Tag: oomza university

Binti by Nnedi Okorafor

Binti by Nnedi Okorafor

Binti Ekeopara Zuzu Dambu Kaipka of Namib is from a small tribe on Earth. They have the ability to use mathematics to create instruments called astrolabes that can read and interact with the energy of the universe. These astrolabes can be used for purposes ranging from a simple “phone call” to interpreting a person’s future.

Even among her people, Binti is extremely talented in this art. She is a mathematical genius who contemplates complex equations to enter a flow state. She is also the first from her tribe to be accepted at Oomza University.

I was the only Himba on the ship, out of nearly five hundred passengers. My tribe is obsessed with innovation and technology, but it is small and private, and, as I said, we don’t like to leave Earth. We prefer to explore the universe by traveling inward, as opposed to outward. pg 21

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Can she leave everything and everyone she’s ever known or loved to go to the university?

Binti is a science fiction novella with an extraordinarily unique premise and world. But I felt it was complex enough that it would have been more enjoyable as a full length novel. I wanted to know more: about the Meduse, the astrolabes, the meditative “treeing” or mathematical contemplation.

“My people are the creators and builders of astrolabes,” I said. “We use math to create the currents within them. The best of us have the gift to bring harmony so delicious that we can make atoms caress each other like lovers.” pg 62

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Perhaps that’s not fair of me, to expect more out of a novella rather than appreciate it for what it is. I mean, Binti is a Hugo and Nebula award winner. There is something almost magical about it. I could see this becoming an extraordinary science fiction series of books or even a television show.

Highly recommended for readers who appreciate science fiction short stories, which (apparently) isn’t my thing.

Thanks for reading!