Noor written by Nnedi Okorafor, narrated by Dele Ogundiran

PUB DATE: Nov 16, 2021

Noor means “light” in Arabic.

In the not-too-distant future Nigeria, AO (Anwuli Okwudili) was born with multiple deformities and instead of dying as her parents hoped, she survived. At age 14, she was in a car accident that further disabled her. With each augmentation that she required; others looked at her as more machine than human, but she embraced her body. She felt her life was close to normal as much as anyone without augmentations until one fatal day when she visited her local market.

AO goes on the run & meets DNA, a Fulani herdsman who is also on the run & his two remaining cattle. This is a complex intricate sci-fi journey with romance elements that was exciting, inventive & unpredictable. A criticism of allowing mega-corporations to infiltrate our every need & controlling the narratives we see.

I listened to this audiobook solely without a chance to read with my eyes & I was lost for many parts but as the characters persevered in their journey, I persevered in my listening. I couldn’t look up some of the words because I simply can’t spell & possibly these are made up terms in this sci-fi world. I did get to learn about the nomadic Fulani people & their culture, they are primarily Muslim & speak Pular. I really liked this story of AO & DNA. Dele Ogundiran @delebiz has a great rich voice & lent authenticity to the story.

Thank you Libro FM, Tantor Audio, Daws Books for the ALC!