Travel Documents 110: Octavia's Brood: Science Fiction Stories from Social Justice Movements

by Sheree Renée Thomas , Walidah Imarisha

Genre: visionary fiction, sci-fi, spec-fic, social change

The Dust Cover Copy

Whenever we envision a world without war, without prisons, without capitalism, we are producing speculative fiction. Organizers and activists envision, and try to create, such worlds all the time. Walidah Imarisha and Adrienne Maree Brown have brought twenty of them together in the first anthology of short stories to explore the connections between radical speculative fiction and movements for social change. The visionary tales of Octavia’s Brood span genres—sci-fi, fantasy, horror, magical realism—but all are united by an attempt to inject a healthy dose of imagination and innovation into our political practice and to try on new ways of understanding ourselves, the world around us, and all the selves and worlds that could be. The collection is rounded off with essays by Tananarive Due and Mumia Abu-Jamal, and a preface by Sheree Renée Thomas.

The Scene

Worldbuilding

Over twenty stories and twenty worlds, this work underlines the new genre of visionary fiction. As Sheree Renée Thomas puts it: Visionary fiction is a term I developed to help talk about fantastical writing that helps us imagine new, just worlds. Visionary fiction encompasses science fiction, fantasy, horror, magical realism, alternative timelines, and more. It is fantastical literature that helps us to understand existing power dynamics, and helps us imagine paths to creating more just futures.

This genre gives everyone, regardless of where they are in the social strata, the right to dream as themselves. And that’s what these stories do.

The Crowd

Characterization

From the first story to the last, we’re introduced to all kinds of amazing characters: the Vietnamese-American zombie fighter. The water witch who rips down the houses of those who make money on exploitation. And all the people around them, trying to support or stop them. Some authors are character driven, as in ‘Token Superhero’. Some are plot driven. But all have characters you’ll want to get to know.

Writing Style

Ranging from incindiery to intimate, raging to patient, these twenty authors have created a night sky of possibilities; tragic and triumphant, supportive and sweet, violent and vengeful, and everything in between.

The Moves

Plot

With twenty plots to go over, I’m not getting too far into it, but every story hews to the main point of the genre: they bend towards justice.

Overall Rating

This is a collection full of power and magic, wonder and terror. It’s incredible. And it needs reading.