Reapers—named for a subset of the Mino, the female fighting units who fought with meter-long straight razors

rondavel—home

sabhu—the language of the soul

Saqqara—ship named for the Saqqara Bird; a bird-shaped artifact made of sycamore wood, discovered during the 1898 excavation of the Pa-di-Imen tomb in Saqqara, Egypt

sosaties—a traditional dish of meat cooked on skewers

synthed—synthesized

Thmei—the Egyptian goddess of truth and justice

Tjwala—a potent home-brewed beer

Ubuntu—“humanity” or “I am because we are”

Ugenini—children of the diaspora

Uhlanga—according to the Zulu, it is the marsh from which humanity was born; code for Muungano’s secret panspermia program

umbidvo wetint sanga—cooked pumpkin leaves and peanuts

Umoja—“unity” in Swahili

upinde mvua—rainbow (Swahili)

Uponyaji—a time of healing

wazungu—the plural of mzungu, people with white skin

weusi—blackness

yankadi—a slow and mellow dance

Yo—the generic term for the O.E. or its mentality or systems

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

With a book like Sweep of Stars, the first in the Astra Black trilogy, it’s hard to know where to begin with whom to thank. Except, well, at the beginning.

This journey all started with drinks in New York City with editor Diana Pho, who pressed me about what I was looking to write next. I pitched an idea on the spot, a novelization of a story I was writing for Mur Lafferty (yeah, I wasn’t even done with the story yet). Then into the hands of my then agent, Jen Udden, the idea went. She then pushed me into all sorts of uncharted areas in terms of how I write stories (and do business!).

I feel like my thanks will look a lot like baton passing, because the would-be story bundle then passed to new (to me) editor Will Hinton and new (to me) agent Stephanie Kim, who would see the project over the finish line.

All that said, I wouldn’t be anywhere without the inspiration of the Kheprw Institute: our founding elders (Imhotep Adisa, Pambana Uishi, and Paulette Fair) as well as some of our frontline folks (Diop Adisa, Leah Humphrey, Alvin Sangsuwangal). Others will have to wait for Book Two or else I’ll be here all day, though I do need to give a special shout-out to another group of organized neighbors, The Learning Tree.

Speaking of folks who continue to inspire, push, and challenge me, I can’t help but thank many of the local artists around me: Stacia Murphy, Sibeko Jywanza, Ro Townsend, Robin Jackson, Anitra Malone, Chandra Lynch. All the folks who help imagine a better world.

I wouldn’t hear the end of it if I didn’t thank Bella Faidley, Rianna Butcher, and my other student dreamers from the Oaks Academy Middle School.