Hmm. This is a very angry book, and a very cruel one. A disclaimer: I understand where Nnedi Okorafor is coming from - and I can relate, but I obviously cannot have had the same experiences, since I am not a POC.

"The Book of Phoenix" is a bit of a mess - a blend of sci-fi and fantasy set in a dystopian world, with an almost godlike superhero battling evil scientists (who are REALLY evil); said evil scientists doing unspeakable things to people from Africa as a metaphor for colonisation and slavery; it is written as a fable or a folk tale; you can see where the plot is going; at its heart, it is a revenge fantasy.

At times it felt more like a pamphlet rather than a novel. This book is screaming its message - yet I kept thinking that those you can only reach by screaming (and maybe not even then...) will probably not read Nnedi Okorafor, while those who WILL, do not need much more than a whisper.

Also, I was extremely bothered by two things: "women are so emotional" explanation for Phoenix's actions (seriously!?) and that one of the male characters who is supposed to be one of the good guys is slut-shaming women, simply for being attracted to him and showing it (what's up with that!?).

I am rather disappointed, since I usually enjoy Nnedi Okorafor's writing - I loved Lagoon, I loved Binti and its sequels, and enjoyed Remote Control (there are some connections between the latter and "The Book of Phoenix" that I found quite interesting), but this book left me with messy and conflicting emotions.
( )

Fun story, I probably should've read book 1 first but whatever, I just really like her mythologies. I guess I get to read the rest now. ( )

Readers of the stunning Who Fears Death are haunted by the question of how the world came to be the way it was. The Book of Phoenix tells that story. It's numbered as a "prequel" and I suppose it is, but I'm glad I read it after reading WFD. It doesn't contain spoilers per se, but it does not resonate with the same power. ( )

Not that it was poorly written or anything but I don't care for mystical hoo ha. Plus it ended pretty crappy. ( )

In the distant future Sunuteel comes across abandoned computers and finds an audio file telling the story of Phoenix, a human genetically engineered to be a radioactive weapon.

Some interesting ideas but ultimately although I found it enjoyable reading it, I didn't really feel like reading it for too long at a time and was easily distracted. ( )