ayodele's promises of peace and security are undermined as more people begin to find out about her presence - religious groups fear her and accuse her of being a marine witch, the military wants to destroy the aliens, the local drug lords want to kidnap her for profit, and the lgbt community wants to use her as a spokesperson. The four of them go back to adaora's home, where she has a lab set up, and they run tests and begin to plan their next steps. these people were chosen to become intermediaries between the aliens and the humans, and the fourth body that washes out of the wave is one of the aliens themselves - a shapeshifting being who takes the form of a human woman, named ayodele by adaora, after a childhood friend. adaora is a marine biologist, anthony is a celebrated rap sensation from ghana, and agu is a soldier. three people are taken by this wave, four are returned. strange aquatic species begin to appear in the waters, sonic booms fill the air, and a wave crashes over the beach. The aliens in this case set up camp under the sea. since folktales frequently make their way into african fiction, or any other culture's fiction where there is an emphasis upon oral tradition, it was not terribly jarring for me to get into the swing of this story.Īnd like most folktales, this story is a little allegorical twist that simultaneously tells its alien invasion story alongside the story of modern lagos its social ills and potential, and the strength and failings of its people.

fortunately for sci-fi noob me, the aliens are not metallic chitinous types toting advanced weaponry, and the story has more of a folktale feel to it than anything more traditionally spaceshippy. i have read plenty of african fiction, but this is the first time extraterrestrial life has ever been a part of the story. This is a science fiction novel in which aliens descend upon lagos. Learn more about Nnedi at and follow Nnedi on twitter (as Facebook and Instagram. She lives with her daughter Anyaugo in Phoenix, AZ. Her debut novel Zahrah the Windseeker won the prestigious Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature. Her many works include Who Fears Death (winner of the World Fantasy Award and in development at HBO as a TV series), the Nebula and Hugo award winning novella trilogy Binti (in development as a TV series), the Lodestar and Locus Award winning Nsibidi Scripts Series, LaGuardia (winner of a Hugo and Eisner awards for Best Graphic Novel) and her most recent novella Remote Control. Born in the United States to two Nigerian (Igbo) immigrant parents and visiting family in Nigeria since she was a child, the foundation and inspiration of Nnedi’s work is rooted in this part of Africa.

The more specific terms for her works are africanfuturism and africanjujuism, both terms she coined and defined. Nnedi Okorafor is a New York Times Bestselling writer of science fiction and fantasy for both children and adults.

Lagoon nnedi okorafor analysis