Inspired by their most recent album and emotion picture, Dirty Computer, Janelle Monáe and some amazing collaborators brought us The Memory Librarian and other Stories of Dirty Computer. It’s a science fiction afrofuturistic book of short stories that all ponder the future of tech, class, love, gender, and liberation. All of the main characters are nonbinary and/or transgender and Black or BIPOC.

I love that each story also has a setting or concept that was shown in the Dirty Computer emotion picture like the Pynk Motel. Thanks to this cohesion, I was able to have an easier time picturing the world within this book. My favorite stories are Nevermind and Timebox Altar[ed]. I don’t wanna spoil the book for y’all so I recommend you watch the emotion picture and then read this book.

As an audiobook girlie, I had to listen to it! I mean, Janelle and Bahni Turpin are the narrators!! Janelle’s voice is probably the most soothing narration I’ve ever heard (aside from Toni Morrison’s!)

Absolutely 5 out of 5 stars!

Content Warnings: TERFs, Transphobia, State Violence, Burnout

I'm not really a science fiction person so maybe this book just wasn't meant for me. I love Janelle Monae and was excited to read her book and it was great to read about afrofuturism and queer characters. I'll still dive into whatever Janelle Monae produces next for sure.

Yo. Janelle Monáe is the enbee royal we do not deserve. From amazing music to queer icon and now amazing sci-fi writer, there’s nothing they cannot do, and I love them.

In collaboration with some other incredible writers, Monáe has penned a collection of longer short stories that tie in with their album, Dirty Computer. This collection is unapologetically black and queer, and it’s the kind of afrofuturistic writing I need in my life. Don’t we all? In the tradition of Octavia Butler, Ted Chiang, Becky Chambers, and Nnedi Okorafor, these stories explore what it’s like to live under totaliarianism and what it takes to break free.

It’s out now, and bonus, the audio is narrated in part by one of my favorite ladies, Bahni Turpin. Get it wherever you procure your books.

A few of these stories were absolutely captivating, and then a few others were so unmemorable that I won’t need Nevermind to forget them :(

Janelle Monáe is a wonderful storyteller, each album they release has just added to the universe Monáe has build and this book is no different. The Memory Librarian gives anyone already invested in Dirty Computer more than they could need. As someone not huge on anthropologies, this collection was fun not every story kept me invested. Some are definitely stronger than others but that is to be expected with several co authors. Each brings each own to the table.

These stories link back to Dirty Computer the album and Dirty Computer [Emotion Picture] that you can watch in YouTube. Written in collaboration with Yohanca Delgado, Eve L. Ewing, Alaya Dawn Johnson, Danny Lore, and Sheree Renée Thomas, all stories are set in this dystopian tech-totalitarian society where people who are outside the norms (aka Dirty Computers) are hunted down and imprisoned, memories wiped, and more.

All stories are full of queerness, feminism, quirky creative elements, and positive spins on how humans could interact with one another.

This book got me back into fiction. I loved dirty computer, but to see this fictional world with themes of memory come to life was absolutely brilliant. I will be doing a review for my TikTok and Instagram soon to spread the importance of this story.

The Memory Librarian is a collection of interrelated short stories that starts strong, but doesn't quite manage to fulfill its promise. The opening chapter, Breaking Dawn, has the kind of beautiful, evocative language one might expect from a lyricist, and sets up an intriguingly distinct but recognizable near future world. However, later chapters seem more interested in just getting ideas on paper than fully fleshing out the story and worldbuilding. Still an enjoyable jaunt through interesting ideas, though, and I will read future works by Monae to see if she grows into herself as a writer.

These short stories dive into the afrofuturist scifi world established in Janelle Monáe's album Dirty Computer, a totalitarian society where thoughts are controlled and memories erased. From rebellious outstations to seemingly compliant families with hidden secrets, each story shows people pushing back against a society that tries to control who they are and who they can become.

Janelle Monáe and her collaborators are clearly living and thinking on a different plane! These stories are each completely fascinating with so many concepts to explore. I think they could have benefitted from a different ordering of stories or an early story that shows us the scope of the universe in which they exist. Regardless, I thoroughly enjoyed it and can't wait to see the art Monáe will create next.

The Memory Librarian is a Afrofuturist collection of stories set in the world of Janelle Monae's albums. It's a solid collection of stories that look at the world of the New Dawn and how it oppresses, controls, and ultimately inspires rebellion and change.

The stories vary in tone and quality, but they contribute to Monae's world-building and come together to create an interesting picture of the world. Along the way they explore community, identity, love, and family.

I read the whole book in one day. I loved spending time with these stories and hope others will as well.

Did not finish. It was my first taste into this genre and though I made it more than half way, I felt the book was lacking. I did not have an issue with the themes but rather how obvious and in your face they felt. It was a bit overkill and overdone in some places. Overall, not my cup of tea. I'd also recommend listening to the album that pairs with this title as I did not.

Each short story featured in this book offered an interesting view of the world that was created. It is best to go into this book with at least a little bit of knowledge already from the source material, but I don't think it's necessary in order to enjoy the book. I just think it will help you grasp the content a bit quicker. Though I will admit I do wish there was more world-building overall to help me connect more with the people and conflicts. I did enjoy some stories more than others, but none were bad. I also liked that each of the stories had subtle connections to each other that tell a larger overall story.

Oh, to live in a world that saw and valued you!

An anthology of dystopian short stories about queer women of color finding joy where they can in the middle of a world where memory is curated, collected and removed. This is a world where resistance to totalitarianism is found by just living…especially when you are considered dirty.

“You can’t build a future if you don’t dream it.”

This was brilliant.

I don’t know that I’ve ever read an entire interconnected anthology based off an album before, but wow. What a concept, and what an interesting execution.

As with most anthologies, some stories were absolutely amazing while others didn’t land quite as well, but the overall concept and execution was just incredible.

I am most certainly not qualified in terms of intelligence to go through with this one, but I know enough to know that these stories are allegories. This is reality (distorted for consumption) for many people of color. The policing of bodies and minds. The concept of dirty and clean. The way intersectionality is dismissed in favor of one or the other, or disregarding all differences to be considered as the same. The different shapes resistance takes. How existing as yourself can be resistance—and how that might seem a triumph on the outside but utterly exhausting to live it, day by day.

I don’t want to talk about the individual stories as much, because this is where I feel that the book should be explored knowing only the premise. Each story is carefully crafted and presented, and ordered for the best impact. I think the only story I didn’t really enjoy was the first one, but I did like it in the end after I figured out what was going on and got how the main character was the way she was (and whooooooooo what a mindfuck that was).

I do think that readers should listen to Dirty Computer before reading…and watch the music videos, which provide aesthetic and additional story.

Okay, listen to Dirty Computer before, during and after reading. I’ve had this shit on repeat for the past two months and it is still incredible.

Either one of these stories or this entire anthology needs to be nominated for all the things, because the collaboration required and the execution is absolutely flawless.

And now I am going to go and listen to Crazy, Classic, Life for the millionth time.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

The Memory Librarian releases April 19, 2022, from Harper Voyager

Honestly, I was not expecting much from this collection of short stories. Just because an artist has a major talent in one venue does not mean they can be as great in all.

Janelle Monae is a wonderful songwriter, singer, and actress. That was enough for me, writer wasn't expected.

Well, I apologize for my lack of faith. I was simply blown away by this book of stories.

Yes, it is considered a book of short stories but they all take place in the same world, the world of New Dawn where you are considered a Dirty Computer if you are the least different then the subscribed ideal. In other words...if you are a minority, LGBTQ, independent thinker, liberal, or just think people should be allowed to live as they choose.

If you stray you are cleaned, everything that is what makes you who you are, washed away so no one has to deal with you wanting any type of equal treatment.

Each story seamlessly flows into the next, each just as compelling. Usually, when I read a group of short stories, there is one or two I either don't like as much or outright dislike. But I found none of that here in Monae's book.

I was sorry to come to the end. But I am proud to say I am a dirty computer and keep fighting the power!

This will be published on April 19, 2022. Go out and be the first in line to get your copy.

Thanks to @netgalley, Avon and Harper Voyager, Harper Voyager, and Janelle Monae for the opportunity to read this eArc in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.

This is a tough one to rate because for me the stories varied in quality--some were overly flippant; some bogged down the reader with detail--but it's an incredibly strong collection overall. Janelle Monáe and the co-authors do a great job of not only incorporating queer Afrofuturist elements in their sci-fi stories, but also tying them in with Monáe's album and short film Dirty Computer. My favorite story was probably the titular one, which also happens to be the longest in the collection, written with Alaya Dawn Johnson.

3.5/5 rounded up
I've been a fan of Janelle Monáe's music and continuously evolving worldbuilding for quite a while now. It's interesting to see the themes from her music and film work converging in this book of stories dealing with a tech-dystopia obsessed with "cleanliness"/homogenization. In some ways, though, the adherence to her pre-existing material holds this collection back. Although I enjoyed meeting Jane, hearing from DJ Crash Crash, and seeing the imagery of memory wipes and white-clad cleaned Torches from Dirty Computer, it felt a bit like an homage to Monáe's other work in some places rather than a new, complementary entry into the canon. That said, there's a lot of heart, novel ideas, realistic fears, and vision for a livable future in this volume. Overall I enjoyed the stories and their message of reveling in "dirtiness" and creating communities in a hostile world.

📚ADVANCED READER REVIEW📚⁠
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The Memory Librarian by Janelle Monae

Thank you to #HarperVoyager and #Netgalley for the advanced reader copy of #TheMemoryLibrarian by #JanelleMonae (@janellemonae)

Shoot, man. What can I say.
This thing just blows me away. I can't get enough of these authors creating afro-futuristic worlds based on music. this is 100% going in my library.

I think one must really read this themselves to understand how cool a built universe like this is. Recently our YDF kids are getting into sci-fi, this is what I need on my shelves, especially having just celebrated women of color in sci-fi as of February. Absolutely brilliant book. Thank YOU.

@Netgalley
#AdvancedReaderCopies ⁠
#book #bookstagram #reader #reading #booklover #instabook #booksofinstagram

The Memory Librarian takes place in a high tech world. Monáe crafts a world that is not only full of technology, but also retains societal issues of racism and homophobia. Yes they look different in the future - this surveillance society - but this is no utopia. The Memory Librarian has one of those world building ideas that will stick with you even after finishing. While it has elements SF fans might have seen before - like a surveillance society, the power of memories, and illusion of control - it combines into an immersive and unique world.

Like Jurassic Park or eugenics or lobotomies or prohibition- just because you can do something doesn't mean you should! How many times must humanity learn this lesson? At least once more, it seems...

I spent most of this book cheering on the small subversive victories :)

I'm a fan of Monae and her whole vibe, and I've appreciated the work of hers that I've seen. That said, I'm not as intimately familiar with the "worldbuilding" that she's been doing with her music as some others seem to be so I started to get a little bit worried about how much of this I was going to grok or enjoy.

Well, my worries were unfounded because this was a great scifi anthology. There's a VERY distinct and strong voice, which is sometimes hard for first-time authors to accomplish, but I suppose Monae has been writing in other mediums for a long time so she's got that under her belt. As with most anthologies, some pieces resonated more with me than others. But overall, I really admire the project of this and felt very emotionally connected to it, despite spending relatively little time with each of the characters that we meet. I do think that the writing and concepts were well-suited for an anthology like this, rather than something more long-form, so that was a well reasoned choice. I'm sure it will be even more poignant for those that are deeper into Monae's canon than I am, but even with my very basic knowledge, I still loved the storytelling and worldbuilding here.

The one big thing I would change is that I would have loved to get an author's note or information about how the collaborators contributed to the volume. But the themes of identity and resistance and freedom and community building were right up my alley and I would strongly recommend this.