book review: how long 'til black future month?

How Long 'til Black Future Month? by N.K. Jemisin

How Long ‘til Black Future Month? by N.K. Jemisin

What are the main ideas?

it doesn’t feel right to simmer a book of short stories down to main ideas like i do with non-fiction. instead i think the question to answer is: what does this book inspire?

If I implemented one idea from this book right now, which one would it be?

i love how the short stories here are the root of some of her books. i would love to write a bunch of short stories like this, put them into a collection, and then pick one to deep dive into.

How would I describe the book to a friend?

this book reminds me of how n.k. jemisin described her approach to sci-fi. she didn’t say it in these terms but what i heard was this: a world that has everything the same except for one or two re-imagined elements is a powerful conduit for deep lessons. she does this over and over again and it’s approaches like this to sci-fi that have made me fall back in love with sci-fi. each story is wholly unique though there are themes that run across many. i suggest reading these slowly and letting each one sink into you. some sink in like heat from 92.068 million miles away, others sink into you like the bonechill of a house with a busted furnace.


reminder: book review structure