A novella is a challenging form and hard to do right (Capote and Sparks come to mind as authors who really have a feel for what makes a good novella). This is a good story, but I wish it were a novel rather than a novella. I super enjoyed Okorafor’s world-building and wanted more! I also feel like it would have given the character of Binti herself, and the events of the story, more time to breathe and get comfortable. I’m definitely reading the sequels though! ( )

I liked this novella, but I didn't love this novella. The gap was there because: it was a novella.

It was too slender a work to carry its content. Expanded to novel length, I suspect this would have been wonderful. There was so much imagination and unfamiliar territory (to purely European–American backgrounds) in this work. But it was only a tease.

The apposition of Binti's Himba culture and the hinted mathematical/technical wizardry of their astrolabes, neither really explored. The barely hinted Khoush culture, and its role in the politics of Earth and the wider universe. The tentacled Meduse (a hint of Greek myth merging in or a false cognate with Nigerian folklore?) who remain little more than honorable, violent jellyfish. Aliens who can mutate a human with a touch, yet not heal themselves—but clay and oil from Nigeria can.

It was a fascinating world to contemplate, but the glimpse was too small to be satisfying. ( )

I first read this novella several years ago, but read it again in preparation to go through the complete trilogy in one go.

I rated Binti 4 stars in my initial read, mostly due to the originality of the premise and characters. Reading it again, I'm less struck by that (since I know what is going to happen). In fact, the story is a little thin considering how much happens.

Okorafor doesn't give us much backstory about Binti herself, the Meduse aliens, or the state of the universe in general. I still like the juxtaposition of Binti's cultural/tribal practices and rituals and her mathematical and scientific abilities. I like the themes of clashing cultures and otherness. I like seeing the world through the eyes of an unconventional character. I just wanted more of everything, but Okorafor chooses to tell this story as though we are Binti's contemporaries and know everything that she knows.

I still like the story, but today I might give it 3.5 stars instead of 4. But I'll let my original rating stand. ( )

I enjoyed the start of this coming-of-age novella about a young woman who leaves her family (against their wishes) and culture to study at a faraway university. Then the story changes and she turns into a negotiator between warring alien factions. I didn't like the pseudo-mysticism of this part of the story, and I felt like the massacre was pushed aside and forgotten too easily. All in all, a reasonably good read, but probably not deserving of so much hype. ( )

Excellent short novella. ( )