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‘Project Hail Mary‘ finds humour in the void

Ryan Gosling anchors a visually stunning sci-fi epic that blends survival, humour and heart, transforming a lone mission into an unexpected story about connection

Don’t look back in anger: Liam and Noel Gallagher of Oasis insulting each other is all the rock stars we have but sometimes you just want to go back to old hits, says the writer. Photo: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images

Sci-fi classic worth dusting off

In his novel Blood Music, Greg Bear explores the subjectivity of reality and consciousness

Context: Writer Amitav Ghosh sees the ecological disaster the world is facing as being rooted in the past. Photo: Leonardo Cendamo/Getty Images

Amitav Ghosh: Writing the planetary crisis

Indian author Amitav Ghosh speaks about his work and its relationship with climate change

It’s AI versus humans in sci-fi thriller

‘The Creator’ explores humanity’s complex relationship with advanced technology

In the Afrikaans sci-fi gem on Showmax, found footage reveals an inexplicable object in the Karoo

Screengrab: ‘Wesens’ has the final weird

In the Afrikaans sci-fi gem on Showmax, found footage reveals an inexplicable object in the Karoo

In the Palm-Wine Drinkard, Amos Tutuola places the most bizarre creatures within the limits of our current experience

African science fiction: rereading the The Palm-Wine Drinkard

Nigerian writer Amos Tutuola wields language as the ultimate form of technology

Star gazing: Presenter Ofentse Letebele is translating the format of some of the old planetarium shows for the new digital dome system at the Iziko Planetarium in Cape Town. (Hemelliggaam or The Attempt To Be Here Now)

More things in heaven and on Earth than are dreamt of

Hemelliggaam or the Attempt To Be Here Now, makes connections between the environment, astronomy and old Afrikaans science fiction novels

The opening page of Mary Shelley’s ‘The Modern Prometheus’

The world has not learnt anything from Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein

​This year marks the 200th anniversary of Mary Shelley’s ‘Gothic’ novel ‘Frankenstein or The Modern Prometheus’.

Lunar novels in vastly different orbits

Frank Schatzing’s Limit is a tautly-written blockbuster while Ian MacDonald’s Luna – New Moon is a dark fantasy, writes Gwen Ansell.

Although it riffs on the comic-book fantasy of the superhero

Tigerman: Escape from the genredarmes

Speculative fiction, science fiction, fantasy, thriller – who cares about genres when the writing is as good as in the novels reviewed here.

Ancillary Justice: Gender-blurred ship’s tale soars

Award-winning debut is a powerful meditation on class, gender, identity and imperial expansionism.

A peek through the world of science fiction

Book reviews: Gwen Ansell takes us through four interesting novels.

Cave clans bear up under SF’s stern lens

Shaman explores the boundaries that divide science fiction imagination and history in order to try and explain who we are.

Fractal Prince.

Quantum tale, noir-laden fable

Reality is renegotiated, universes up for grabs in two stories that disrupt the traditions of hard SF and hard-boiled fiction.

Lauren Beukes: At the forefront of the global invasion

By ditching the tired narratives of contemplation and guilt, Beukes’s otherworldly novels have beefed up the anaemic world of South African fiction.

Science fiction writer Ray Bradbury looks at a picture that was part of a school project to illustrate characters in one of his dramas.

Science fiction author Ray Bradbury dead at 91

Ray Bradbury, a giant of American literature who helped popularise science fiction died on Tuesday, his publisher said.

Old magic and future worlds

<b>Gwen Ansell</b> rounds up some of the latest science fiction and fantasy releases.

Spellbinding powers of the imagination

<b>Gwen Ansell</b> reviews some of the latest science fiction and fantasy titles.

Cities at the heart of the action

Mark Charan Newton explains his fascination with the crucibles of human interaction.

A tale of two cities

Mark Charan Newton tells <b>Gwen Ansell</b> about the process of building imaginary cities.