The Year’s Best African Speculative Fiction

by Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki (Editor), Somto O. Ihezue, 'Pemi Aguda

The first ever Year's Best African speculative fiction anthology with works from some of the most exciting voices, old and new, published in the 2020 year.

“Where You Go” by Somto O. Ihezue
“Things Boys Do” by Pemi Aguda
“Giant Steps” by Russell Nichols
“The Future in Saltwater” by Tamara Jerée
“The ThoughtBox” by Tlotlo Tsamaase
“The Parts That Make Us Monsters” by Sheree Renée Thomas
“Scar Tissue” by Tobias S. Buckell
“Ancestries” by Sheree Renée Thomas
“Breath of the Sahara” by Inegbenoise O. Osagie
“The Many Lives of an Abiku” by Tobi Ogundiran
“A Love Song for Herkinal as composed by Ashkernas amid the ruins of New Haven” by Chinelo Onwualu
“A Curse at Midnight” by Moustapha Mbacké Diop
“A Mastery of German” by Marian Denise Moore
“Are We Ourselves?” by Michelle Mellon
“When the Last of the Birds and the Bees Have Gone On” by C.L. Clark
“The Goatkeeper’s Harvest” by Tobi Ogundiran
"Baba Klep” by Eugen Bacon
"Desiccant” by Craig Laurance Gidney
"Disassembly” by Makena Onjerika
"The River of Night” by Tlotlo Tsamaase
"Egoli” by T.L. Huchu
"The Friendship Bench” by Yvette Lisa Ndlovu
“Fort Kwame” by Derek Lubangakene
"We Come as Gods” by Suyi Davies Okungbowa
“And This is How to Stay Alive” by Shingai Njeri Kagunda
“The Front Line” by WC Dunlap
"Penultimate” by ZZ Claybourne
“Love Hangover” by Sheree Renée Thomas
“Red_Bati” by Dilman Dila

Genres: Fantasy, Short Stories, Science Fiction, Anthologies, Fiction, Horror, Speculative Fiction

358 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 28, 2021

About the author

Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki is an African speculative fiction writer, editor, & publisher from Nigeria. He is a Nebula, Nommo, Otherwise and British Fantasy award winner, and a Hugo, Locus, Sturgeon & BSFA finalist. He edited the first ever Year's Best African Speculative Fiction anthology, the Bridging Worlds non-fiction anthology, co-edited Dominion, & the Africa Risen anthology. He founded Jembefola Press and the Emeka Walter Dinjos Memorial Award For Disability In Speculative Fiction

Reviews

[Zain · Rating 4 out of 5]

All Over the Place…With Love.

There are many short stories here, with a lot of different genres. Some of the stories are horrific. Most are not. They feel like fantasies.

Most of the authors are female. A few are male. These writers are the cream of the writing crop. All of them have won awards in writing, not just short listed.

If you like science fiction, you’ll be happy to know that many of the stories have a technology slant. With robots and AI stories you can get a lot more satisfaction and a chance to experience your science fiction joy.

With stories as short as four minutes and long as thirty-seven minutes, you will definitely enjoy reading them.

Each story is fast paced and easy to read through with just a little bit of language variation.

You will make yourself slow down and take a break. The reading is so quick and delightful. Try these stories and you will see what I mean.

Definitely worth four stars. 💫💫💫💫

[Richard Derus]

WINNER OF THE WORLD FANTASY AWARD—BEST ANTHOLOGY!

[Runalong · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic short story collection covering SF, fantasy and horror with tales to delight, scare or pause you and a galaxy of the best current African authors out there

Hugely recommended

Full review - https://www.runalongtheshelves.net/bl...

[Richard Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

An impressive collection of stories.

[Helen Whistberry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection edited by Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki provides the reader with a fantastic opportunity to sample a wide range of current voices in African speculative fiction in one volume. Works of previously published short fiction from 2020 are brought together in this best of anthology that showcases genres from scifi, fantasy, horror, slipstream, post-apocalyptic, and more under the speculative umbrella. As always with my anthology reviews, I will highlight a few stories that particularly spoke to me:

Things Boys Do by Pemi Aguda is a very effective horror tale of three men all haunted by the unnaturalness of their newborn sons. What ties them together in this living nightmare? Expert use of language and suspense to build a viscerally terrifying mood.

In The Future in Saltwater by Tamara Jerée, a child receives a god of their own as part of a venerable and sacred ritual that binds them together in symbiosis until a quest is completed. But when the quest is refused, disaster strikes. Beautiful imagery and symbolism mark this quietly moving tale.

The Parts that Make Us Monsters by Sheree Renée Thomas is a mesmerizingly lovely reimagining of the myth of the lost colony with only the word Croatoan left carved on a tree as a clue. Poetically shiver-inducing.

Scar Tissue by Tobias S. Buckell answers the question of what bringing up a robot baby to adulthood might be like. Loved the concept of this one. The idea that to create human-like robots to serve humans, we must allow them to go through the same developmental stages as a human. I’m always fascinated with the divide between man and machine, and this story puts an effectively humanistic spin on the theme.

A Love Song for Herkinal as Composed by Ashkernas Amid the Ruins of New Haven by Chinelo Onwualu is set in a most unusual hotel that has a half-dozen malevolent sprites who’ve taken up permanent residence in the lobby, a shape-shifting dire wolf on night duty, and a disconcertingly unchildlike young girl who haunts the place like a ghost. An eventful night of uncanny doings in the penthouse suite brings it all to a head in this entertaining light horror tale.

Dessicant by Craig Laurance Gidney is an imaginative variation on vampiric and haunted house themes as a sinister red dust slowly feeds on the hapless inhabitants of an apartment building. Refreshing to read a story with an intrepid trans heroine where gender is touched upon but is not the main focus of the tale.

Dissassembly by Makena Onjerika is a surrealistic tale as a woman repeatedly pulls her own body apart in an attempt to discover what is wrong with it. Unforgettable imagery in this allegorical examination of mental health issues.

We Come as Gods by Suyi Davies Okungbowa is a short meditation on a unique kind of evolution, on society, and on devolution. No plot here, but a very effective atmospheric piece with poetic rhythm and language.

Penultimate by ZZ Claybourne is another short, meditative piece, this one on the power of the pen (literally). Writers will identify with the joy and terror of bringing worlds to life through the magic of words.

These were some of the stories that stood out to me, but with 29 expertly written tales to choose from in this generous collection, along with the wide variety of styles and themes, there will be many for every reader to enjoy. From language use to settings to exploration of traditional folklore and myths, these African and African diaspora authors put their own fresh and unique spins on the speculative fiction world. Highly recommended.

[Xavi · Rating 3 out of 5]

He entrado con ganas de conocer nuevos autores en esta antología, pero en conjunto no me ha acabado de convencer. Hay muchos relatos, de temas variados y todos son muy cortos, de 10-12 páginas, con lo que no puedes profundizar en exceso en los ambientes que proponen, aunque algunos proponen cosas muy interesantes. También me quedo con la sensación de que hay reiteración de algunos temas en muchos de los relatos.
https://dreamsofelvex.blogspot.com/20...

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

*I received an eARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*

I personally love anthologies as a way to introduce myself to new authors and this collection, edited by Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki and containing some of the best science fiction, fantasy, and horror short stories of 2020 by African and African Diaspora voices, more than met that mark for me. I am rather ashamed to admit I had never read from any of these authors previously, but that is sure to change soon because this collection blew me away.

The stories in this collection ranged from far future revolutions in space to robots/AI to gods and supernatural creatures. There was theming around police brutality and parenthood and conversations about home and community and so much more. Like with most anthologies, there will be some entries that don't connect to a reader as well, but for me none of the stories were individually lower than a 3 star (I liked it) and the ones that were at 3-3.5 stars were mostly just because they felt too short.

Some standouts to me were:

"Things Boys Do" by Pemi Aguda - an atmospheric horror short story following three men who each find their newborn child (all called Jonny) is ruining their life.
"Giant Steps" by Russell Nichols - a beautifully written story about staying true to yourself that mixes folklore with the science of space travel
"Scar Tissue" by Tobias S Buckell - an amputee decides to raise a robot/AI to get some extra cash and learns what it means to be a parent
"The Goatkeeper's Harvest" by Tobi Ogundiran - another piece of mild horror involving folktales/gods and goats
"Disassembly" by Maken Onjerika - a commentary on mental health and recovery as shown by a woman who can take herself physically apart
"Egoli" by T.L. Huchu - a lovely, thought-provoking story about a grandmother living in her remote village thinking about how much the world has changed in her lifetime
"And This is How to Stay Alive" by Shingai Njeri Kagunda - this story, involving time travel, suicide, and the relationships between a gay teen and his family, made me cry

As a whole, I don't think this is an anthology you should miss! I enjoyed reading each of the included stories and loved the way the theming flowed from one story to the next. This was the perfect collection to savor, reading a few stories a day throughout the week.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fantastic and wide-ranging collection including stories of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Editor Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki has truly done a wonderful job in bringing together diverse themes – parenthood, grief, gentrification, technological change, scientific ethics, racism, guilt, sacrifice, environmental destruction – in a range of genres and styles. The majority of authors included in this collection I had not read before; I am thrilled to have discovered quite a few authors whom I absolutely must read more from. Inevitably with an anthology, I enjoyed some stories significantly more than others; some stories I found too short. Overall, I enjoyed this collection very much and highly recommend it. Some of my favourite stories included:
“Things Boys Do” by Pemi Aguda – disturbing horror as three men find reason to be afraid of their newborn sons.
“Giant Steps” by Russell Nichols – the reflections of a scientist on an incredible solo space voyage. A favourite in the collection for sure.
“A Mastery of German” by Marian Denise Moore – a thought-provoking story raising issues of epigenetics, the transferability of memory, and medical ethics. An absolute favourite.
“Disassembly” by Makena Onjerika – a woman who can come apart and rebuild herself. Thought-provoking; another favourite.
“Egoli” by T.L. Huchu – an elderly protagonist reflects on all the changes she’s experienced throughout her lifetime.
“And This is How to Stay Alive” by Shingai Njeri Kagunda – a moving story of grief and guilt after the suicide of a loved one.
“Red_Bati” by Dilman Dila – the story of a robotic dog with more awareness than those around it realize it has.
Content warnings: suicide, gun violence, implied sexual assault, toxic relationship, emotional abuse, gaslighting, death, death of a child, homophobia, transphobia, racism, racial slurs, blood, fatphobia (including in a medical setting)
Thank you to NetGalley and Jembefola Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for this review.

[John Folk-Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Year’s Best African Speculative Fiction (2021), edited by Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki, reprints 29 gripping stories that test the limits of everyday reality. As diverse as the stories are, most of them push their characters across boundaries between this world and the spirit world, between past and present, human and robot, the living and the dead, and the mortal and the immortal. These are stories of Africa and the African diaspora, and the authors have provided brief bios at the end. I would have liked background notes on the stories and an introduction, but those are not essential. It’s enough to know that, in the editor’s judgment, these are the best African speculative fiction stories published in 2020. It’s surprising in such a diverse collection how many of them are unforgettable.
.....

Read the full review at SciFi Mind.

[Oluwunma Nekki Ayombami · Rating 2 out of 5]

Before you judge me for rating so low. I want to give all due respect to the writers featured. But as they say, one bad apple spoil the bunch. Ekpeki, he is the bad seed. He is dishonest! But you will only learn this so soon yourself. This a bad man who take from my family. So I never support the publications with his name.

[Entazis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really good anthology, giving us stories covering a wide range of topics, settings, themes and motifs across the three main speculative fiction genres--fantasy, scifi, and horror. For me personally, where this book excels was with horror stories--there's a lot of chilling, atmospheric, dark stories whose ideas I just loved. But that's probably simply a personal preference for that genre.

The stories collected here are reprints from some well-known and notable speculative fiction magazines so you know you're for a good ride.

As is usually the case with anthologies, not all stories were for me, there's stuff I didn't like, but, as is also the case with anthologies, I found new, interesting authors that I definitely plan to continue reading and following.

I want to give a shoutout to some faves:
Things Boys Do by Pemi Aguda (such a fantastic dark story with beautiful prose)
The Many Lives of an Abiku, and The Goatkeeper's Harvest, both by Tobi Ogundiran (both excellent and dark with creepy children)
Desiccant by Craig Laurence Gidney (a terrifying way you could spin vampires that became so unterrifying last decade or so, to me, at least)
Dissasembly by Makena Onjerika (the writing, the topic, the idea, all of it hit me hard)
The River od Night by Tlotlo Tsamaase (another story about depression done beautifully)

This book also has my favorite story from another anthology: Egoli, by T. L. Huchu (Africanfuturism: An Anthology) which made me really happy.

[Diana Orbani · Rating 2 out of 5]

The authors themselves wrote some wonderful stories, and I'd love to 5-star them, but I can't in good conscience. It appears the editor, Mr. Donald Ekpeki, added editorial commentary, but nearly every comment is on the merits of Kentucky Fried Chicken, race mixing and overstaying a visa. Just an odd choice from Mr. Donald.

[Sue Chant · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 out of 5. It was OK but way too much fantasy - gods, spirits etc - not badly written, just not to my tastes so I ended up skimming a lot. There were a few decent SF stories but nothing outstanding. Disappointing.

[Austin Beeman · Rating 3 out of 5]

THE YEAR'S BEST AFRICAN SPECULATIVE FICTION (2021): VOLUME 1
RATED 79% POSITIVE. STORY SCORE 3.67 OF 5
29 STORIES : 4 GREAT / 16 GOOD / 6 AVERAGE / 2 POOR / 1 DNF

Best of the Year anthologies rarely make history. This isn’t to say that they aren’t important. As the ‘Second Draft of Science Fiction History,” these books make a lasting impact on how the genre remembers itself. They provide excellent ways for the casual reader to discover newly important writers and follow trends in the field. Plus, they are often great fun to read!

https://www.shortsf.com/beststories

Original anthologies are a different story. The best of these are driven by the perspective and personality of the editor and can aggressively attempt to drive SF in some direction. I think of anthology series like “Dangerous Visions” by Harlan Ellison, “Orbit” by Damon Knight, “England Swings SF” by Judith Merril, “Star Science Fiction” by Frederik Pohl, and many more….

The Year’s Best African Speculative Fiction; Volume 1 by Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki seems to be a Best of the Year that is trying to have the impact of an important original anthology. And it did.

Reaching towards authors and publications that are rarely reprinted, Ekpeki makes a strong statement about the reach of speculative fiction and the genre’s current desire for increasing diverse voices. This put him on a radar of many people -including myself - as an editor to watch. He even was recognized in the Hugo Award Finalists: Editor Short Form. This is so rarely bestowed on a BOTY editor, that it lead to controversy. The Internet must Internet, after all.

But how are the stories. That is what matters the most.

For the most part, pretty enjoyable. As a non-African who has never been to Africa, I kept running into a few issues of my own ignorance that impacted my reading experience.

This is a ‘speculative fiction’ anthology, not science fiction. There is an abundance of fantasy in the book and that is going to lower my reviews of those stories. I rarely enjoy fantasy.

The style of fantasy that dominates the book seems to pull from various African religion and mythology. Unfortunately, I don’t have the background in the culture to know what is newly created by the author and what is just established African mythology. More on this later….

The stories are obviously written by Africans for an African readership, but again I had trouble finding my footing with the location, family dynamics, and cultural assumptions.

These challenges are my own and, of course, someone from Africa would run into the same challenges when reading anglophone SF. (Although Hollywood hegemony has likely laid a foundation around the world for some of the basics of American life.). The writers are under no obligations to make this easier for me, but Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki knew he was editing for a mostly western readership and could have done more to make it accessible. Iraq + 100, The SEA is ours: Tales of Steampunk Southeast Asia, Cosmos Latinos: An Anthology of Science Fiction from Latin America and Spain, and “Dreams from Beyond: Anthology of Czech Speculative Fiction” all did this better.

But let’s focus on what this anthology did well. It found 4 new stories of the All-Time Great List:

Scar Tissue • (2020) • short story by Tobias S. Buckell. Heartwarming story of an amputee who agrees to foster/raise a robot for money and ends up being permanently changed as a result.

A Mastery of German • (2020) • short story by Marian Denise Moore. A woman takes over a secretive project called Engram with the instructions to kill it or bring it to conclusion. She quickly is drawn into experimentation around genetics, memory, race, and who is allowed to profit from those things.

Egoli • (2020) • short fiction by T. L. Huchu. A wonderful character study of an elderly African woman who reminiscences about her life on the morning she wakes up early to watch her grandson’s voyage to asteroids for mining. A very literary story with a sense of wonder emanating from the span of a human life and what does or does not change.

Red_Bati • (2020) • short story by Dilman Dila. Red_Bati is an over-designed robot dog that was original designed to be the only companion to an elderly woman, but after her death ended up on a mining spaceship. Now, he wants to take over that vessel and starts a plan to do so.

THE YEAR’S BEST AFRICAN SPECULATIVE FICTION IS RATED 79%
29 STORIES : 4 GREAT / 16 GOOD / 6 AVERAGE / 2 POOR / 1 DNF

Where You Go • (2020) • short story by Somto O. Ihezue

Average. The Collecting - a rapid global destruction based on climate change - weighs heavily on the mind of the main character. Until she falls through magic water.

Things Boys Do • short fiction by 'Pemi Aguda [as by Pemi Aguda]

Good. Taut horror story about a child born who embodies vengeance against three men.

Giant Steps • (2020) • short story by Russell Nichols

Good. A woman stays dedicated to living her ‘true self’ by defying everyone and taking a solo space mission to investigate what looks like Giant’s Footprints.

The Future in Saltwater • (2020) • short story by Tamara Jerée

Good. A young woman fuzes with a tentacled god from the polluted oceans. She is given a new life and a quest, but it all falls apart when she accidentally rejects it.

The ThoughtBox • (2020) • short fiction by Tlotlo Tsamaase

Good. A woman, who may be in a financially abusive relationship, receives a ThoughtBox. This device allows she and her boyfriend to share their inner thoughts. In the process of using it, she discovers truths about her boyfriend … and also the very nature of her life.

The Parts That Make Us Monsters • (2020) • short fiction by Sheree Renée Thomas

Poor. Poetic word salad that made no impact on me at all. Barely remembered.

Scar Tissue • (2020) • short story by Tobias S. Buckell

Great. Heartwarming story of an amputee who agrees to foster/raise a robot for money and ends up being permanently changed as a result.

Ancestries • (2020) • short story by Sheree Renée Thomas

Good. A violent fantasy of the hatred and abuse that exists between sisters, set amongst a backdrop of the lost ruins of our world.

Breath of the Sahara • (2020) • short story by Inegbenoise O. Osagie

Good. The friendship of two young girls is tested when one is discovered to be a Zephyr - someone shrinking and being blown away by the wind.

The Many Lives of an Abiku • (2020) • short fiction by Tobi Ogundiran

Average. A spirit needs to choose between her spirits and family and flesh and blood family while also fighting off a spirit that wants to take that away from her.

A Love Song for Herkinal As Composed by Ashkernas Amid the Ruins of New Haven • (2020) • short fiction by Chinelo Onwualu

Good. A dense, alternate Africa where magic is everywhere. A shady man books a room at a Magic-filled hotel for the purpose of doing something horrible to a young girl. I’d like a lot more stories in this hotel.

A Curse at Midnight • (2020) • short story by Moustapha Mbacké Diop

Average. A new Senegalese mother has her son stolen by a demon and has to get it back using her mother’s magic.

A Mastery of German • (2020) • short story by Marian Denise Moore

Great. A woman takes over a secretive project called Engram with the instructions to kill it or bring it to conclusion. She quickly is drawn into experimentation around genetics, memory, race, and who is allowed to profit from those things.

Are We Ourselves? • (2020) • short fiction by Michelle Mellon

Average. Be careful what you wish for. Reparations brings back slavery.

When the Last of the Birds and the Bees Have Gone On • short fiction by C. L. Clark (variant of When the Last of the Birds and Bees Have Gone on 2020)

Good. Two different parts, told as one long paragraph. The first is life instructions to someone nonhuman on a very different world from ours. It is captivating to slow piece together what we can of this world. The second part is story of a transporter of color and vibrancy though an apocalyptic barren world.

The Goatkeeper's Harvest • (2020) • short story by Tobi Ogundiran

Good. A terrifying story about a mother who crosses the GoatKeeper when she doesn’t let her children eat her yams.

Baba Klep • (2020) • short fiction by Eugen Bacon

Poor. A plane crashes and the survivors are captured by canabalistic little people. No idea why this was here. Felt like bad colonialist fiction.

Desiccant • (2020) • short story by Craig Laurance Gidney

Good. An evil power is feeding on the bodily liquid of the residents of a tenement. Very good setup with no payoff.

Disassembly • (2020) • short story by Makena Onjerika

Good. A girl has the ability to disassemble her entire body and reassemble it. This affects her as she comes of age and works through life. Poignant parable.

The River of Night • (2020) • short story by Tlotlo Tsamaase

DNF. A woman is haunted by a demon that seems to inflame her insecurities.

Egoli • (2020) • short fiction by T. L. Huchu

Great. A wonderful character study of an elderly African woman who reminiscences about her life on the morning she wakes up early to watch her grandson’s voyage to asteroids for mining. A very literary story with a sense of wonder emanating from the span of a human life and what does or does not change.

The Friendship Bench • (2020) • short fiction by Yvette Lisa Ndlovu

Good. If you could lose your pain, would you? If someone could offer you that, what motives might they have. Short and sharp.

Fort Kwame • (2020) • short fiction by Derek Lubangakene

Good. A tale of climate change and violent rebellion as our main character plans to destroy the pillars that hold Fort Kwame above the oceans that cover the world.

We Come as Gods • (2020) • short fiction by Suyi Davies Okungbowa

Average. A poetic story of “We” would hold many different roles at different moments: Servant, Merchant, Saviour, Ghost

And This Is How to Stay Alive • (2020) • novella by Shingai Njeri Kagunda

Good. A gay son commits suicide but his spirit stays around.

The Front Line • (2020) • short fiction by W. C. Dunlap

Average. A fat black female superhero gets in an altercation with trigger happy police.

Penultimate • (2020) • short story by Zig Zag Claybourne [as by Z. Z. Claybourne]

Good. A beautiful myth of a woman’s relationship with a pen and way they both shape reality.

Love Hangover • (2020) • short story by Sheree Renée Thomas?

Good. A woman in enthralled by a sexy vampire (siren?) who hunts and performs in discos.

Red_Bati • (2020) • short story by Dilman Dila

Great. Red_Bati is an over-designed robot dog that was original designed to be the only companion to an elderly woman, but after her death ended up on a mining spaceship. Now, he wants to take over that vessel and starts a plan to do so.

[Lauren loves llamas · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely adore speculative fiction anthologies, so when I saw that both C.L. Clark and T.L. Huchu had stories in this one, I had to read it. This is a collection of twenty-nine stories from 2020 told by African or African diaspora writers, a good mix of science fiction, fantasy and horror. There are stories that deal with age-old problems like racism and parenthood and newer ones like climate change and gentrification, from robot revolutions to vengeful djinn. Most of the stories were a solid three or four stars, but there were a few stories that particularly stood out to me:

“Things Boys Do” – Pemi Aguda. A delightfully atmospheric horror story about three new fathers.

“She hates that word, destination. Too close to destiny. Too far from reality.”

“Giant Steps” – Russell Nichols. A journey of discovery for one scientist, from her childhood to her arrival as the first human on a new world.

“A robot can’t cry, but it can be worried.”

“Scar Tissue” – Tobias S. Buckell. My absolute favorite of the collection. Told in the second person, a deeply emotional exploration of trauma and parenthood, through the lens of a man who’s suffered an accident and now agrees to “raise” a robot in return for extra cash.

“A Love Song for Herkinal as Composed By Ashkernas Amid the Ruins of New Haven” – Chinelo Onwualu. Another heartwarming one, where after the collapse of most of the world, a family is running a hotel for supernatural creatures – even the not so pleasant ones. Absolutely fascinating and amazing world building.

“You always taught me that it’s easier to run forward than backwards.”

“A Mastery of German” – Marian Denise Moore. A story about racial memory and ethics. Very thought provoking.

“Desiccant” – Craig Laurance Gidney. I absolutely loved this one, about a woman who moves into a rundown apartment and discovers something is critically wrong, housing segregation as a horror story. My only complaint was that it was too short!

“Egoli” – T.L. Huchu. Told in the second person, a story about an elderly woman reflecting on technological – and other – advancements during her lifetime. Lovely.

“And This Is How to Stay Alive” – Shingai Njeri Kagunda. My (extremely close) second favorite. A gorgeous, bittersweet story about a gay teen, suicide, time travel, and a sister’s love.

Overall, a well-rounded collection with a little something for everyone. Highly recommended!

Content notes: Death, cancer, child death, parental abandonment, drug use, toxic relationship, kidnapping, murder, transphobia and anti-trans slurs (by bad guys), suicidal ideation, depression, suicide, homophobia, police brutality, racism

I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

[Alexandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone more au fait with anthologies than me pointed out, this anthology doesn't have a introduction. So there's no discussion of what speculative fiction is, let alone what African speculative fiction is. Which means that the answer to both of those questions is: These stories. All of them. These authors write that.

A few of these names - Sheree Renee Thomas, Tobias S Buckell - were familiar to me, but most were not. Part of this is that I don't read a whole heap of short fiction these days, especially not the online magazines - it's too hard - but it's also partly about the speculative fiction scene that gets a lot of notice still being really white (I am not very wired into the whole scene these days anyway). Which makes an anthology like this excellent... because we're a long way away from not needing such a thing, so don't bring me the "but everyone's work should be judged on merit" nonsense.

Anyway: the stories! This is a truly diverse set of fiction. There's magic and there's robots and there's myths and there's so-close-to-reality, and there's horror (sometimes akin to the close-to-reality); there's stories set in recognisable places and future places and past places and nowhere-places. Women and men and ungendered and who cares, families and not, hope and not,

I didn't love every story, but I never do, with an anthology. And some of those were horror, which I pretty much always don't enjoy. There was only one story that I got impatient with and skimmed over, which is a pretty good hit-rate in 360 pages.

This is great. I hope it's the first in a long line of such volumes, as the cover page suggests.

[Eule Luftschloss · Rating 4 out of 5]

trigger warning (TL;DR: all of them)
death by fire, drug abuse, gun violence, police brutality, victim blaming, rape, trauma, memory loss, slavery, domestic violence, grief, death at childbirth, kidnapping, child disappearance, fat shaming

What it says on the tin: The best African speculative fiction in short stories from the year 2021.

You can see that it took me a while to start this, and then it took me a while to read through this. In some cases this would mean that I didn't enjoy the writing or the content of the stories, and... well the latter is true here, too, to some extent, but in the way that most stories had very, very heavy topics.
I was ill for a long time, still not haven't fully recovered, and I tended to go for lighter things.

What I really enjoyed was the diversity in tone and setting. We have sci fi stuff on space ships, we have a superhero stories, at least two vampire tales. Witches, changelings, post apocalyptic stories and moments from the lifes of normal people.
Of course, some I did like more than others, but there was not one story that had me irritated and asking for why it was put in here. The storytelling was awesome, and in a few cases I was kinda bummed by the end of the story because I could have spend so much more time in the world, with the author's words.

Once I find myself with a dwindling stack of books, I will look up a few of the creators featured in here to find new reads.

The arc was provided by the publisher.

[Lucas - Bits of Lit · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic anthology put together by Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki full of stories that are sure to thrill and excite you. Some are shocking, some are heart warming, and all of them are moving. They ask us questions about ourselves as people in many different ways. Please pick it up~

[Justine Norton-Kertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fantastic short story collection! The stories range the gamut of science fiction, fantasy, and horror written by some of the best African SFF authors out there today. I really enjoyed reading this and highly recommend it!

[Rebekah]

BookRiot's 2022 Read Harder Challenge #18. Read a “Best _ Writing of the year” book for a topic and year of your choice.

[Jacqueline Nyathi · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5. Some wonderful fiction in here.

[Sean · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 rounded up

[Abyssinia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although these stories were hit or miss. The stories I did enjoy were creepy, interesting, sweet and funny.

[Sandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

https://wereadhere.wordpress.com/2022...

[Kab · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The Many Lives of an Abiku" by Tobi Ogundiran ★★★
"A Love Song for Herkinal as composed by Ashkernas amid the ruins of New Haven" by Chinelo Onwualu ★★★
"Are We Ourselves?" by Michelle Mellon ★★½
"The Goatkeeper’s Harvest" by Tobi Ogundiran ★★½
"Baba Klep" by Eugen Bacon ★½
"The Friendship Bench" by Yvette Lisa Ndlovu ★★★
"The Front Line" by WC Dunlap ★★★½

[Pat · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not sure that the year's best should include quite so many stories by one writer. But there's a lot of variety in the stories, from science fiction to stories apparently based on folklore. Some, I just stalled out on, but others were rich (and sometimes strange). A lot of horror here--or at least stories drawing from horror tropes.

Some I especially enjoyed: "Things Boys Do," by Pemi Aguda, which turns out to be wonderfully creepy horror; "Breath of the Sahara," by Inegbenoise O. Osagie, a lush story of fantasy and guilt; "A Love Song for Herkinal," by Chinelo Onwualu, which is-- Okay; it's strange and somehow heartening; "A Curse at Midnight," by Moustapha Mbake Diop, which beautifully mixes folklore and reality; and "Scar Tissue," by Tobias S. Buckell, which is oddly, strangely, weirdly sweet.

But, honestly, the editing left something to be desired, with typos and some jarring homonyms; and I have no idea how an ebook credited to someone who apparently makes ebooks as a profession can have no internal table of contents. There seems to be something wrong with the toc.ncx. Instead, if you want to find a particular story you have to go to the contents page at the beginning of the book.

Some good stuff here, though.

[Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection is a mix of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Very few of the authors were familiar to me before reading the anthology. There are several 5 star short stories here. The few entries that did not work for me tended to be on the shorter side of things. Overall, an excellent selection of works with varied themes, styles, and perspectives.

[Octavia Cade · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an exceptionally well-curated collection, the first of its type, collecting together the best short fiction stories of the title. These are all reprints, as Year's Best collections tend to be, and I've read some of them before, but some were new to me.

My favourite was "Desiccant" by Craig Laurance Gidney, which was no surprise as it was also my favourite story in the vampire noire anthology Slay, edited by Nicole Givens Kurtz, which was where I first read it. "Desiccant" is a story of substandard housing, where the red dust that spreads over everything turns out to be more of an infestation than first suspected. It's a very original take on vampires, one overlaid with environmental justice, and I love it. A very close second place goes to a story I hadn't read before: "Giant Steps" by Russell Nichols, in which a woman eschews motherhood and her young daughter in order to be an astronaut. That's a very bare bones description, but I don't wish to spoil anything! Suffice to say, I was riveted.

As in any anthology, there's a very few stories that didn't much appeal to me, but the vast majority collected here were absolutely excellent, and all credit to Ekpeki for editing this volume, which is notable for its enormous range in story genre and theme. I look forward to this year's volume!

[Eva · Rating 5 out of 5]

*** Review copy from NetGalley for review consideration ***
The Year's Best African Speculative Fiction edited by the phenomenal Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki is a comprehensive volume of science fiction, fantasy, horror, and slipstream fiction that collects the best of what African and African-descended writers have produced in the past year or so.

For those wanting more exposure and to broaden their reading of African writers, this is one of the most extensive volumes with writers both new and established including Tamara Jeree, Russell Nichols, Tlotlo Tsamaase, and many more. Some of the "new-to-me" writers included Tobi Ogundiran, Michelle Mellon, Makena Onjerika, and several others, which enhanced my reading experience.

Some of my favourite authors included within these pages were the incomparable Sheree Renée Thomas, ZZ Claybourne, and Craig Laurance Gidney. Having devoured Thomas's works in her short story collection, Nine Bar Blues as well as SLAY, edited by Nicole Givens Kurtz, it was a treat to be able to revisit some of those pieces again by one of the best short story writers today, period.

Some of the standouts for me included "Things Boys Do" by Pemi Aguda, which read to me like a fable. Cruelty didn't begin to describe what the three boys subjected the protagonist to, and the story stayed with me long after I had finished reading it.

"A Mastery of German" by Marian Denise Moore seemed at first to be about a Black man who may have participated in the jazz scene in Germany at the outset of the Second World War and into the 1940s, but quickly veered into a science fiction direction with discussions of consciousness transfer technology. The protagonist faced pressure to take on a very lucrative but stress-inducing project further complicated by issues of genetics, ethics, and even the history of Henrietta Lacks. It was an incredibly disturbing tale, and very memorable.

"Are We Ourselves?" by Michelle Mellon similarly explored notions of consciousness transfer technology, and included an interesting spin on a futuristic concept of reparations. As with many of the stories in this volumes, things were definitely not as they seemed.

"The River of Night" by Tlotlo Tsamaase was an erotic horror but also disturbing and visceral; not for the faint of heart.

It's impossible to pick a favourite in such a strong body of collected works, but one of the pieces that had the most visceral impact for me was "The Front Line" by WC Dunlap.
"Because no one cares what happens to a Black woman's body?"
"...women like you..."
"You need to lose weight."
The first part of this story connected straight to a nerve for me. The second part was horrific and harrowing, chronicling a scene we have watched and absorbed multiple times, each one an instance of racialized violence from predominantly white law enforcement which should not happen in a just society.

Libraries and bookstores should most definitely acquire this fantastic volume of short stories, masterfully selected, and I hope that as many readers as possible discover the wonders within here.

[Patrick St-Denis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a follow-up to last year's Dominion, the first anthology of speculative fiction and poetry by Africans and the African Diaspora. You may recall that I absolutely loved that anthology, so I was really looking forward to discovering what the 2021 collection would look like.

Now that I went through it, I can tell you that The Year’s Best African Speculative Fiction (2021) is as good as its predecessor. If anything, it might even be a little better!

Once again this year, Ekpeki Oghenechovwe Donald compiled short fiction tales that cover the length and breadth of everything that falls under the speculative fiction umbrella. As was the case with Dominion, such a convergence of genres and subgenres makes for captivating reading. Though most of the pieces are not culturally familiar in style, tone, or context to Western SFF readers, they all have something that can appeal to a broader audience. I was a bit surprised that this anthology contained a couple of pieces that were found in its predecessor. Though they're good, I'm not sure why they were included instead of original short stories.

If you only read one SFF anthology this year, make it this one! =)