Remote Control is a 2021

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

novella by Nigerian American

Nnedi Okorafor Nnedimma Nkemdili "Nnedi" Okorafor (formerly Okorafor-Mbachu; born April 8, 1974) is a Nigerian-American writer of science fiction and fantasy for both children and adults. She is best known for her ''Binti Series'' and her novels ''Who Fears ...

. It is Okorafor's first novella after the

Binti Trilogy The ''Binti trilogy'' or ''Binti Series'' is a trilogy of Africanfuturist science fiction novellas by Nigerian American author Nnedi Okorafor. Beginning with '' Binti'' and ending with '' Binti: The Night Masquerade'', it follows the heroine Bint ...

and is set in the same universe as Okorafor's ''

Who Fears Death ''Who Fears Death'' is a science fantasy novel by Nigerian-American writer Nnedi Okorafor, published in 2010 by DAW Books, DAW, an imprint of Penguin Books. It was awarded the 2011 World Fantasy Award for Best Novel, as well as the 2010 Carl Bran ...

'' and ''

The Book of Phoenix ''The Book of Phoenix'' is a 2015 science fantasy novel by Nigerian American author Nnedi Okorafor. It is a stand alone prequel to ''Who Fears Death'', it won the 2018 Kurd Laßwitz Award, Kurd Laßwitz Preis for Best Foreign Fiction Book and was ...

''. It was a finalist for the 2021

Goodreads Choice Awards The Goodreads Choice Awards is a yearly award program, first launched on Goodreads Goodreads is an American social cataloging website and a subsidiary of Amazon that allows individuals to search its database of books, annotations, quotes, an ...

for Best Science Fiction and the

Locus Award The Locus Awards are an annual set of literary awards voted on by readers of the science fiction and fantasy magazine ''Locus'', a monthly magazine based in Oakland, California. The awards are presented at an annual banquet. In addition to the pl ...

Writing process

Okorafor wrote the book during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, stating in an interview that travel disruptions due to the pandemic made her focus her energy on writing and editing the book. The events in the book takes place before the events in ''The Book of Phoenix'' and ''Who Fears Death''.

Themes

The book has been noted as a coming-of-age story, exploring themes such as solitude, grief, and what it means to be normal. The book is an

Africanfuturist Africanfuturism is a cultural aesthetic and philosophy of science that centers on the fusion of African culture, history, mythology, point of view, with technology based in Africa and not limiting to the diaspora. It was coined by Nigerian Americ ...

novella.

Reception

Writing for

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

, Jason Heller described the novel as "a cumulative narrative, a slow burn that builds in emotional urgency even as the scope of Okorafor's worldbuilding bursts into something breathtakingly vast." Writing for ''

New Scientist ''New Scientist'' is a magazine covering all aspects of science and technology. Based in London, it publishes weekly English-language editions in the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia. An editorially separate organisation publishe ...

'', Layal Liverpool stated that "''Remote Control'' is thrilling and surprising all the way through." Samantha Nelson of ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...

'', however, stated that "Sankofa is a fascinating character, but one whose legend isn’t quite compelling enough to take hold in our world."

References

External links

* Nigerian science fiction novels 2021 science fiction novels Works by Nnedi Okorafor Novels set in Ghana 2021 Nigerian novels Africanfuturist novels Tor Books books {{Nigeria-novel-stub