FILM REVIEW: The Woman King

It's been quite awhile since I saw a movie in the theaters, but last weekend I saw two of them! The husband and I intended to see Bros opening weekend with another gay couple but when it turned out they couldn't see it until Sunday we decided to go see The Woman King on Saturday, since it had stellar reviews and was only available in theaters. I'm glad we did!

The Woman King is a star vehicle for Viola Davis, the most Oscar-nominated Black actress of all time (and winner of the 2016 Best Supporting Actress for Fences). However, it is also a rarity among studio films, with a predominantly Black female cast. The movie is about the legendary Agojie, the "virgin African Amazons" who were an all-female army in the West African kingdom of Dahomey during the slave era. The film features John Boyega (The Force Awakens, Small Axe), Thuso Mbedu (The Underground Railroad), Lashana Lynch, Sheila Atim, Jordan Bolger and Hero Fiennes Tiffin. The last actor plays Santo Fereirra, the main white character in the film, a slaver from Brazil who is working with the enemies of the Dahomey to buy and ship captured Africans into slavery in the Americas. He arrives with his interracial friend Malik played by the pulchritudinous Jordan Bolger, who is the son of a Dahomey mother and white father.

Of course any film about slavery is effused with violence, but in this case the violence is mainly done by the Black female characters in the film (the Agojie).  The film is set in 1823 and makes clear that both the Dahomey and the Oyo participated in the slave trade, by selling captured African combatants to the slavers. However in the movie, Davis' character, Nanisca, the head of the Agojie decries the practice to King Ghezo (played by Boyega) and argues the Dahomey could and should trade palm oil with the white man instead. The primary conflict in The Woman King is between the Kingdom of Dahomey and the Oyo Empire, who are much larger and to whom the Dahomey pay tribute to. Dahomey refuses to pay tribute and the two nations go to war, with the smaller Agojie army using the superior tactical and strategic prowess of Davis' General Nanisca to eventually become victorious. However, during the main Oyo-Dahomey battle in the movie some of the main Agojie characters we have been following (played by Lynch and Mbedu) are captured and taken to be sold into slavery. Mbedu's character (Nawi) is bought by Bolger's character (Malik) in order to rescue her. (The two had their "meet-cute" moment earlier in the film when Nawi finds Malik bathing in a nearby waterfall and takes his clothes which for me was a highlight of the movie because Malik is phyne!!)

Although being told explicitly by her king not to go and rescue her captured Agojie soldiers, Nanisca goes anyway and along with her most loyal supporters basically destroys the town/port where slaves were being bought and sold and then transported across the Atlantic.

Overall, The Woman King is a well-done, action film (I think I saw someone call it a "a Black female Gladiator or Braveheart") with exceptional performances by Davis and Mbedu. It is exceedingly violent, almost graphically so, since almost all the combat is hand-to-hand with sharp, bladed weapons, a few primitive  guns and some gunpowder-based explosions. Despite the action genre, there is real emotional relationships depicted between many characters, like Nawi and Malik, Nawi and Nanisca, and Nanisca and Amenza (played by Atim). It's one of the best times I have had at the movies in years!

Title: The Woman King.
Director: Gina Price-Bythewood.
Running Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes.
MPAA Rating: Rated PG-13 for sequences of strong violence, some disturbing material, thematic content, brief language and partial nudity.
Release Date: September 16, 2022.
Viewing Date: October 2, 2022.

Writing: A-.
Acting: A.
Visuals: A.
Impact: A+.

Overall Grade: A (4.0/4.0).

Star Rating:  ★★★★½☆  (4.5/5.0).

BOOK REVIEW: The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson

The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson is an original, unique debut novel about love, family, identity, destiny, multiple universes, societal collapse, and climate change. It’s in a genre that I would call “science fantasy” since it involves science fiction ideas like travel between worlds and the devastating effects of climate change as well as fantasy tropes like a goddess named Nyame who lives in the space between the worlds and the devolution of human society into multiple task-centered tribes.

The main character in The Space Between Worlds is Cara (usually short for Caramenta), a lesbian from a downtrodden part of the world called Ashtown. Cara is a “traverser,” someone who can travel between the 380 known copies of our Earth that can be accessed in the multiverse using technology which is basically akin to magic. Of course there are an infinite number of alternate Earths but we can only visit this arbitrary number because that’s how many we can detect that “resonate” with ours. Climate change and societal collapse have devastated our Earth so we use our access to these other Earth to supplement our access to resources. Human beings can only travel from one earth to another if on the earth they travel to their doppelgänger is dead. So, people who grow up in circumstances that make their survival very unlikely (i.e. they are most likely dead on the other Earth) are now incredibly valuable. Cara is dead on all but eight other Earths so there’s a lot of traversing that she can do safely from our world to 372 others. This makes her one of the most desirable traversers. The reason Cara is dead on so many Earths is that she’s the daughter of a drug-addicted mom and eventually became the paramour of Adranik, the violent emperor of Ashtown. However on our earth, referred to as Earth 0, Cara lives in the palatial Wiley City and works for the Eldridge Institute, whose brilliant but probably psychotic founder figured out the “technology” to send people between worlds. All we know is that when Cara is in the space between worlds she senses the presence of a godlike figure that traversers call Nyame and  when she wakes up after having travelled (the process involves loses consciousness) she has painful bruises all over her body.

The worlds that Johnson have created in The Space Between Worlds are all impacted by end-stage capitalism (Cara is only a resident of Wiley City because of her employment with Eldridge. She is eligible for citizenship in four years, but if she loses her job before then, she can be deported all the way back to the slum of Ashtown.); rampant climate change (outside of Wiley City, clean food and water are scarce, the air is metallic and on “bright days” the sun is literally strong enough to blind and burn you); and societal collapse (Cara’s adopted family have their own church, there’s another tribe or guild for sex workers called the House, and another for assassins called the Runners).

Ultimately the effectiveness of the book is sourced in the issues it raises about identity, family and love. Cara is in love with her “handler,” a woman named Dell who is a citizen of Wiley City and who has long-standing family wealth. The sinusoidal nature of the strength and intimacy of their relationship is one of the central plot points. Another main idea, which is likely to be more compelling to some readers, is the question of identity and the nature of destiny. Cara interacts with various people in her life on multiple versions of Earth, so she’s aware that her destiny is/was often death, but she also sees the same people, even those she thinks she knows intimately, having subtly different (and sometimes disturbingly similar) personalities and possibilities on different Earths. This raises the centrality of the question of destiny: are our futures predestined regardless of minor differences between scenarios? Do relationships outlast different realities? Can people change?

In some sense, The Space Between Worlds is a time-travel story. It’s contours and have the same shape of coexisting possibilities branching off from a single reality as a result of the ability to travel between Earths existing in the multiverse. Overall, I was impressed by the complexity and creativity of this debut more then I was enthralled by it. Apart from Cara, I didn’t really care what happened to the other characters, even the ones that Cara cared about. I feel like the setting of the story was more interesting than the plot occurring in it and I would have been interested in another plot imbedded in the same world (or worlds). As a science fiction book it barely works due to the paucity of included scientific elements. However, as a work of speculative fiction it is very effective, as the questions of how our world could have devolved into Cara’s Earth 0 are compelling. It’s clear that Micaiah Johnson is an author to watch and I will be paying attention to what she writes next.

Title: The Space Between Worlds.
Author: Micaiah Johnson.
Format: Kindle.
Format: 322 pages.
Publisher: Del Rey.
Date Published: August 4, 2020.
Date Read: February 20, 2021.

GOODREADS RATING: ★★★★☆  (4.0/5.0).

OVERALL GRADE: B+ (3.33/4.0).

PLOT: B.
IMAGERY: A-.
IMPACT: B+.
WRITING: B+.

BOOK REVIEW: Heaven, My Home (Highway 59, #2) by Attica Locke

Heaven, My Home is the second in a series of police procedural books about a Black Texas Ranger written by Attica Locke (who is also well-known for her trenchant writing on television shows such as Little Fires Everywhereand Empire). The main character in the books is Darren Matthews, and the central tension of the books come from the conflicts and circumstances that arise when one of the very few Black man in a predominantly white prestigious crime-fighting organization like the Texas Rangers has to interact with rednecks in rural sections of the state.

In Bluebird, Bluebird, Darren was involved in trying to solve a pair of murders with racial overtones (the bodies of a black man and a white woman are found dumped separately in a nearby river a few days apart) in a very small town up Highway 59 from Dallas. In the sequel, Heaven, My Home, Darren is asked to drive up Highway 59 to the Southern gothic tourist destination of Jefferson to find a missing 10-year-old kid, Levi King. Levi just happens to be the son of jailed notorious white supremacist Bill King and was last seen alive by Leroy Page, an elderly Black man who happens to own most of the property near Lake Caddo in an area called Hopetown where Native Americans, African Americans and poor Whites have been squatting for years. The child’s grandmother Rosemary King is the richest person in the nearby town of Jefferson but doesn’t seem that worried about her kin’s well-being, but Rosemary does seem fixated on getting her greedy hands on the Leroy’s deed to Hopetown.

If the story in Heaven, My Home doesn’t seem complicated enough there are still several unresolved issues from the first book. Because of this, Darren is currently being blackmailed by his own ne’er-do-well mother to keep quiet that she has a piece of evidence that if it were revealed Darren knew existed and were given to authorities might not only lead to him losing his job, but potential indictment and prosecution. Additionally, while Darren’s marriage started off in an “it’s complicated” phase in the first book, it morphs into the slow-motion train wreck stage when he starts noticing oddly charged interactions between his best friend and wife and this leads him to reach out to the widow he was powerfully (and chastely) attracted to in the first book.

The writing is delightful in both books and the mysteries are compelling, if somewhat implausibly racially charged, in both cases. One would think these features would make these books resonate with he but, surprisingly, they don’t. Primarily, I just don’t sympathize (or empathize) with Darren. He makes (and made) some bad choices in this book and the previous one. He’s clearly a (barely) functional alcoholic. Of course, there’s a long history of detectives being alcoholic, addicted messes (looking at you, John Rebus!) but here the setting of backwoods Texas repels instead of propelling me.

I hope Ms. Locke writes more books in the Highway 59 series, and I think I will probably get around to reading them, although I won’t feel an urgent need to do so.

Title: Heaven, My Home.
Author: Attica Locke.
Format: Kindle.
Length: 336 pages.
Publisher: Mullholland Books.
Date Published: September 17, 2019.
Date Read: February 20, 2021.

GOODREADS RATING: ★★★½☆  (3.5/5.0).

OVERALL GRADE: A-/B+ (3.5/4.0).

PLOT: B+.
IMAGERY: A-.
IMPACT: A-.
WRITING: A-.

BOOK REVIEW: Heads of the Colored People by Nafissa Thompson-Spires

I was only supposed to read two stories, “Belles Lettres” and “The Necessary Changes Have Been Made” in order to decide which should be included in a collection of texts that address race, white supremacy and (mis)representation of Black people in the media. While both of these stories are good (and "Belles Lettres" is particularly trenchant) they imbricate race with so many other issues that I felt the primary point would’ve been lost or “diluted.” So I continued reading the collection and when I got to the title piece knew I had found what I was looking for. The first story “The Heads of Colored People: Four Fancy Sketches, Two Chalk Outlines, and No Apology” also weaves in other issues (police shooting, intraracial dynamics, Blerd culture) with multiple depictions of Black masculinity that I found quite compelling. The only other story which I felt could have satisfied my requirements is “Fatima The Biloquist.” I love that we get to see multiple depictions of Fatima in various stories in the collection. I connected with this  particular story because it does such a clever job of discussing racial representation in the context of class, phenotype and language. However, the standout stories in this collection (for me), apart from the aforementioned “Heads of the Colored People” and “Fatima The Biloquist” were “Suicide, Watch” and “Not Today, Marjorie.” When I reached the last paragraph of “Suicide, Watch” I burst out laughing so loudly my husband laying next to me said “What happened?” Even when I recounted the story I couldn’t stop giggling at the brilliant premise and payoff of that story. "Suicide, Watch" is worth the price of the entire collection. Many of the stories are about unlikable people or people in uncomfortable situations and not every story is great or memorable. (But one of the joys of short story collections is that if you don’t like what you’re currently reading, it will be over pretty soon.) Some of the more memorable stories may be ones I didn’t particularly like, such as “This Todd” and “The Subject of Consumption.” Overall, I would definitely recommend the collection as a whole and I know I am going to be anticipating reading what Nafissa Thompson-Spires writes in the future. Title: Heads of the Colored People. Author: Nafissa Thompson-Spires. Paperback: 203 pages. Publisher: 37 INK/ Atria. Date Published: April 10, 2018. Date Read: April 21, 2019. GOODREADS RATING: ★★★★½☆  (4.5/5.0). OVERALL GRADE: A/A- (3.83/4.0). PLOT: A-. IMAGERY: A. IMPACT: A-. WRITING: A.

CELEBRITY FRIDAY: Black AIDS Institute Names New Executive Director (Raniyah Copeland)

The new executive director of the Black AIDS Institute has been named as Raniyah Copeland. The president and chief executive officer of BAI has been Phil Wilson since its founding in 1999. The BAI is the nation's first  and only "national HIV/AIDS think tank focused on Black communities." Copeland, 34, has worked at The Institute for the last ten years. Wilson announced his retirement last year and the board conducted an extensive 10-month process to find a new leader for the organization.

The announcement was made at BAI's signature event "Heroes in the Struggle" last Saturday December 1.

2018 US OPEN: Osaka Wins 1st Major Title, Serena Receives Controversial Penalties (Again)

In a stunning upset, 20-year-old Naomi Osaka defeated 36-year-old Serena Williams in the 2018 US Open final, 6-2 6-4 to win her first major title. Osaka became the first Japanese player to win a major title in 200 major tournaments played in the Open area. For the second consecutive grand slam,  the 23-time major champion lost in the final, which drops her record to a still-intimidating 23-8 record in major finals for her career.

HOW THE MATCH WAS WON

Osaka was simply the better player for most of the match, clearly able to play her best tennis despite her nerves which was not the case for Serena. Both players began their first service games with 0-30 holes but were then able to come through and hold serve. However in the very next game Serena fell behind on her serve and lost it on a double fault. For some reason, Serena's service percentage was well below 50% (approximately 38%) while Osaka's was around double this number and at least as fast. Despite starting at 30-0, Serena lost her service again at 1-3 and only at 5-1 down was Serena finally able to hold service again but then lost the first set 6-2. In the second set Serena was more focused, but this ended when she was awarded a code violation after the umpire Carlos Ramos claimed her coach Patrick Mouratoglou was trying to coach her from the stands by indicating Serena should approach the net. Serena broke serve and went up 3-1 but after she gave back the break Serena destroyed her racket and received a second code violation, which resulted in a point penalty. Serena continued arguing with the umpire and on the 3-4 changeover she said to Ramos "You stole a point from me, You're a thief!" he gave her a 3rd code violation which resulted in a game penalty, so instead of Osaka serving, Serena was forced to serve at 3-5. She was able to hold serve and then Osaka served out the 10th game and won the championship 6-2 6-4.

2018 US OPEN: Women's Final (and Semifinals Review)

Serena Williams (USA) [17] vs. Naomi Osaka (JPN) [20]

This is my prediction post for the 2018 US Open women's final. Last year I incorrectly predicted that Madison Keys would beat Sloane Stephens in the 2017 US Open final.  This year I have correctly predicted 3 of 4 women's quarterfinals, 3 of 4 men's quarterfinals, 1 of 2 men's semifinals and 1 of 2 women's semifinals. I will also predict the winner of the 2018 US Open men's final between Juan Martin del Potro and Novak Djokovic.

WOMEN'S SEMIFINALS REVIEW

Serena Williams (USA) [17] d. Anastasja Sevastova (LAT) [19] 6-3 6-0. I thought that this match would be a bit tougher than it turned out to be, thanks to the willingness of Serena to go to the net to finish points quickly.  Sevastova has aspects of her game similar to Roberta Vinci who provided Serena one of  her most devastating losses here in New York in 2015 when she was attempting the calendar Grand Slam. Because Serena's game is so powerful, people often have difficulty coming up with an effective game plan against her, but moving the ball around and mixing up pace is usually a better idea than trying to outhit her. She can get frustrated and impatient if she makes too many errors and then starts to press and make more errors. Sevastova attempted this strategy, but Serena remained calm and cool as she overwhelmed the Latvian with powerful strokes hit deep into the corners of the court.

Naomi Osaka (JPN) [20] d. Madison Keys (USA) [15] 6-2 6-4. This was a very impressive performance by the 20-year-old Japanese player. Keys is one of the most powerful players (on both tours). I was also impressed with the gains she has made in her movement and defensive abilities. But she still goes for broke way too often, leading to errors at inopportune times. However, it's not clear that Keys could have done much to avoid this result due to the level of play of her opponent. Osaka faced 13 breakpoints and saved all 13, oftentimes with aces (even on the second serve!) or unreturnable serves.  Meanwhile, she earned 4 breakpoints on Keys' serve and converted 75% of them. Both players served well, but, surprisingly, it was the younger player who played the bigger points better. She totally deserved to win this semifinal and reach her first major final, where she will play her idol.

WOMEN'S FINALS PREVIEW

Serena is appearing in her 31st major final (23-7) while Naomi is in her very first. In fact, Serena appeared in  (and won) her very first major final in 1999 in New York, exactly 19 years ago, when her opponent was not yet 2 years old. As I have mentioned very many times before, very few players win their very first major final (especially if they are playing against someone who has already played in one previously). As usual, both players have huge achievements at stake on the result of this match. If Serena wins she will finally match Margaret Court's grand slam total of 24 major titles (amazingly, exactly 45 years to the day Court won her last major) and will become just the 4th woman to win a major title after becoming a mother (Court, Evonne Goolagong and Kim Clijsters). If Osaka wins she will become the first Japanese player to win a major title (she's already the first Japanese woman to reach a major final) just four years after Kei Nishikori reached the US Open final. Their games are very similar, because Osaka has modeled hers after her idol and she has the physical gifts to do so. The problem is that Serena is the original, and even though she is almost 18 years older, she basically does everything better than Naomi. The only advantage Naomi has is her age, but that is a double-edged sword that can count for and against her. MadProfessah's pick: Serena.

2018 HUGOS: Jemisin Completes Historic Trifecta With 3rd Consecutive Best Novel Win

She did it! N.K. Jemisin won her third consecutive Hugo award for Best Novel, science fiction's most prestigious honor, for The Stone Sky, the third book in the Broken Earth trilogy. Jemisin became the first African-American woman to win the Hugo award for best novel in 2016 for The Fifth Season and after she repeated this feat in 2017 with The Obelisk Gate there was great suspense as to whether the Broken Earth trilogy would become the first science fiction trilogy where every entry won the Hugo award when nominations were announced earlier this year. Orson Scott Card (Ender's Game, Speaker for the Dead) and Vernor Vinge (A Deepness in the Sky, A Fire upon the Deep) each have won 2 Hugos for the first two entries in a series and Connie Willis and Lois McMaster Bujold have each won 3 Hugos for books in a series.

Here is her incredible acceptance speech


Amazing news!

SATURDAY POLITICS: Trump Approval Shows Disapproval By Everyone (Except Rural Voters)

Hat/tip Axios

CELEBRITY FRIDAY: Octavia Butler, Black female sci-fi icon, honored by Google

Today would have been Octavia Butler's 71st birthday. Butler is one of the rare non-white, non-male individuals to have a successful and influential career in science fiction. She is best known for her dystopian novels (many of which won her chosen genre's highest awards) such as Wild Seed, Parable of the Sower, fledgling and (of course) Kindred. She was the first sci-fi author to win the prestigious MacArthur (genius) grant.

Google honors butler with today's Google Doodle!

2018 FRENCH OPEN: Women's Final Preview (and Semifinals Review)

Simona Halep (ROU) [1] vs Sloane Stephens (USA) [10]

Here is my predictions post for the women's final at the 2018 French Open. Last year I incorrectly predicted that Simona Halep would defeat Jelena Ostapenko. This year I correctly predicted 4 of 4 women's quarterfinals, 2 of 2 women's semifinals, 2 of 2 men's semifinals and 3 of 4 men's quarterfinals.

WOMEN'S SEMIFINALS REVIEW

Simona Halep (ROU) [1] d. Garbiñe Muguruza (ESP) [3] 6-1 6-4.  This was expected to be a tough 3-setter but the World #1 ran away with the first set, doing to Muguruza what she did to Sharapova in her quarterfinal match. The second set was far more competitive, with Muguruza earning an early break but then was unable to maintain the advantage to the end of the set and was broken in the 8th game. The key turning point of the match was the epic 9th game with Halep serving. Muguruza had multiple breakpoints but was unable to convert, despite the fact Halep was missing more than two-thirds of her first serves. However eventually (after 13 minutes) she was able to hold and serving to stay in the match Muguruza faded quickly, succumbing to a love break to lose the set and the match.

Sloane Stephens (USA) [10] d. Madison Keys (USA) [13] 6-4 6-4. This was a closer match than their match at the 2017 US Open final, because this time Madison could actually control some of her emotions and was able to show the hard-hitting tennis that makes her one of the most feared opponents on the WTA tour. But her good friend Sloane, who is just two years older (25 instead of 23) appears to be more than 2 year more mature than Madison and this shows in how they treat big matches. Sloane has only lost 1 set in her 6 tour finals she has appeared in, while Madison has only won 3 titles. Despite all that the match score line ended up being relatively close, even if the result of the match never felt much in doubt primarily due to the lack of unforced errors coming off the Sloane racquet compared to the large number Madison was hitting.


WOMEN'S FINAL PREVIEW
For the second time in the last three major tournaments both of these players will be appearing in their secod major final. Sloane at  the 2017 US Open while Halep's was at the 2018 Australian Open. (Halep is also appearing in her 3rd Roland-Garros final). Sloane is definitely the mentally tougher of the two, sporting a perfect 6-0 in WTA tour finals while Halep has a less than stellar 16-14 record in finals. However the two have played 7 times before and Halep leads 5-2. Interestingly, most pundits seem to be giving Stephens the edge in this match up but I'm not so sure. I'll be happy with either player winning, but I think I would be happier if Halep were to finally get that inaugural slam win and cement her standing at the top of the women's game. After all, if she loses her first four major finals that may start reducing the belief that she will actually win one of these eventually. Last year Halep was the prohibitive favorite against Jelena Ostapenko and played like it for a set and a half but when thing started to get tight Halep crumbled and lost after being up a set and a break ahead. I do believe she has learned from these experiences and the fact that Sloane is a known quantity should assist Halep in treating this like a regular tour match, in which case she would win easily. The problem is that it's not just a tour match and as the end of the match approaches I think Halep will have even more difficulty handling the pressure. However, with all that being said, I still give her the edge to (finally) win her first major title. PREDICTION: Halep. 

BOOK REVIEW: The Stone Sky (The Broken Earth trilogy, #3) by N.K. Jemisin

The Stone Sky is the third and final book in N.K. Jemisin's award-winning Broken Earth trilogy. The first two entries, The Fifth Season (see my review) and The Obelisk Gate (see my review), each won the Hugo award for Best Novel the last two years, against very stiff competition, it must be noted. Can the third one also do it, giving Jemisin an unprecedented trifecta of Hugo wins? It's very possible, because the third book is at least as good as the first two. I would say that the first one would be my personal favorite of the three, primarily due to the novelty of the world Jemisin creates and the interesting literary device that she uses to entice the reader which pays off extremely well around three-fourths of the way.

The first book revolves around the central character, Essun, trying to find her daughter, Nassun, who has been taken away by her husband Jija after he killed their youngest child because he discovered that his wife (and thus his children) are orogenes, people who have the power to affect their surroundings by manipulating energy (in basically all its forms) with their minds and bodies. Unfortunately, this ability is often only partially under conscious control and very often orogenes will unintentionally slaughter the people around them, either through boiling or freezing them to death (by suddenly changing the amount of heat in a proximal volume of space), or causing catastrophic earthquakes. The social stigma against orogenes is so intense that Jija kills his own son and kidnaps his daughter after he discovers his wife is an orogene when she uses her powers to save the village the family had lived in as a cataclysmic event occurs which will (again) throw their entire society into turmoil. Cataclysmic events are somewhat expected in this version of Earth. So much so that these events are known as "seasons," and most people live in a state of readiness that a life-shattering event could happen at any time. 

The second book follows the story of Essun as she tries to survive the aftermath of the events of the first book, while simultaneously trying to locate the surviving members of her family, Nassun and Jija. Survival takes priority, as the effects of the Season become more serious (the sun is blotted by the ash in the sky and earthquakes and tidal waves destroying coastal cities become commonplace). Essun finds a community (located underground in a geological oddity called a geode) where orogenes are not as stigmatized (in fact they are valued) and settles in with them.

In the third book, the story primarily focusses on Nassun and Essun. Nassun was taken by her father to a community run by guardians (creatures that have the power to train, control and punish orogenes) where they try to cure orogene children like her. Essun has been able to use the Obelisk Gate to locate Nassun, so she knows her daughter is alive, but the consequences of her actions (which she took to try and save the society she had joined from attack by others) are physically damaging and potentially life-threatening. Interestingly, we not only follow Nassun and Essun's story in The Stone Sky, we also get the back story of one of the mysterious (and initially terrifying) creatures called the stone eaters.

With The Stone Sky (and really with the entire series) Jemisin is deconstructing and inverting, while simultaneously deploying, many of the classic tropes of epic fantasy. There is a main character (who in this case happens to be female and dark skinned, with dread locks) who goes on a quest (to find her daughter) and finds out that she has more power than she ever believed she had. This is a familiar plot summary that we have seen many times before. But unlike most epic trilogies, things don't end up "happy ever after" for our hero in the Broken Earth trilogy. She doesn't get to sail off to the Undying Lands like Frodo in The Lord of the Rings. Happily, Essun's (and Nassun's) story is resolved without ambiguity (something that I wish Richard K. Morgan's otherwise excellent epic fantasy trilogy featuring an openly gay protagonist, A Land Fit For Heroes had done). 

Overall, I would say that the Broken Earth trilogy is simultaneously similar to many other fantasy trilogies while distinguishing itself in ways that make it something that is ultimately memorable and also unlike any other fantasy trilogy that you have ever read before, while wishing you could read many more like it.


Title: The Stone Sky.
Author: N.K. Jemisin.
Paperback: 413 pages.
Publisher: Orbit.
Date Published: August 15, 2017.
Date Read: September 5, 2017.

GOODREADS RATING: ★★★★ (4.0/5.0).

OVERALL GRADE: A/A- (3.83/4.0).

PLOT: A.
IMAGERY: A-.
IMPACT: A-.
WRITING: A.

Serena Reveals Baby Daughter: Alexis Olympia Ohanian, Jr

Serena Williams posted the first picture of her daughter, who was born Friday September 1. The baby's name is Alexis Olympia Ohanian, Jr.

2017 US OPEN: Stephens Wins 1st Major

Surprising most observers (including yours truly), 24-year-old Sloane Stephens defeated 22-year-old Madison Keys 6-3 6-0 in 61 minutes to win the 2017 U.S. Open. The two friends shared an emotional hug at the net at the conclusion of the match and soon afterwards were seen joking and chatting casually, displaying friendship and sportsmanship which is rarely seen between two competitors for a major title.

Stephens victory eared her $3.7M in prize money and makes her the first American woman not named Venus or Serena Williams to win the U.S. Open since Lindsay Davenport (Keys' coach) did it in 1998.

Despite being the less powerful player, Stephens used her athleticism and calm demeanor to dismantle her opponent (and friend). The match was only 15 games long but Keys had 30 unforced errors while Stephens had a jaw-dropping 6 (and only 2 in the first set). Nothing was working for Keys, today, not her powerful groundstrokes or her blistering serve. Once her power game was revealed to not be working Keys really seemed to have no idea what to do next, and continued to miss the ball both short (into the net) and long (out of the court). Mercifully the match was over relatively quickly. There was one moment at 6-3,4-0, 0-40 with Stephens serving where Keys has  a chance to break for the first time and change the one-way momentum. However, her hopes were dashed as Stephens won 5 consecutive points and lost the game on yet another Keys error. In the final game of the match, Keys was able to save the first two breakpoints which were match points but on the third she committed yet another error by hitting a forehand into the net to give the game, set and match to her friend and fellow countrywoman.

CELEBRITY FRIDAY: Katherine Johnson (from Hidden Figures) Turns 99!

Katherine Johnson, the NASA “computer” whose life story was the primary motivation behind the hit book Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly turned 99 years old yesterday! She was played by Taraji P. Henson in the movie adaptation (see my review) that was nominated for multiple academy awards earlier this year. Last year NASA renamed a building after her on the occasion of her 98th birthday and before that, President Obama awarded her the National Medal of Freedom.

Hat tip to Vanity Fair

2017 HUGO AWARDS: Jemisin Wins 2nd (Consecutive) Best Novel Award

The 2017 Hugo awards were announced last night in Helsinki, Finland and N.K. Jemisin, last year's winner for The Fifth Season, won again, for the second book in her Broken Earth trilogy, The Obelisk Gate. Jemisin, who last year became the first African-American woman to win the prestigious best novel award, has now won two in a row, the first time that has happened since Lois McMastr Bujold won in 1991 and 1992 for two entries in her longrunning Vorkosigian saga, which won the new category of Best Series this year.

When I looked at the Hugo award nominations for Best Novel this year, my choice for the win would have been Cixin Liu's At Death's End. However, Jemisin would probably be my second choice, so this is a happy result! Jemisin was not present in Helsinki to accept her award, so my childhood friend, Dr. Karen Lord, a successful science fiction writer in her own right, accepted on her behalf (see picture at the top of this post)!

Book 3 in Jemisin's Broken Earth series, The Stone Sky, will be released on Tuesday August 15.

CELEBRITY FRIDAY: Serena Williams Reveals Her Very Pregnant Body In Vanity Fair Cover

Whoa! Serena Williams reveals her very pregnant body on the cover of Vanity Fair in a stunning nude portrait taken by the celebrity photographer Annie Liebowitz. The 35-year-old discusses her pregnancy and her future important life events (birth of the child in September and upcoming nuptials) as well as her intention to return to competitive tennis in 2018!

CELEBRITY FRIDAY: Serena and Alexis Appear At The #MetGala

Serena Williams and her fiance Alexis Ohanian appeared at the Met Gala on May 1st. Serena had previously announced her pregnancy but now her "baby bump" is clearly visible in her stunning emerald green dress by Atelier Versace.

That's today's Celebrity Friday post, folks!

CELEBRITY FRIDAY: Serena Anounces She's 20 Weeks Pregnant, Will Not Play Again In 2017

Serena Williams stunned the tennis and sporting worlds by revealing on Instagram a few days ago (on Maria Sharapova's 30th birthday, no less)  that she is 20 weeks pregnant. The implications of this announcement are huge.

First, it means that when Serena won her 23rd major title at the 2017 Australian Open approximately 12 weeks ago, she was two months pregnant at the time!! (I wonder if Venus knew? I doubt it! I wonder is Serena knew? Probably!) This should put to rest any doubts as to whether Serena is the greatest female tennis player of all time.

Secondly, Serena's spokesperson also made it very clear that Serena will not be competing at any other tournaments in 2017, which clears the field for other players to win some trophies, namely, Victoria Azarenka, who just gave birth in December, and Sharapova, who is returning to competitive tennis next week after a 2-year gap due to a drug violation ban.

Thirdly, it means that Serena is revealing that she has been having unprotected sex (and is presumably not using birth control) with her fiance Alexis Ohanian. Will she have the child and be an unwed mother or will they push forward the date of the wedding? (No date had previously been announced.) If Serena is 20 weeks pregnant now, she should give birth before the end of the summer. Maybe a June wedding? She'll be pretty huge, by then!

Beynce and Serena pregnant at the same time is too much motherhood to take! #mindblown

2017 AUS OPEN: Serena Beats Venus For Record 23rd Major

As I predicted, Serena Williams, 35, defeated her older sister, Venus Williams, 36, to win her record 7th Australian Open and record 23rd major title. The score was a surprisingly close 6-4 6-4.

Serena's win means that she has won the most grand slam singles titles in the Open era, the traditional measure of tennis greatness. She surpasses Steffi Graf's 22 and is one behind the all-time leader Margaret Court. (Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert finished with 18 majors each.) And she reclaims the World #1 ranking from Angelique Kerber, who beat her in last year's Aussie Open final.
And there's no indication Serena Williams will stop winning major titles any time soon. My prediction is at least 25, but I do not think she will be playing in 2019. Venus Williams is starting to make noises about playing the Tokyo Olympics in 2020! For Venus, reaching a major final after being diagnosed with Sjogren's Syndrome in 2011 and waiting more than six years between her last major final (2009 Wimbledon) is simply a jaw-dropping achievement which adds to her legacy.

How the Final Was Won
It was the 28th meeting between the sisters (9th in a major final) and Serena improved to a 17-11 head-to-head lead, as well as a 7-2 lead in major finals. (The only Venus wins in major finals came in the 2008 Wimbledon and 2001 US Open.) As with most of their matches, the quality of play was somewhat erratic. It began with four consecutive breaks of service, until Venus became the first to hold to edge ahead 3-2. Serena followed suit and followed up that hold with a break, which she consolidated to go up 5-3. Venus was able to hold serve to force Serena to serve for the set which he did with the help of two aces, including on set point. In the second set the quality of play went up considerably, as Serena calmed down and as both players made fewer errors and the winners were either even (Venus, 10 all) or slightly ahead (Serena, 11-9). The final mini-drama came in the 10th game of the second set (which overall followed the first set, minus the scratchy beginning) after Serena had broken and consolidated her advantage she was serving for the match but fell behind 15-30. But her serve returned and she hit two consecutive good serves (not aces) to go up 40-30 and won on her first championship point due to a Venus backhand error.