Remote control nnedi okorafor6/29/2023 No aspect of this novella was more crucial to its success, because the story rests entirely on Fatima’s shoulders-fortunately, Okorafor created a character more than capable of holding it up. She is childlike but not childish, and I found her curiosity, her intelligence, and the transition she makes from innocence to purposefulness to be entirely credible for a character of her age. The book never quite manages to recapture the singular magic of this chapter, but not because of any later failings-the opening just sets the bar really, really high.Ĭhildren are tricky to get right in fiction, but Fatima is instantly likeable. The first chapter, which recalls the opening of Neal Shusterman’s Scythe, is nothing less than a knockout: it’s funny, chilling, and particularly attentive to the specificity of character, a delicious context-less dose of Sankofa at the height of her power before the story jumps back in time to fill in the blanks. This rich, resonant novella follows Fatima, a Ghanaian girl who becomes known as Sankofa after acquiring the power to generate a light from her body which is lethal to anyone it touches. Remote Control was my first experience with Nnedi Okorafor (an author I’ve become increasingly guilty for not having read over the years), and I am pleased to say it was a positive one. I received an ARC of Remote Control from Macmillan-Tor/Forge in exchange for an honest review.
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