Dominion: An Anthology of Speculative Fiction From Africa and the African Diaspora explained

Dominion: An Anthology of Speculative Fiction From Africa and the African Diaspora
Country:United States
Language:English
Genre:Speculative fiction and poetry anthology
Publisher:Aurelia Leo
Pub Date:2020
Media Type:Print (Paperback), e-book
Pages:264
Isbn:9781946024886

Dominion: An Anthology of Speculative Fiction From Africa and the African Diaspora is a 2020 speculative fiction anthology edited by Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki and Zelda Knight.

Description

It contains thirteen works of short fiction, and a foreword by Tananarive Due. It was first published by Aurelia Leo in 2020.[1]

Contents

The anthology consists of thirteen works, including short stories, poems and novellas. Nine of the stories were originally published in Dominion, while four had been previously published.

Background

Co-editor Olivia Raymond, under the pen name Zelda Knight, had the idea for an anthology of speculative fiction that centered Black experiences. After surviving a grease fire that left her and her family scarred, she wanted to start a project which represented Christianity, [her] Blackness, [her] Womanhood".[6] While recovering from flash burns, she read about the historical The 1619 Project, which partly inspired the themes of Dominion. Knight approached Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki to co-edit. Knight had previously published Ekpeki's short story "Ife-Iyoku, the Tale of Imadeyunuagbon" in Selene Quarterly Magazine, and the story was also included in Dominion.[7]

In an interview from September 2020, Ekpeki and Knight confirmed that Volume 2 of Dominion was in development, and would include both new and returning writers.[8]

Reception

The anthology received mostly positive reviews from critics.[9] Fiona Moore of the British Science Fiction Association gave the anthology a positive review, particularly for its handling of Afrocentric and Afrofuturist themes, and its "re-interpretation of colonialist [science fiction] tropes such as vampires and AI." Moore compared it to So Long Been Dreaming, another anthology of speculative fiction stories from authors of color.[10]

It was included on Den of Geek's "Best Non-Western and POC Fantasy Books in 2020."[11] Sarah Deeming of the British Fantasy Society praised the scope of the anthology, as well as the individual quality of its collected short stories. Deeming had particular praise for Ono's "Unclean", on account of its portrayal of patriarchy and the conflict between native beliefs and Christianity.[12]

Awards

The anthology received several awards and nominations. It won the British Fantasy Award for "Best Anthology" in 2021.[13] It was nominated for "Best Anthology" at the 2021 Locus Awards,[14] and the 2020 This Is Horror awards.[15]

Individual stories published in the anthology were also nominated for awards and subsequently republished. Ekpeki's "Ife-Iyoku, the Tale of Imadeyunuagbon" was nominated for a Nebula Award for Best Novella.[16] Both "Ife-Iyoku, the Tale of Imadeyunuagbon" and Dilman Dila's "Red_Bati" were nominated for a BSFA Award for Best Short Fiction.[17] "A Mastery of German" by Marian Denise Moore was republished in Jonathan Strahan's The Year's Best Science Fiction: Volume 2.[18]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Eadens. Savannah. Buy black, read black. Meet the woman who started one of Louisville's Black publishing houses. 2022-02-04. The Courier-Journal. en-US. 2022-02-18. https://web.archive.org/web/20220218021240/https://www.courier-journal.com/story/entertainment/books/2020/08/27/black-owned-publishing-house-releases-african-diaspora-anthology/3349067001/. live.
  2. Web site: Uckelman. Sara L.. 2020-07-28. REVIEW: "A Maji Maji Chronicle" by Eugen Bacon. 2022-02-04. SFF Reviews. en. 2022-02-04. https://web.archive.org/web/20220204182721/https://sffreviews.com/2020/07/28/review-a-maji-maji-chronicle-by-eugen-bacon/. live.
  3. Web site: Uckelman. Sara L.. 2020-07-29. REVIEW: "The Unclean" by Nuzo Onoh. 2022-02-04. SFF Reviews. en. 2022-02-04. https://web.archive.org/web/20220204182719/https://sffreviews.com/2020/07/29/review-the-unclean-by-nuzo-onoh/. live.
  4. Web site: Uckelman. Sara L.. 2020-08-06. REVIEW: "Sleep Papa, Sleep" by Suyi Okungbowa Davies. 2022-02-04. SFF Reviews. en. 2022-02-04. https://web.archive.org/web/20220204182723/https://sffreviews.com/2020/08/06/review-sleep-papa-sleep-by-suyi-okungbowa-davies/. live.
  5. Web site: 2020-04-22. LongList for the 2020 Nommo Awards for Speculative Fiction. 2022-02-04. Brittle Paper. en-US. 2022-02-04. https://web.archive.org/web/20220204182722/https://brittlepaper.com/2020/04/long-list-for-the-2020-nommo-awards-for-speculative-fiction/. live.
  6. Web site: Studios. Clockpunk. 2020-08-19. Dominion Anthology- A Guest Post by Zelda Knight and Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki. 2022-02-02. Uncanny Magazine. en-US. 2022-02-02. https://web.archive.org/web/20220202013701/https://uncannymagazine.com/dominion-anthology-a-guest-post-by-zelda-knight-and-oghenechovwe-donald-ekpeki/. live.
  7. Web site: August 2020. Gautam BhatiaBy: Ekpeki Oghenechovwe DonaldBy: Zelda Knight Issue: 24. 2020-08-24. "Blackness is not monolithic": An Interview with Zelda Knight and Ekpeki Oghenechovwe Donald. 2022-02-04. Strange Horizons. en. 2022-02-04. https://web.archive.org/web/20220204182719/http://strangehorizons.com/non-fiction/blackness-is-not-monolithic-an-interview-with-zelda-knight-and-ekpeki-oghenechovwe-donald/. live.
  8. Web site: White. Akilah. 2020-09-23. In Conversation with Zelda Knight and Ekpeki Oghenechovwe Donald. 2022-02-04. The Book Slut. en. 2022-02-04. https://web.archive.org/web/20220204182715/https://www.thebookslut.com/post/in-conversation-with-zelda-knight-and-ekpeki-oghenechovwe-donald. live.
  9. News: Moreno-Garcia. Silvia. Tidhar. Lavie. May 14, 2021. African speculative fiction is finally getting its due. Let's talk about books to seek out.. Washington Post. January 18, 2022. February 18, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220218021304/https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/african-speculative-fiction-is-finally-getting-its-due-lets-talk-about-books-to-seek-out/2021/05/13/d26ec060-9944-11eb-a6d0-13d207aadb78_story.html. live.
  10. Web site: 2020-11-17. Dominion: An Anthology of Speculative Fiction from Africa and the African Diaspora. 2022-02-02. British Science Fiction Association. en. 2022-02-02. https://web.archive.org/web/20220202013655/https://vector-bsfa.com/2020/11/17/dominion-an-anthology-of-speculative-fiction-from-africa-and-the-african-diaspora/. live.
  11. Web site: 2020-10-30. Best Non-Western and POC Fantasy Books in 2020. 2022-02-02. Den of Geek. en-US. 2022-02-02. https://web.archive.org/web/20220202013659/https://www.denofgeek.com/books/most-anticipated-non-western-fantasy-books-2020/. live.
  12. Web site: Dominion: An Anthology of Speculative Fiction from Africa and the African Diaspora ed by Zelda Knight and Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki. Review. The British Fantasy Society. 2022-02-02. British Fantasy Society. 2022-02-02. https://web.archive.org/web/20220202020703/https://www.britishfantasysociety.org/reviews/dominion-an-anthology-of-speculative-fiction-from-africa-and-the-african-diaspora-ed-by-zelda-knight-and-oghenechovwe-donald-ekpeki-review/. live.
  13. Web site: locusmag. 2021-09-27. 2021 British Fantasy Awards Winners. 2022-02-02. Locus Online. en-US. 2022-02-02. https://web.archive.org/web/20220202013709/https://locusmag.com/2021/09/2021-british-fantasy-awards-winners/. live.
  14. Web site: locusmag. 2021-06-26. 2021 Locus Awards Winners. 2022-02-02. Locus Online. en-US. 2021-12-17. https://web.archive.org/web/20211217040541/https://locusmag.com/2021/06/2021-locus-awards-winners/. live.
  15. Web site: locusmag. 2021-09-07. 2020 This Is Horror Awards Winners. 2022-02-02. Locus Online. en-US. 2022-02-02. https://web.archive.org/web/20220202013704/https://locusmag.com/2021/09/2020-this-is-horror-awards-winners/. live.
  16. Web site: Asher-Perrin. Emmet. 2021-06-06. Here Are the Winners of the 2020 Nebula Awards. 2022-02-02. Tor.com. en-US. 2021-06-07. https://web.archive.org/web/20210607022706/https://www.tor.com/2021/06/05/here-are-the-winners-of-the-2020-nebula-awards/. live.
  17. Web site: Liptak. Andrew. 2021-04-05. Here Are the 2020 BSFA Award Winners. 2022-02-02. Tor.com. en-US. 2022-02-02. https://web.archive.org/web/20220202013701/https://www.tor.com/2021/04/05/british-science-fiction-award-winners-nk-jemisin-city-we-became/. live.
  18. Web site: Tor.com. 2021-02-08. Revealing the Cover and Table of Contents for The Year's Best Science Fiction: Volume 2, Edited by Jonathan Strahan. 2022-02-02. Tor.com. en-US. 2022-02-02. https://web.archive.org/web/20220202013659/https://www.tor.com/2021/02/08/revealing-the-cover-and-table-of-contents-for-the-years-best-science-fiction-volume-2-edited-by-jonathan-strahan/. live.

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