Out There Screaming edited by Jordan Peele (Picador, £20)
“I view horror as catharsis through entertainment,” says writer-director Peele (Nope, Get Out) in the foreword to this impressive American anthology. The 19 contributing Black authors offer a wide range of literary nightmares, varying in subject from the horrors of slavery and segregation to ancient evil spirits and newly minted monsters. Tananarive Due takes the violence directed at civil rights protesters in Alabama as her focus, while both Chesya Burke and Maurice Broaddus draw on earlier years, when lynch mobs might only be defeated with supernatural aid. Nnedi Okorafor depicts a conflict between old Nigerian customs and modern American life; Nalo Hopkinson taps into Caribbean folklore, and Erin E Adams draws on her Haitian background. Others turn to science fiction: Lesley Nneka Arimah’s tale of an alien invasion is memorably weird and terrifying, as are Terence Taylor’s vision of a near-future prison run for profit and Justin C Key’s story about new types of human beings. Every piece is strong and memorable, making this not only likely to be the best anthology of the year, but one for the ages.
