I’ve always had a fondness for narratives in which a character gradually comes to understand a culture that’s initially alien to them. This might stem from coming to reading via science fiction and fantasy, where such a thing can be handled literally, but I’m happy to see these wherever they may come: realistic or fantastic, literal or metaphorical. The title of Sofia Samatar’s A Stranger in Olondria tells you, on one level, what to expect: there’s a place called Olondria, and the […]