Binti is a young Himba woman from Namibia who leaves home to attend a university on another planet. Her story, told by the Nigerian-American writer Nnedi Okorafor, won science fiction’s two most famous awards.
Nnedi Okorafor was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1974 to Igbo parents who had come to the United States to study. She visited Nigeria often as a child with her family. As a teenager, she was a nationally ranked tennis player and track athlete, but scoliosis surgery left her temporarily paralysed. During her recovery, she began writing.
Africanfuturism
Okorafor writes speculative fiction rooted in African cultures, landscapes and histories. She coined the term Africanfuturism to describe science fiction centred on Africa and Africans, distinguishing it from Afrofuturism, which is often associated with the African American diaspora.
Who Fears Death
Her novel Who Fears Death, published in 2010, is set in a post-apocalyptic Sudan and follows a young woman with magical powers. It won the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel. HBO announced plans to adapt it for television, with George R. R. Martin as an executive producer.
Binti
The novella Binti, published in 2015, won both the Hugo Award and the Nebula Award for best novella. It was followed by Binti: Home and Binti: The Night Masquerade, forming a trilogy.
Lagoon
Her 2014 novel Lagoon imagines an alien arrival in the ocean off Lagos, and the chaos, faith and politics that follow. It is often cited as one of the defining works of African science fiction. Later novels include Remote Control, set in a future Ghana.
Comics
Okorafor has written for Marvel Comics, including Black Panther stories and the series Shuri, about the Wakandan princess.
Akata
Her young adult novels, including Akata Witch, follow a Nigerian-American girl who discovers magical powers in Nigeria. Readers have compared them to the Harry Potter books.
Teaching
Okorafor, who holds a doctorate in English from the University of Illinois at Chicago, has taught creative writing at universities and speaks widely about representation in science fiction.
Legacy
Okorafor has helped open science fiction and fantasy to African settings and characters, inspiring a new generation of African and diaspora writers of speculative fiction.
She began writing while learning to walk again. She went on to send a young Himba girl to the stars.
