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The Memory Librarian: And Other Stories of Dirty Computer
In The Memory Librarian: And Other Stories of Dirty Computer, singer-songwriter, actor, fashion icon, activist, and worldwide superstar Janelle Monáe brings to the written page the Afrofuturistic world of one of her critically acclaimed albums, exploring how different threads of liberation—queerness, race, gender plurality, and love—become tangled with future possibilities of memory and time in such a totalitarian landscape…and what the costs might be when trying to unravel and weave them into freedoms.
Whoever controls our memories controls the future.
Janelle Monáe and an incredible array of talented collaborating creators have written a collection of tales comprising the bold vision and powerful themes that have made Monáe such a compelling and celebrated storyteller. Dirty Computer introduced a world in which thoughts—as a means of self-conception—could be controlled or erased by a select few. And whether human, A.I., or other, your life and sentience was dictated by those who’d convinced themselves they had the right to decide your fate.
That was until Jane 57821 decided to remember and break free.
Expanding from that mythos, these stories fully explore what it’s like to live in such a totalitarian existence…and what it takes to get out of it. Building off the traditions of speculative writers such as Octavia Butler, Ted Chiang, Becky Chambers, and Nnedi Okorafor—and filled with the artistic genius and powerful themes that have made Monáe a worldwide icon in the first place—The Memory Librarian serves readers tales grounded in the human trials of identity expression, technology, and love, but also reaching through to the worlds of memory and time within, and the stakes and power that exists there.
Whoever controls our memories controls the future.
Janelle Monáe and an incredible array of talented collaborating creators have written a collection of tales comprising the bold vision and powerful themes that have made Monáe such a compelling and celebrated storyteller. Dirty Computer introduced a world in which thoughts—as a means of self-conception—could be controlled or erased by a select few. And whether human, A.I., or other, your life and sentience was dictated by those who’d convinced themselves they had the right to decide your fate.
That was until Jane 57821 decided to remember and break free.
Expanding from that mythos, these stories fully explore what it’s like to live in such a totalitarian existence…and what it takes to get out of it. Building off the traditions of speculative writers such as Octavia Butler, Ted Chiang, Becky Chambers, and Nnedi Okorafor—and filled with the artistic genius and powerful themes that have made Monáe a worldwide icon in the first place—The Memory Librarian serves readers tales grounded in the human trials of identity expression, technology, and love, but also reaching through to the worlds of memory and time within, and the stakes and power that exists there.
321 pages, Hardcover
First published April 14, 2022
About the author
Janelle Monáe
5 books151 followersJanelle Monáe Robinson is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and actress. She is signed to Atlantic Records, as well as to her own imprint, the Wondaland Arts Society. Monáe has received eight Grammy Award nominations. Monáe won an MTV Video Music Award and the ASCAP Vanguard Award in 2010.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 938 reviews
February 7, 2023
My complete review is published at Grimdark Magazine.
Janelle Monáe is widely acclaimed as a singer/songwriter, film star, fashion icon, and social activist. Her list of awards has its own Wikipedia page , with 137 nominations and 48 wins at the time of writing this review. With the release of her debut book, The Memory Librarian, Monáe can now add published author to her impressive list of accomplishments. Is there anything Janelle Monáe can’t do?
Monáe is a lifelong science fiction enthusiast, even stylizing an android alter-ego for the recording of her first album, The ArchAndroid. Her most recent album, Dirty Computer, is a genre-bending Afrofuturist masterpiece rooted in hip hop but with varied influences ranging across pop, rock, funk, and soul.
Dirty Computer is a concept album that imagines a dystopian future where technology is used to wipe the memories of non-conformists living under an Orwellian techno-authoritarian regime. The album is a perfectly crafted sonic masterpiece, brimming with emotion and delivering an impassioned message about social justice.
The world of Dirty Computer comes visually to life in Monáe’s 44-minute companion film, or “emotion picture,” which is freely accessible on YouTube . The emotion picture incorporates Monáe’s full set of music videos for the album, interwoven with narrative snippets that provide context for the story and show how the individual songs fit together within her overarching theme. With the publication of The Memory Librarian, the totality of Monáe’s vision has come to life, spanning across the auditory, visual, and now the written word.
The Memory Librarian contains five stories set in the world of Dirty Computer. Monáe has recruited five well-accomplished collaborators for her literary debut, one for each story. The first two stories are novella-length and co-authored by Alaya Dawn Johnson and Danny Lore. The remaining three short stories are co-authored with Eve L. Ewing, Yohanca Delgado, and Sheree Renée Thomas. Monáe’s collaborators bring remarkable credentials and a long list of literary awards and achievements to this project.
Before opening the first pages of The Memory Librarian, I was honestly a bit concerned that having a different collaborator for each story might lead to an inconsistent tone or style across the book. Fortunately, my concern was unfounded, as Monáe’s voice shines vibrantly across the pages of all five stories with remarkable fluidity.
While many sci-fi novels devote excessive time explaining their world and related technologies, Janelle Monáe takes the opposite approach, focusing on the people who inhabit this dystopian world governed by the neofascist, technocratic New Dawn regime. Individuals who fail to meet New Dawn’s strict rules of conformity are labeled as “dirty computers,” having bugs that must be eliminated through violent attacks, imprisonment, and memory erasure.
The stories in The Memory Librarian address issues of racism, feminism, homophobia, and more, as New Dawn specifically targets members of the queer Black community. Readers will be profoundly moved by the experiences of these characters who face such violent intolerance just for being themselves and living their own authentic lives. I found Monáe’s treatment of gender identity and transphobia to be especially powerful. Although the discussions of morality could come across as heavy-handed at times, I believe this is the right approach for addressing such critical issues in basic human rights.
Janelle Monáe is one of the finest lyricists in modern music. Although The Memory Librarian doesn’t quite rise to those same poetic levels, it remains beautifully written and eminently readable throughout. Long-time fans of Janelle Monáe (lovingly dubbed “fandroids”) will appreciate the subtle references to her discography scattered throughout the book.
While The Memory Librarian can stand on its own as a powerful work of literature, the impact of the book is greatly enhanced when read in the context of Dirty Computer and the accompanying emotion picture. Janelle Monáe has completed an extraordinary trifecta of artistic expression across three forms of media. As a combined artistic work, Janelle Monáe earns an enthusiastic 5/5 from this appreciative fandroid.
Janelle Monáe is widely acclaimed as a singer/songwriter, film star, fashion icon, and social activist. Her list of awards has its own Wikipedia page , with 137 nominations and 48 wins at the time of writing this review. With the release of her debut book, The Memory Librarian, Monáe can now add published author to her impressive list of accomplishments. Is there anything Janelle Monáe can’t do?
Monáe is a lifelong science fiction enthusiast, even stylizing an android alter-ego for the recording of her first album, The ArchAndroid. Her most recent album, Dirty Computer, is a genre-bending Afrofuturist masterpiece rooted in hip hop but with varied influences ranging across pop, rock, funk, and soul.
Dirty Computer is a concept album that imagines a dystopian future where technology is used to wipe the memories of non-conformists living under an Orwellian techno-authoritarian regime. The album is a perfectly crafted sonic masterpiece, brimming with emotion and delivering an impassioned message about social justice.
The world of Dirty Computer comes visually to life in Monáe’s 44-minute companion film, or “emotion picture,” which is freely accessible on YouTube . The emotion picture incorporates Monáe’s full set of music videos for the album, interwoven with narrative snippets that provide context for the story and show how the individual songs fit together within her overarching theme. With the publication of The Memory Librarian, the totality of Monáe’s vision has come to life, spanning across the auditory, visual, and now the written word.
The Memory Librarian contains five stories set in the world of Dirty Computer. Monáe has recruited five well-accomplished collaborators for her literary debut, one for each story. The first two stories are novella-length and co-authored by Alaya Dawn Johnson and Danny Lore. The remaining three short stories are co-authored with Eve L. Ewing, Yohanca Delgado, and Sheree Renée Thomas. Monáe’s collaborators bring remarkable credentials and a long list of literary awards and achievements to this project.
Before opening the first pages of The Memory Librarian, I was honestly a bit concerned that having a different collaborator for each story might lead to an inconsistent tone or style across the book. Fortunately, my concern was unfounded, as Monáe’s voice shines vibrantly across the pages of all five stories with remarkable fluidity.
While many sci-fi novels devote excessive time explaining their world and related technologies, Janelle Monáe takes the opposite approach, focusing on the people who inhabit this dystopian world governed by the neofascist, technocratic New Dawn regime. Individuals who fail to meet New Dawn’s strict rules of conformity are labeled as “dirty computers,” having bugs that must be eliminated through violent attacks, imprisonment, and memory erasure.
The stories in The Memory Librarian address issues of racism, feminism, homophobia, and more, as New Dawn specifically targets members of the queer Black community. Readers will be profoundly moved by the experiences of these characters who face such violent intolerance just for being themselves and living their own authentic lives. I found Monáe’s treatment of gender identity and transphobia to be especially powerful. Although the discussions of morality could come across as heavy-handed at times, I believe this is the right approach for addressing such critical issues in basic human rights.
Janelle Monáe is one of the finest lyricists in modern music. Although The Memory Librarian doesn’t quite rise to those same poetic levels, it remains beautifully written and eminently readable throughout. Long-time fans of Janelle Monáe (lovingly dubbed “fandroids”) will appreciate the subtle references to her discography scattered throughout the book.
While The Memory Librarian can stand on its own as a powerful work of literature, the impact of the book is greatly enhanced when read in the context of Dirty Computer and the accompanying emotion picture. Janelle Monáe has completed an extraordinary trifecta of artistic expression across three forms of media. As a combined artistic work, Janelle Monáe earns an enthusiastic 5/5 from this appreciative fandroid.
![Profile Image for laurel [the suspected bibliophile].](https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/users/1645808644i/7494844._UX200_CR0,6,200,200_.jpg)
February 27, 2022
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 good.
I'm bouncing between a four and five star rating...landing on five for now.
Full RTC.
I received this ARC from NetGalley for an honest review
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 good.
I'm bouncing between a four and five star rating...landing on five for now.
Full RTC.
I received this ARC from NetGalley for an honest review
April 25, 2022
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.
Thanks to the publisher for providing access to this title via NetGalley. This book came out April 19th, 2022.
All stories are full of queerness, feminism, quirky creative elements, and positive spins on how humans could interact with one another.
Thanks to the publisher for providing access to this title via NetGalley. This book came out April 19th, 2022.
April 24, 2022
From her debut EP of Metropolis and the introduction of Cindi Mayweather to Dirty Computer, her latest album and "emotion picture" that centers on Jane's celebration of freedom, Monáe has spent her music career building a world where its inhabitants fight memory control, explore identity, navigate technology, and ultimately, organize towards liberation. The Memory Librarian is a culmination of that narrative and, just like her music, the results feel electric, hopeful, and new.
The stories shift from city apartments to desert hideouts, from coworkers to families (both birth and chosen), from couples to communities but are united in their exploration of what it means to be free. References to songs and lyrics from Monáe's discography are sprinkled throughout the book which, beyond being just plain fun for her fans, serve as a reminder of how this years-long narrative has evolved. Already a formidable storyteller herself, Monáe collaborates with some super stellar and exciting writers (like the one and only Eve Ewing!) and it is their collective love of Afrofuturism, of queerness in its endless facets, of hope, community, and of love itself that comes together to send currents of energy humming throughout these pages.
The stories shift from city apartments to desert hideouts, from coworkers to families (both birth and chosen), from couples to communities but are united in their exploration of what it means to be free. References to songs and lyrics from Monáe's discography are sprinkled throughout the book which, beyond being just plain fun for her fans, serve as a reminder of how this years-long narrative has evolved. Already a formidable storyteller herself, Monáe collaborates with some super stellar and exciting writers (like the one and only Eve Ewing!) and it is their collective love of Afrofuturism, of queerness in its endless facets, of hope, community, and of love itself that comes together to send currents of energy humming throughout these pages.
January 13, 2023
Did Not Finish-2 and a half stories in (can't find the book and mark what page I got to)
So sad I could not get into this collection at all. I know that Janelle Monáe did her "dirty computer" thing and I get where she was going with this. If you pretend it's just a continuation to her songs/album it kind of works. But if you never listened to her songs or watched the movie based on these songs, you are going to be totally lost. Also I thought the stories were not really cohesive as a whole. I think I kept going okay this is symbolism while I was reading. I felt like I was back in high school English class and I was going to be quizzed on what did I think the author meant by this after a while. In the end I found myself getting bored and DNFed it at 90 pages in (yes I bought the hardback...yes I am annoyed at myself). I do feel bad since it appears this was got tons of acclaim. She also came to this year's National Book Festival and pulled a huge crowd.
The Memory Librarian (2 stars)-We follow the so called memory librarian named Seshet. Seshet works for New Dawn and is in charge of deleting and replacing people's memories. Hey, you keep a population under your thumb, you can win right? Well of course there are rebels, and of course Seshet starts to wonder if she is in the right for what she has been doing. I honestly could not get into it. I thought the story was kind of all over the place and I had so many questions about New Dawn.
(2 stars)-Jane from the movie who runs away from New Dawn to stay in a hotel called Pynk (yeah symbolism). Jane's friend Neer is there and of course there is a lot going on with people questioning whether certain women really belong at Pynk. I started thinking about J.K. Rowling and grimacing.
Timebox (?)-I stopped here. I was going eh I am not enjoying this and then someone told me the ending and I went what and then I put this book down.
So sad I could not get into this collection at all. I know that Janelle Monáe did her "dirty computer" thing and I get where she was going with this. If you pretend it's just a continuation to her songs/album it kind of works. But if you never listened to her songs or watched the movie based on these songs, you are going to be totally lost. Also I thought the stories were not really cohesive as a whole. I think I kept going okay this is symbolism while I was reading. I felt like I was back in high school English class and I was going to be quizzed on what did I think the author meant by this after a while. In the end I found myself getting bored and DNFed it at 90 pages in (yes I bought the hardback...yes I am annoyed at myself). I do feel bad since it appears this was got tons of acclaim. She also came to this year's National Book Festival and pulled a huge crowd.
The Memory Librarian (2 stars)-We follow the so called memory librarian named Seshet. Seshet works for New Dawn and is in charge of deleting and replacing people's memories. Hey, you keep a population under your thumb, you can win right? Well of course there are rebels, and of course Seshet starts to wonder if she is in the right for what she has been doing. I honestly could not get into it. I thought the story was kind of all over the place and I had so many questions about New Dawn.
(2 stars)-Jane from the movie who runs away from New Dawn to stay in a hotel called Pynk (yeah symbolism). Jane's friend Neer is there and of course there is a lot going on with people questioning whether certain women really belong at Pynk. I started thinking about J.K. Rowling and grimacing.
Timebox (?)-I stopped here. I was going eh I am not enjoying this and then someone told me the ending and I went what and then I put this book down.
April 5, 2022
3.5/5
Very curious about whether there is anything Janelle Monae ~can't~ do, as it seems that they can and will excell at any art form they take on.
I loved the concept behind Dirty Computer, so it was very exciting to see that world being expanded in these short stories. I thought this was a solid example of literary speculative fiction that is likely to appeal to both fans of Monae or readers engaging with this world for the first time through the story.
Ultimately, however, I think the stories didn't feel fully cohesive to me and I found that while the symbolism was gorgeous, it felt a bit heavy handed and overexplained at times.
Overall a solid read. If you are thinking of picking it up, consider this your sign to do so!
Very curious about whether there is anything Janelle Monae ~can't~ do, as it seems that they can and will excell at any art form they take on.
I loved the concept behind Dirty Computer, so it was very exciting to see that world being expanded in these short stories. I thought this was a solid example of literary speculative fiction that is likely to appeal to both fans of Monae or readers engaging with this world for the first time through the story.
Ultimately, however, I think the stories didn't feel fully cohesive to me and I found that while the symbolism was gorgeous, it felt a bit heavy handed and overexplained at times.
Overall a solid read. If you are thinking of picking it up, consider this your sign to do so!
June 8, 2022
While the world, concepts, and characters are each intriguing on their own, the writing style left much to be desired. Many stories felt as though they dragged on forever or ended too soon. The characters lacked a three-dimensional feel and dialogue felt forced or overdramatized. Explanation of the world mechanics, hierarchy, character descriptions and backstories, and scenery/imagery all were severely lacking. I appreciate Monáe's imagination and gumption in taking on a new medium! And I did enjoy the overlaps between the Dirty Computer album and these short stories. In conclusion, I would definitely recommend the album as a must listen, but The Memory Librarian...not so much.
November 21, 2022
Overall a three star read, bumped up to four for the last story, because I really needed some utopia this week.
This is an intriguing exploration of the world built in Monáe's Dirty Computer emotion picture (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdH2S...) and previous albums. I'd suggest the Dirty Computer video as part of your experience with this book, as the story told there is a direct prequel to one of the stories in Memory Librarian. I also recommend her other music/videos on general principle, and there are a lot of references/connections with her music across the collection, but I don't think being familiar with her entire body of work is required to enjoy the collection.
I liked seeing a more fleshed-out version of the world and characters across these five stories, but the most compelling aspect to me was actually the emotional arc of the collection, ending in a really sweet utopian story co-written with the legendary Sheree Renee Thomas.
I also enjoyed the narration of the audiobook, provided alternately by Monáe herself and Bahni Turpin.
I won a print ARC of this book in a GR giveaway, although I first read it as an audiobook from my library.
This is an intriguing exploration of the world built in Monáe's Dirty Computer emotion picture (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdH2S...) and previous albums. I'd suggest the Dirty Computer video as part of your experience with this book, as the story told there is a direct prequel to one of the stories in Memory Librarian. I also recommend her other music/videos on general principle, and there are a lot of references/connections with her music across the collection, but I don't think being familiar with her entire body of work is required to enjoy the collection.
I liked seeing a more fleshed-out version of the world and characters across these five stories, but the most compelling aspect to me was actually the emotional arc of the collection, ending in a really sweet utopian story co-written with the legendary Sheree Renee Thomas.
I also enjoyed the narration of the audiobook, provided alternately by Monáe herself and Bahni Turpin.
I won a print ARC of this book in a GR giveaway, although I first read it as an audiobook from my library.
February 16, 2023
“I know I never met you before, but it’s like you already moved in. You’re already making room.”
I don't know. Right book, wrong time? I love Janelle Monáe's music, I loved the Dirty Computer emotion picture when I first saw it years ago, and I loved it all the more when I rewatched it in preparation for listening to this. And this is some really creative scifi, with a lot of the expected tropes, but with the bonus of unexpected POVs and voices, and lots of loving focus on queerness and gender and rebellion and antifascism. All of this is my jam. But it was overall just okay for me. Maybe all of the things I loved didn't translate super well into writing. All of the stories were interesting in their own right, but the world building was loose and hazy in a way that just didn't stick with me. Conceptual stuff like this, you can get away with it in a music video. It's a lot more glaring in prose? Or, idk, maybe everything was explained super well and it just went over my head. This was one of those listening experiences where I was finding it super hard to concentrate, and idk if that was more me or the book. I restarted a few times, and kept rewinding to make sure I didn't miss anything, but by the time the end rolled around, I felt like I'd only internalised maybe 80% of it all. Just... very basic things, like the memory wipes and the rise of New Dawn, I feel like I'm still hazy on all of that. This introduced me to a lot of great characters, but they weren't the most memorable. The closet time story was sooooo interesting, but didn't quite go to the places I wanted. Or maybe I didn't quite get the intent behind it. Same with the time travel one.
Listened to the audiobook as read by Janelle Monáe and Bahni Turpin, and it was pretty good. I'm like genuinely in love with Monáe's voice so the story she narrated, the titular one, is the story that sticks out to me the most. A lot of great romantic writing and quotes in there too. I like Turpin's voice as well, but I feel like all the stories after the first one are kind of a blur to me. For sure I need to reread this in the future; maybe I wasn't in the right frame of mind for scifi. I honestly feel like this is a world I could love! But yeah, it unfortunately didn't resonate with me like I wanted.
Content warnings:
The hard old way of forgetting, which is remembering with grief.
August 23, 2023
(mmm wrote more about this than I intended to so you get SUBHEADINGS for readability lol)
🌸🖥️
so my partner and I had brunch with her friend who now works at a small independent bookstore, and she, a janelle monáe fan, mentioned that she read this book without realizing it was speculative fiction (not sure how but I support her) and didn't really enjoy it but chalked it up to her not really being a sci-fi fan. she figured fans of the genre would probably enjoy it and that it was a simple case of genre/reader mismatch.
having now read it, I am here to report that...folks, I just don't think this is very good!! I would love to know more about the co-writing process (but don't care enough to actually do any research) because a number of the authors with whom monáe collaborated have written things that I found much better than this collection.
ON NARRATION
monáe is also, as others have noted, not a very good audiobook narrator (they read the first two stories, and bahni turpin reads the rest), both in terms of tone and in other ways that are frankly bizarre. did no one listen to their audio before going 'okay, yeah, time to put this shit out there'?? it's to the point where it seems like whoever should have been in charge of that vetting process is almost being cruel to monáe for the shit they let get through, like, I know minor mispronunciations here and there are to be expected in audiobooks, but monáe mispronounces the word 'stomach,' saying it with a tch rather than a k at the end, and I was staggered. again, not with monáe, but more with the people who like...let them down by letting those things slip through the cracks. it's okay to not know how to pronounce the word stomach blah blah blah who cares but when you are narrating a book you ostensibly wrote? SOMEBODY LET YOU DOWN. oof. there are other instances, but that was the first one that really shocked me.
ON THEMES
thematically and in terms of its promise and potential, this is great; it has lovely things going on with race and gender and sexuality and dismantling oppressive systems. all but one of the stories are focused on Black queer women and nonbinary people, and I also appreciated one of the work's repeated arguments that the overlap between women and nonbinary people is real and, at the risk of using a word that's been run into the ground, valid; one character talks about their experiences as a 'gender-fucked woman' in ways that rang true not only generally but for me personally (and, I suspect, for monáe).
YEAH BUT
it's just...everything else that's the problem. the writing, the storytelling, the plotting, the pacing, the world, the decisions made, all of it feels flat, muted, hollow, and pedestrian. someone with bigger ideas than the skills specifically as an author (distinct from writers of other texts, like, you know, songs—monáe is a great songwriter!) to do justice by them.
there's also this weird issue where sometimes I would have to double-check to see if I was on the same story still because a couple of them had like, distinct discrete parts to them in ways that didn't gel with my readerly expectations. like, the third story, "nevermind," feels like it has a part one that follows jane 57821 and then a part two that follows neer, the character whose reflections on gender I vibed with so much. (for the record, the best story in the collection is this second half of "nevermind." just the second half, though.)
ON WORLDBUILDING
I also don't really buy all of these stories as existing in the same world. perhaps that's because there's so much of the worldbuilding we're not given or that's just sort of handwaved, but even though the latter three stories, "timebox," "save changes," and "timebox altar(ed)," all exist in obviously repressive societies, they don't seem like the same repressive society as the one set up in the first three stories, "breaking dawn," "the memory librarian," and "nevermind"! tbh!!
TO WRAP UP
the optimistic sweetness of the last story—again, more up to theme than like, storytelling etc etc—had me ready to feel comfortable bumping up 2.5 stars to 3, but I think in writing out my issues with this I'm back to bumping down to 2.
I'm sorry, janelle monáe! I like your music!! I think this is a great concept in theory! I think a number of people involved in this process did you a disservice in allowing this both as a book and as an audiobook to be ushered out the door like this!
🌸🖥️
so my partner and I had brunch with her friend who now works at a small independent bookstore, and she, a janelle monáe fan, mentioned that she read this book without realizing it was speculative fiction (not sure how but I support her) and didn't really enjoy it but chalked it up to her not really being a sci-fi fan. she figured fans of the genre would probably enjoy it and that it was a simple case of genre/reader mismatch.
having now read it, I am here to report that...folks, I just don't think this is very good!! I would love to know more about the co-writing process (but don't care enough to actually do any research) because a number of the authors with whom monáe collaborated have written things that I found much better than this collection.
ON NARRATION
monáe is also, as others have noted, not a very good audiobook narrator (they read the first two stories, and bahni turpin reads the rest), both in terms of tone and in other ways that are frankly bizarre. did no one listen to their audio before going 'okay, yeah, time to put this shit out there'?? it's to the point where it seems like whoever should have been in charge of that vetting process is almost being cruel to monáe for the shit they let get through, like, I know minor mispronunciations here and there are to be expected in audiobooks, but monáe mispronounces the word 'stomach,' saying it with a tch rather than a k at the end, and I was staggered. again, not with monáe, but more with the people who like...let them down by letting those things slip through the cracks. it's okay to not know how to pronounce the word stomach blah blah blah who cares but when you are narrating a book you ostensibly wrote? SOMEBODY LET YOU DOWN. oof. there are other instances, but that was the first one that really shocked me.
ON THEMES
thematically and in terms of its promise and potential, this is great; it has lovely things going on with race and gender and sexuality and dismantling oppressive systems. all but one of the stories are focused on Black queer women and nonbinary people, and I also appreciated one of the work's repeated arguments that the overlap between women and nonbinary people is real and, at the risk of using a word that's been run into the ground, valid; one character talks about their experiences as a 'gender-fucked woman' in ways that rang true not only generally but for me personally (and, I suspect, for monáe).
YEAH BUT
it's just...everything else that's the problem. the writing, the storytelling, the plotting, the pacing, the world, the decisions made, all of it feels flat, muted, hollow, and pedestrian. someone with bigger ideas than the skills specifically as an author (distinct from writers of other texts, like, you know, songs—monáe is a great songwriter!) to do justice by them.
there's also this weird issue where sometimes I would have to double-check to see if I was on the same story still because a couple of them had like, distinct discrete parts to them in ways that didn't gel with my readerly expectations. like, the third story, "nevermind," feels like it has a part one that follows jane 57821 and then a part two that follows neer, the character whose reflections on gender I vibed with so much. (for the record, the best story in the collection is this second half of "nevermind." just the second half, though.)
ON WORLDBUILDING
I also don't really buy all of these stories as existing in the same world. perhaps that's because there's so much of the worldbuilding we're not given or that's just sort of handwaved, but even though the latter three stories, "timebox," "save changes," and "timebox altar(ed)," all exist in obviously repressive societies, they don't seem like the same repressive society as the one set up in the first three stories, "breaking dawn," "the memory librarian," and "nevermind"! tbh!!
TO WRAP UP
the optimistic sweetness of the last story—again, more up to theme than like, storytelling etc etc—had me ready to feel comfortable bumping up 2.5 stars to 3, but I think in writing out my issues with this I'm back to bumping down to 2.
I'm sorry, janelle monáe! I like your music!! I think this is a great concept in theory! I think a number of people involved in this process did you a disservice in allowing this both as a book and as an audiobook to be ushered out the door like this!
May 4, 2022
2.5⭐
I wish I liked this more.
It has many aspects of science fiction, romance, mystery, and a plus is the inclusion and focus of the LGBTQI+ community. However, the storytelling and execution fell flat.
I think if I read the book vs listening to the audiobook I may have a different response. So I recommend reading the book versus listening. I started wishing the audiobook was abridged.
I think the first short story is read by Janelle Monáe The narration sounds stilted, disjointed, computer like. Maybe that is what they were aiming for, a technology aspect or feel. However, it was hard to follow as a narrative and I had to look up the book to read passages to see if it was written in verse or poems structure. It is not. I thought I would get used to it, but I didn't, and it made me want to stop the book completely.
I believe Bahni Turpin is the narrator for the remaining stories, and that narration was better. I've listened to their narration before and i'm use to their style.
In the first story, I had to work too hard to figure out the workings of this world, it just wasn't fun. Again, this may be because of narration and I may have better time if I read vs listen.
The stories have unique components that I like and it is a nice world that was built, however the storytelling seemed either all over the place, omitting information that the writers assumes the reader already knows, or it was aiming for suspenseful mystery but I'm just lost as to what is what or if it is really the end of a story.
This book reminded me heavily of Far Sector by N. K. Jemisin. That dealt with emotions; suppressing them, drugs created because of that, an uprising, asylums, etc. And The Memory Librarian deals with the mind and memories; suppressing or removing them and the same consequences occur as in Far Sector. Both novels put the readers in the middle of the story, middle of this new world, and the reader has to play catch up and connect the dots of language, culture, and the rules of the world.
I would not listen again. If you're a Janelle Monáe fan, then read it. If you're a scifi fan than maybe read it when you have nothing else to read. I recommend reading the book, and not listening to the audiobook.
I wish I liked this more.
It has many aspects of science fiction, romance, mystery, and a plus is the inclusion and focus of the LGBTQI+ community. However, the storytelling and execution fell flat.
I think if I read the book vs listening to the audiobook I may have a different response. So I recommend reading the book versus listening. I started wishing the audiobook was abridged.
I think the first short story is read by Janelle Monáe The narration sounds stilted, disjointed, computer like. Maybe that is what they were aiming for, a technology aspect or feel. However, it was hard to follow as a narrative and I had to look up the book to read passages to see if it was written in verse or poems structure. It is not. I thought I would get used to it, but I didn't, and it made me want to stop the book completely.
I believe Bahni Turpin is the narrator for the remaining stories, and that narration was better. I've listened to their narration before and i'm use to their style.
In the first story, I had to work too hard to figure out the workings of this world, it just wasn't fun. Again, this may be because of narration and I may have better time if I read vs listen.
The stories have unique components that I like and it is a nice world that was built, however the storytelling seemed either all over the place, omitting information that the writers assumes the reader already knows, or it was aiming for suspenseful mystery but I'm just lost as to what is what or if it is really the end of a story.
This book reminded me heavily of Far Sector by N. K. Jemisin. That dealt with emotions; suppressing them, drugs created because of that, an uprising, asylums, etc. And The Memory Librarian deals with the mind and memories; suppressing or removing them and the same consequences occur as in Far Sector. Both novels put the readers in the middle of the story, middle of this new world, and the reader has to play catch up and connect the dots of language, culture, and the rules of the world.
I would not listen again. If you're a Janelle Monáe fan, then read it. If you're a scifi fan than maybe read it when you have nothing else to read. I recommend reading the book, and not listening to the audiobook.
August 24, 2022
I loved this!
Janelle Monáe co-authored all these stories with other speculative fiction authors and all the stories are set in the world she originally established in her Dirty Computer album and emotion picture. It is a dystopian future where difference isn't tolerated and offenders have their memories wiped.
These stories center resistors, artists, and queer folks. Themes of resistance, cultivating hope and imagination, the value of time and memories, the power of art, and the challenges of living in community are threaded throughout the collection.
These stories are long. The first story is basically a prologue and very short, but is followed by a couple stories I believe are novella length and then three more that are novelette length (based on my guestimation). I found the novellas to be a bit rambling. Full of cool ideas and world building, but not always super cohesive or easy to follow. I connected much better with the novelettes and loved all of them.
My favorite thing about this collection is the way that it grapples with how to achieve or merely progress towards utopia. This is such a prescient question and one that I wish I encountered more in speculative fiction. We often tend to think of dystopian fiction as being a warning about a possible future. Not so in Memory Librarian. It felt like a thinly veiled satire of our current reality (let's face it - we already live in a dystopia) and it made the quest of progressing towards something better feel immediate and relevant.
I listened to the audio version of this book and highly recommend it. Janelle Monáe and Bahni Turpin took turns reading the stories.
Sexual violence? I don't remember any. Other content warnings? Mind control, imprisonment, poverty, loss of parent.
Janelle Monáe co-authored all these stories with other speculative fiction authors and all the stories are set in the world she originally established in her Dirty Computer album and emotion picture. It is a dystopian future where difference isn't tolerated and offenders have their memories wiped.
These stories center resistors, artists, and queer folks. Themes of resistance, cultivating hope and imagination, the value of time and memories, the power of art, and the challenges of living in community are threaded throughout the collection.
These stories are long. The first story is basically a prologue and very short, but is followed by a couple stories I believe are novella length and then three more that are novelette length (based on my guestimation). I found the novellas to be a bit rambling. Full of cool ideas and world building, but not always super cohesive or easy to follow. I connected much better with the novelettes and loved all of them.
My favorite thing about this collection is the way that it grapples with how to achieve or merely progress towards utopia. This is such a prescient question and one that I wish I encountered more in speculative fiction. We often tend to think of dystopian fiction as being a warning about a possible future. Not so in Memory Librarian. It felt like a thinly veiled satire of our current reality (let's face it - we already live in a dystopia) and it made the quest of progressing towards something better feel immediate and relevant.
I listened to the audio version of this book and highly recommend it. Janelle Monáe and Bahni Turpin took turns reading the stories.
Sexual violence? I don't remember any. Other content warnings? Mind control, imprisonment, poverty, loss of parent.
May 27, 2022
Review coming soon.
July 3, 2022
In these short stories, many of which i think could be best called post-cyberpunk, a reaction to the sub-genre, predominantly queer Black folx navigate a fascist world that scrubs memories, co-opts artists physically, away from their families and loved ones. Within this bleak landscape are acts of resistance that follow from the identity of the characters. Rather than the typical bombastic and militant acts of violence cyberpunk is known for, here the struggle is situated in verisimilitude. I like this centering much better, since it takes tenets of punk and applies it to everyone who refuses to conform to the system. Navigating away from defaultism.
I think the stories that bookend the collection are the strongest, and contrast one another tonally. But even the quietest story is a bit brilliant. A space is found to stop time and the framing for the characters is the ability to reclaim how much extra currency they now have to level the playing field in society. Not many people about marginalization and privilege in these terms, but identities intersecting with poverty know that time really is one of the most predominate things that is taken. For example: People unable to get a bank card must line up at lunch to cash their cheque at a place that takes a cut of it from them to do so, cutting into their lunch hour because the bank won’t be open outside of their shift, or they can’t get there in time regardless. In this story it is about academic competitions, where the character has to do so much more work, and put in so much more time, to compete with others. There is a thought experiment within the thought experiment introduced as well.
Other stories are about the power of representation in stories fostering the core ability to dream, and therefor change the world; the system attempting to erase queer love and identity, and the damage of internalizing those notions. All of the stories are, perhaps, more quiet than I expected. But Dirty Computer was a loud story (literally), so it makes total sense for this collection to go to the places it does. Very enjoyable.
I bought the audiobook for this one because I suspected it would have excellent narration and I was completely correct. I can recommend going that way wholeheartedly.
I think the stories that bookend the collection are the strongest, and contrast one another tonally. But even the quietest story is a bit brilliant. A space is found to stop time and the framing for the characters is the ability to reclaim how much extra currency they now have to level the playing field in society. Not many people about marginalization and privilege in these terms, but identities intersecting with poverty know that time really is one of the most predominate things that is taken. For example: People unable to get a bank card must line up at lunch to cash their cheque at a place that takes a cut of it from them to do so, cutting into their lunch hour because the bank won’t be open outside of their shift, or they can’t get there in time regardless. In this story it is about academic competitions, where the character has to do so much more work, and put in so much more time, to compete with others. There is a thought experiment within the thought experiment introduced as well.
Other stories are about the power of representation in stories fostering the core ability to dream, and therefor change the world; the system attempting to erase queer love and identity, and the damage of internalizing those notions. All of the stories are, perhaps, more quiet than I expected. But Dirty Computer was a loud story (literally), so it makes total sense for this collection to go to the places it does. Very enjoyable.
I bought the audiobook for this one because I suspected it would have excellent narration and I was completely correct. I can recommend going that way wholeheartedly.
June 20, 2022
The Memory Librarian by Janelle Monáe & Alaya Dawn Johnson - 4.5/5
Nevermind by Janelle Monáe & Danny Lore - 5/5
Timebox by Janelle Monáe & Eve L. Ewing - 4/5
Save Changes by Janelle Monáe & Yohanca Delgado - 5/5
Timebox Altar(ed) by Janelle Monáe & Sheree Renée Thomas - 4/5
Janelle Monáe releasing a book collection of short stories telling more of the IN-CRE-DI-BLE universe she created with one of THEE best visual albums of all time (Dirty Computer my dearly beloved 💖)
Nevermind by Janelle Monáe & Danny Lore - 5/5
Timebox by Janelle Monáe & Eve L. Ewing - 4/5
Save Changes by Janelle Monáe & Yohanca Delgado - 5/5
Timebox Altar(ed) by Janelle Monáe & Sheree Renée Thomas - 4/5
Janelle Monáe releasing a book collection of short stories telling more of the IN-CRE-DI-BLE universe she created with one of THEE best visual albums of all time (Dirty Computer my dearly beloved 💖)
February 19, 2024
UGH! I love it when Science Fiction and social commentary come together to make such a creative, fresh, queer, unapologetic collection of short stories.
I loved it. The stories are all set in a dystopian future where human memories are currency and any person that does not conform to strict definitions of of gender, love, and belief are immediately classified as Dirty Computers. Even at its darkest, the thread of hope, acceptance, and love cursed through every page. I was sad every time a story ended, but was usually immediately gripped by the next one.
All the stories were a little on the nose with their messaging, but to me this willligness to be obvious with their stance felt refreshing instead of tiresome. Of all the stories, I think 'Timebox' was my favorite just because of the way it explores ideas of time theft and exhaustion under capitalism. I was moved by the raw exhaustion and infuriating ending.
I also listened to the "Dirty Computer" Album while reading the book and I loved the way they seamlessly fit together.
Final lesson: the world (I) needs more Science Fiction written by Janelle Monáe
TW:Forced institutionalization, Grief, Transphobia, Sexism, Biphobia, Body horror, Abandonment, Alcohol, Gaslighting, Torture, Violence, Confinement, Lesbophobia, Racism, Classism, Hate crime, and Homophobia
I loved it. The stories are all set in a dystopian future where human memories are currency and any person that does not conform to strict definitions of of gender, love, and belief are immediately classified as Dirty Computers. Even at its darkest, the thread of hope, acceptance, and love cursed through every page. I was sad every time a story ended, but was usually immediately gripped by the next one.
All the stories were a little on the nose with their messaging, but to me this willligness to be obvious with their stance felt refreshing instead of tiresome. Of all the stories, I think 'Timebox' was my favorite just because of the way it explores ideas of time theft and exhaustion under capitalism. I was moved by the raw exhaustion and infuriating ending.
I also listened to the "Dirty Computer" Album while reading the book and I loved the way they seamlessly fit together.
Final lesson: the world (I) needs more Science Fiction written by Janelle Monáe
TW:Forced institutionalization, Grief, Transphobia, Sexism, Biphobia, Body horror, Abandonment, Alcohol, Gaslighting, Torture, Violence, Confinement, Lesbophobia, Racism, Classism, Hate crime, and Homophobia
April 4, 2023
A series of intricate and lovely slowburns of short stories that burst into a fascinating web connected to (and expanding on) the world of Dirty Computer and the Emotion Picture.
Janelle Monáe is an undeniably fantastic storyteller and the Octavia Butler influences fee clear.
I love this album. I love this collection. I love these Dirty Computers. I love Janelle Monáe.
CW: fascism + totalitarianism, racism, homophobia, transphobia, forced institutionalization, death, grief, police violence, violence
Janelle Monáe is an undeniably fantastic storyteller and the Octavia Butler influences fee clear.
I love this album. I love this collection. I love these Dirty Computers. I love Janelle Monáe.
CW: fascism + totalitarianism, racism, homophobia, transphobia, forced institutionalization, death, grief, police violence, violence
Want to read
February 12, 2022UM HELLO I DIDN'T KNOW JANELLE MONÁE WAS WRITING A BOOK????? OF QUEER SFF SHORT STORIES????? I NEED THIS IN MY POSSESSION IMMEDIATELY????????
September 20, 2022
I was intrigued by The Memory Librarian: And Other Stories of Dirty Computer as I really like Janelle Monáe's music and the visual storytelling in her videos. It is a collection of stories co-written by Monáe and set in the future world(s) of her music. I'm familiar with only one of the co-writers, Sheree Renée Thomas, who edited the groundbreaking black sci-fi collection Dark Matter: A Century of Speculative Fiction from the African Diaspora.
Each story is pretty substantial, between 40 and 80 pages long. The characters and exact settings vary, although I think all are somewhere in a future USA. Recurring themes include queerness, anti-racism, community-building, memory, privilege, creativity, and utopian dreams. I liked the balance of dystopian and utopian elements. Each tale focuses on spaces of resistance to oppression and the joy and companionship that can be found within them. The emphasis, to my mind, was on world-building over plot, which is understandable given all are playing in the same sandbox (as it were). As good world-building is my favourite component of sci-fi, I found the whole collection involving and original.
The first story, which the book is named after, is full of interesting details but a bit slow to get going. The second contains more picaresque incident and has an important message: The third is the most existentially and psychologically unsettling, verging perhaps on horror. The fourth is my favourite as it is a great combination of weird magical technology, appealing characters, and tight plotting. The final story is a well-chosen, uplifting note to end on as it follows children having an adventure and reads like magical realism. I'm not sure how interconnected the stories would appear to a reader unfamiliar with Monáe's music. Nonetheless, I think any sci-fi reader would appreciate their vividness and sense of joy.
Each story is pretty substantial, between 40 and 80 pages long. The characters and exact settings vary, although I think all are somewhere in a future USA. Recurring themes include queerness, anti-racism, community-building, memory, privilege, creativity, and utopian dreams. I liked the balance of dystopian and utopian elements. Each tale focuses on spaces of resistance to oppression and the joy and companionship that can be found within them. The emphasis, to my mind, was on world-building over plot, which is understandable given all are playing in the same sandbox (as it were). As good world-building is my favourite component of sci-fi, I found the whole collection involving and original.
The first story, which the book is named after, is full of interesting details but a bit slow to get going. The second contains more picaresque incident and has an important message: The third is the most existentially and psychologically unsettling, verging perhaps on horror. The fourth is my favourite as it is a great combination of weird magical technology, appealing characters, and tight plotting. The final story is a well-chosen, uplifting note to end on as it follows children having an adventure and reads like magical realism. I'm not sure how interconnected the stories would appear to a reader unfamiliar with Monáe's music. Nonetheless, I think any sci-fi reader would appreciate their vividness and sense of joy.
June 28, 2022
In the future imagined by this book, an oppressive regime called New Dawn controls anyone it doesn’t like by erasing memories (or storing them; I was never sure exactly which). And the people it doesn’t like seem curiously similar to the marginalized communities of today: Black and brown people, LGTBQ, women, the victims of unfettered capitalism — almost like the book wasn’t imagining a future society at all but was rather a metaphor for today.
The world-building was interestingly fluid (I was never quite sure exactly what New Dawn was, or how it came about), the characters realistic and tangible, and the various stories were varied anough that I felt differently in each place with each set of people. And I certainly empathized with many of the characters.
I’m not sure what went wrong; I just was never swept up or swept away by the book as I had hoped to be. (On the other hand, the “emotion picture” and album that the book relates to — Dirty Computer — I enjoyed very much.)
(I have published a longer review on my website.)
February 14, 2022
I loved this collection of short stories! Expanding on Monáe's setting in her album Dirty Computer, Monáe and a team of collaborators grapple with themes of police states, surveillance society, problematic utopians, and racism, all while presenting ways of maintaining hope and dreaming of a better future. It's a really stunning and thought-provoking collection!
July 23, 2022
I feel like an a-hole somehow for this opinion, but this was so cringey. Melodramatic, wordy for no reason.
February 17, 2023
[7.3/10]
I truly always struggle with finding a rating that feels “right” for short story collections and anthology, but I’ll try my best. I found the world of Memory Librarian really fascinating and I would have liked to spend more time in that world and learning more about New Dawn and how it came to be. There was a really great level of world building that happened despite the short-story format which is an awesome accomplishment. But, like all short story anthologies, I wished some stories were longer and others I didn’t care for. The concept behind the stories and album by extension was really creative and I loved how wonderfully queer the book was.
I truly always struggle with finding a rating that feels “right” for short story collections and anthology, but I’ll try my best. I found the world of Memory Librarian really fascinating and I would have liked to spend more time in that world and learning more about New Dawn and how it came to be. There was a really great level of world building that happened despite the short-story format which is an awesome accomplishment. But, like all short story anthologies, I wished some stories were longer and others I didn’t care for. The concept behind the stories and album by extension was really creative and I loved how wonderfully queer the book was.
September 14, 2022
It is no secret that I absolutely love Janelle Monae but what the hell was this? I should have researched the purpose of this book instead of checking it out solely because of the author. Janelle has always been very sophiscated and very attractive to me physically and mentally. I love her as a muscian but this book did nothing to me. I was scratching my head in confusion and annoyance because this book was very dense and forgettable.
Although I did check out her latest album Dirty Computer, this book was really boring. I did not even get pass the first few pages without tossing it aside. Is this suppose to be stories from the songs or something? It would be much better if they had song titles in the book then describe the meaning behind the songs.
Otherwise this was a colossal mess...
Ne.....NEXT!
Although I did check out her latest album Dirty Computer, this book was really boring. I did not even get pass the first few pages without tossing it aside. Is this suppose to be stories from the songs or something? It would be much better if they had song titles in the book then describe the meaning behind the songs.
Otherwise this was a colossal mess...
Ne.....NEXT!
July 1, 2022
Janelle Monáe’s mind is so unbelievable. i would love for them to dabble in writing feature works and really taking their vision to another level because time and time again they have a proven capability for world-building. they’ve done that in so many different mediums (albums, visual short film albums, now literature) and have been successful consistently. i believe a logical next step would be full length films, but let’s see what they do next. one of the most interesting minds currently working
July 7, 2022
Really awesome sci-fi, I like how each story was distinct but contributed to a wider world. Really interesting ideas were explored and I loved the queerness of it. My favourite one is probably the one with the pantry and least favourite one the one with the kids but they were all good! Would love to see more in this vain.
August 25, 2023
The first story is worlds better than the rest of them.
And the second is bad. Bad. The first time we see Jane 57821 in print and I wish I could just erase it from my memory. Clunky YA-prose steaming garbage plot with characters that talk like cardboard cut-outs or (unironically) robots.
Timebox was really really good but I wanted more.
Save Changes was good.
The second Timebox story, Altar(ed), was bad.
Disappointing.
And the second is bad. Bad. The first time we see Jane 57821 in print and I wish I could just erase it from my memory. Clunky YA-prose steaming garbage plot with characters that talk like cardboard cut-outs or (unironically) robots.
Timebox was really really good but I wanted more.
Save Changes was good.
The second Timebox story, Altar(ed), was bad.
Disappointing.
June 4, 2022
3.5 rounded up
2 stars for the audiobook. I recommended reading the physical book because the first narrator (I believe is the author) just about put me into a slump. The content is great, but I just couldn’t stand how monotone the narration was. I switch to the physical book too late, but when I did I enjoyed it a lot more. I’m a lover of all things sci-fi Afro-futuristic and this book delivered. I enjoyed some stories more than others, but overall I thought they were all pretty good. Definitely gave me Black mirror vibes which I love!
The only thing that I don’t like was some stories went on too long and others felt incomplete. Otherwise, great book with some great queer representation. Will have to pick up the physical book again in the future to maybe have a different experience
2 stars for the audiobook. I recommended reading the physical book because the first narrator (I believe is the author) just about put me into a slump. The content is great, but I just couldn’t stand how monotone the narration was. I switch to the physical book too late, but when I did I enjoyed it a lot more. I’m a lover of all things sci-fi Afro-futuristic and this book delivered. I enjoyed some stories more than others, but overall I thought they were all pretty good. Definitely gave me Black mirror vibes which I love!
The only thing that I don’t like was some stories went on too long and others felt incomplete. Otherwise, great book with some great queer representation. Will have to pick up the physical book again in the future to maybe have a different experience
Read
February 15, 2023Review pending Harper Collins union getting a fair contract
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