(no subject)
So the basic plot of Nnedi Okorafor's latest is that a bunch of superpowered shapeshifting aliens show up and make first contact in Lagos, Nageria. (This is after hanging out for a while in the ocean, where they grant a bunch of non-human entities their heart's desires, including murderous sea creatures, adorable optimistic bats, and a MURDEROUS STRETCH OF ROAD WHO LIKES to EAT PEOPLE.)
Eventually an alien ambassador comes out of the ocean, mostly in the shape of a woman although this occasionally varies. Various citizens of Lagos rapidly become embroiled in first-contact drama to a greater or lesser extent, including primarily
- Adaora, a successful marine biologist whose increasingly religious husband just tipped over from 'disapproving' into 'abusive'
- Agu, a soldier who's in major trouble with his unit for trying to stop his superior officer from raping a civilian
- Anthony dey Craze, a successful Ghanaian rapper who ... actually pretty much seems to have it together, Anthony's doing OK
but also
- Adaora's kids, who think shape-shifting aliens are THE COOLEST THING
- an evil priest, who wants to convert the alien
- an asshole medical student, who wants to kidnap the alien
- the asshole medical student's cross-dressing buddy, who's torn between Project Kidnap the Alien For Cash and Project Pride Parade For Self-Respect
- the rest of the Lagos undercover LGBT student alliance, who are spearheading Project Pride Parade after taking the presence of an alien without the ability to shift sex and gender as a sign that it's time to come out of the closet once and for all
- a number of fans of Anthony dey Craze who have turned up for his surprise house concert and are sort of confused about why there's now an alien and a riot instead
- a number of military police, who REALLY DON'T HELP with the confusion
- the President of Nigeria, who is unfortunately out of the country and therefore has to spend a long time playing catch-up
- several Nigerian gods, who decide the rising chaos is a great opportunity for them to come out and play
Adaora, Agu and Anthony are definitely a little more protagonist-y than everyone else, but this is a book about a city first and foremost -- a city full of human beings who react to an amazing event in ways that are wonderful and ways that are horrible. There's a LOT of ways that are horrible. Many of the named characters who are not Adaora, Agu and Anthony don't come out of things so great, and the alien ambassador is Increasingly Disappointed In Us All, which leads to an ending that is certainly not grimdark and has a lot of hope in it but that I have some moderately conflicted feelings about.
Still, as a book that centers its miraculous happenings specifically in Lagos, in the strengths and problems and wonders of Lagos, I appreciate it a lot. There's nothing generic about this first contact.
This entry is cross-posted at Livejournal from http://skygiants.dreamwidth.org/388659.html. Please feel free to comment here or there! There are currently
comments on Dreamwidth.
Eventually an alien ambassador comes out of the ocean, mostly in the shape of a woman although this occasionally varies. Various citizens of Lagos rapidly become embroiled in first-contact drama to a greater or lesser extent, including primarily
- Adaora, a successful marine biologist whose increasingly religious husband just tipped over from 'disapproving' into 'abusive'
- Agu, a soldier who's in major trouble with his unit for trying to stop his superior officer from raping a civilian
- Anthony dey Craze, a successful Ghanaian rapper who ... actually pretty much seems to have it together, Anthony's doing OK
but also
- Adaora's kids, who think shape-shifting aliens are THE COOLEST THING
- an evil priest, who wants to convert the alien
- an asshole medical student, who wants to kidnap the alien
- the asshole medical student's cross-dressing buddy, who's torn between Project Kidnap the Alien For Cash and Project Pride Parade For Self-Respect
- the rest of the Lagos undercover LGBT student alliance, who are spearheading Project Pride Parade after taking the presence of an alien without the ability to shift sex and gender as a sign that it's time to come out of the closet once and for all
- a number of fans of Anthony dey Craze who have turned up for his surprise house concert and are sort of confused about why there's now an alien and a riot instead
- a number of military police, who REALLY DON'T HELP with the confusion
- the President of Nigeria, who is unfortunately out of the country and therefore has to spend a long time playing catch-up
- several Nigerian gods, who decide the rising chaos is a great opportunity for them to come out and play
Adaora, Agu and Anthony are definitely a little more protagonist-y than everyone else, but this is a book about a city first and foremost -- a city full of human beings who react to an amazing event in ways that are wonderful and ways that are horrible. There's a LOT of ways that are horrible. Many of the named characters who are not Adaora, Agu and Anthony don't come out of things so great, and the alien ambassador is Increasingly Disappointed In Us All, which leads to an ending that is certainly not grimdark and has a lot of hope in it but that I have some moderately conflicted feelings about.
Still, as a book that centers its miraculous happenings specifically in Lagos, in the strengths and problems and wonders of Lagos, I appreciate it a lot. There's nothing generic about this first contact.
This entry is cross-posted at Livejournal from http://skygiants.dreamwidth.org/388659.html. Please feel free to comment here or there! There are currently
comments on Dreamwidth.