Noor

At points this book reminded me strongly of certain influential works of speculative fiction, most notably Murderbot (corporate surveillance dystopia, cyborgs are people too) and Neuromancer (cyberspace, hacking as a kind of magical system). On the other hand, Okorafor writes confidently from the point of view of young Nigerian woman in the near future.

For me the warmth comes from the details of daily life in (roughly contemporary) Nigeria. On the other hand I don't have much of a reference point other than other books by the same author.

The book is, and is-not "hard" science fiction. It relies (mainly) on technology for setting and plot devices, but doesn't spend a lot of time on the technical details, and in one or two places might be jarring for the nerdier reader.

Content warnings: occasional violence, some body trauma. The moderate amount of sexual content is thankfully unrelated to the violence.

This has an interesting premise of what it means to be human despite artificial parts. It also takes on corporate greed and how it effects traditional African culture.

What I found to be surprising and confusing was the corporation's direct influence on the main character's life from childhood.

Overall an okay read with some interesting themes, but too much going on.

Lots of themes here appeal to me with deserts, tech giants, and misfits in a Nigerian future I'm not equipped to imagine. There were bits here and there I couldn't swallow, but overall I'm thankful for the journey.

A novel of self-determination when the odds are stacked against you from birth.