How Long ‘Til Black Future Month?
Until maybe 5 or 10 years ago, there were two truisms about my entertainment preferences. I — without a doubt — did not like: 1) Country music, and 2) Sci-fi/fantasy/dystopian/speculative literature. First of all, I would like to admit that I will now willingly listen to — and enjoy — a lot of country music. (🤠) And now, a few stories into How Long ‘til Black Future Month? by N.K. Jemisin, I have to admit that perhaps I can be swayed on the sci-fi/speculative fiction front as well. (Please don’t ask me to watch Star Wars, though. PS: My other unpopular movie opinion is that I’m bored to tears by The Princess Bride. Sorry!)
The NPR Books email from Petra Mayer last week started out like this: “People have a lot of preconceived ideas about science fiction and fantasy -- that it's just for nerds, that the writing's not great, that everything is an 18-book series that isn't even finished yet. But I'm here to tell you that isn't true now, if it ever was!” So here I am. (Petra, what are your thoughts on country music?)
I’m truly loving this short story collection. Jemisin’s writing is like poetry, but it’s not just the language per se; it’s the imagery she creates. (Things that perhaps aren’t quite “real”…but not bizarro creatures or space ships.) So far, I’ve read commentary (in story form, of course) about cities, about race relations, and about how we relate to food, progress, and aging.
I’m reading this for a book club with some high school classmates and am grateful for Heather for picking this. (I also ordered a Ken Liu book at her suggestion.) (Also: Do any of my school friends remember having to read The Grey King by Susan Cooper in middle school? Anyone want to convince me that I’d actually like that too? I just looked it up, and I’m absolutely positive one of the things that turned me off is that there’s a character referred to as the “evil lord opposing the Light.” No thanks! 🧙♂️🐺)
So, what’s the book or author that’s caused you to open your mind regarding a long-held preference? (And can I get a yeehaw?)
originally published on instagram