Nancy Farmer

In 2194 in Zimbabwe, General Matsika's three children are kidnapped and put to work in a plastic mine while three mutant detectives use their special powers to search for them.

The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm

A Novel

This book wasn't quite what I expected, but it was worth reading once. The story is very much like a fairy tale set in an afro-futuristic setting of Zimbabwe. If I were to compare it to another story, the shuffling from one situation to another that the children do is not dissimilar to Pinocchio's story. In a way, I think that the author was trying to showcase the differences in culture within a nation, which I was successful in a way. However, I felt it had a habit of saying, "Other cultures are good, but this one is a bad culture because of this." The passing of judgement on other cultures rubbed me the wrong way when their original culture never received nearly as much criticism aside from a lack of freedom.

I wish the story was more sci-fi oriented. There were aspects that were, but they were more cosmetic than anything. I found most of the more science fiction details weren't particularly important to the story. You could easily have made this fantasy or even modern without damaging the plot line meaningfully.

It is also important to note that this book was written by a white woman. While the dustjacket says she lived in Zimbabwe and Mozambique for seventeen years, but it is important to note that this was about black people which were written by a white woman. It is also important to note that at the time this book won the Newberry Honor, those voting were also all white. This does not make the book valueless, but please be sure to seek out the voices of black people when looking at reviews for this book, as their perspectives are important in this matter.

Kirsten Simkiss

This book wasn't quite what I expected, but it was worth reading once. The story is very much like a fairy tale set in an afro-futuristic setting of Zimbabwe. If I were to compare it to another story, the shuffling from one situation to another that the children do is not dissimilar to Pinocchio's story. In a way, I think that the author was trying to showcase the differences in culture within a nation, which I was successful in a way. However, I felt it had a habit of saying, "Other cultures are good, but this one is a bad culture because of this." The passing of judgement on other cultures rubbed me the wrong way when their original culture never received nearly as much criticism aside from a lack of freedom.

I wish the story was more sci-fi oriented. There were aspects that were, but they were more cosmetic than anything. I found most of the more science fiction details weren't particularly important to the story. You could easily have made this fantasy or even modern without damaging the plot line meaningfully.

It is also important to note that this book was written by a white woman. While the dustjacket says she lived in Zimbabwe and Mozambique for seventeen years, but it is important to note that this was about black people which were written by a white woman. It is also important to note that at the time this book won the Newberry Honor, those voting were also all white. This does not make the book valueless, but please be sure to seek out the voices of black people when looking at reviews for this book, as their perspectives are important in this matter.

Shona Tiger

This is a quirky little book, (nominally) set in some kind of future (2194) Zimbabwe. I didn’t even want to say this, but this is Afrofuturism; even Africanfuturism 😭 

Sigh. Right off the bat, I wanted to complain about the Foreign Gaze, because the writer is American; but she must have done a great deal of research, and it shows. I confess to learning things from it. (She was also in /Zimbabwe/ as a Peace Corps volunteer between 1975 and 1978, and met her husband at UZ.)

My very first thought was that the book was weird — and it truly is, like any self-respecting speculative fiction should be. It’s also laugh-out-loud funny in many places, and the characters are extremely quirky. The central characters — the Eye, the Ear, and the Arm — are my favourites; their special gifts are awesome.

Do I sound really excited about this book? I’m afraid I’m not hugely so 😂 I don’t know why it’s set in Harare — except to give the children in the book names like Tendai and Kuda, and to talk about Borrowdale and Pomona. I was pretty annoyed with the setting, and also with Resthaven, an independent country (a Bantustan?? 😭) or village somewhere on the outskirts of Harare, where modernity is not allowed to intrude. (Incidentally, Resthaven had some of the best scenes!)

There are mediums, Gondwannans, skyscrapers and subways, some kind of mine either in the centre of Harare or in Mbare, and lots of spirits (the alcohol, the floaty not-humans, all of it). Actually, there’s a lot going on.

It’s all very entertaining, to be honest, and I put away my exasperation in the end so I could enjoy a good tale. Shona culture is celebrated, rather than appropriated. I did’t have any real complaints by the end.

If you’re getting your offspring to read it, the themes are probably more suitable for mid- to older teens than young children.

Don’t forget to read the Glossary and the Appendix, which manage to be both funny and entertaining:

The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm

Reviews