Dr. Nnedi Okorafor is a stunning voice in African science fiction literature. Self described as a rudimentary cyborg, the Nigerian-American author and professor specializes in young adult fantasy focused on African and African American adolescents—particularly girls. She has some sci fi novels for us older readers, too.

When we think of young female characters with supernatural abilities, we imagine Buffy, Willow, the pink and yellow Power Rangers, or Sabrina the Teenage Witch—at least, those were the magical heroines I grew up with. Kids of color today have Okorafor’s characters, who not only possess great abilities and strength, but deal with the intersections of identity, culture, family and war, across galaxies, in their communities and even at school. This consciousness of the sphere of the African and black experience, dotted with magical realism and science fiction, makes Okorafor’s stories all the more compelling.

Okorafor has won several awards and accolades for her novels, including the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel, the Wole Soyinka Prize for African Literature and the Children’s Africana Book Award for Best Book for Young Readers, just to name a few, literally. Her most popular works include the Akata Witch Series, Binti and Who Fears Death.

-AA