The charecters are amazing and vibrant.

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meg_thebrave's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

This was a really cool collection of stories. I could tell it was Janelle’s first book, but it was still really cool to spend more time in the world they’ve spent so much time developing. I could see the way previous Black sci-fi writers influenced Janelle’s work, and I really enjoyed the creativity of each story.

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elderwoodreads's review against another edition

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challenging reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

I love Janele Monáe, so it makes me so sad that this is not the book for me. I love the concept, but I feel like the world building was too dense for a short story collection. Everytime I was starting to get a grasp on what was going on the story would change. I had to look up other reviews as I read to get a better handle of what was going on. I was able to follow Save Changes the easiest and really enjoyed it. As others have said, I hope to come back to this with a physical copy and annotation materials and hopefully I will enjoy it more, as I really wanted to the first time. If you're considering this I'd definitely say it's worth a shot, especially if you enjoy Afrofuturistic & LGBT+ content.

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bashsbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging inspiring reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? N/A
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Dirty Computer fans, the story continues in this collection. I enjoy the translation of a tale told through audio and visuals into a written text, and I think this is a cool futuristic text with interesting and compelling things to say about gender, race, memory, sexuality, relationships, and revolution. I will say, it was a little slow to start; I had trouble fully immersing myself in the world and what was happening until the third narrator, Neer, and their perspective picks up at page 120. After that, the book was much more engaging. Timebox and Save Changes were my favorite stories in the collection.

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