TIME Magazine has published a list of the “100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time” and 10 of them are African!

In 2019, TIME assembled a panel of eight fantasy authors to rate 250 books on the basis of “originality, ambition, artistry, critical and popular reception, and influence on the fantasy genre and literature more broadly.”

The eight panelists were Marlon James, Tomi Adeyemi, Neil Gaiman, George R.R. Martin, N.K. Jemisin, Diana Gabaldon, Cassandra Clare, and Sabaah Tahir.

TIME editors, informed by their expertise, then selected the top 100 books ranging from the 9th century to the present. Click on the titles below to learn more about how African storytelling has shaped the fantasy genre today.

The Palm-Wine Drinkard by Amos Tutuola (1952)

My Life in the Bush of Ghosts by Amos Tutola (1954)

Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor (2010)

Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor (2011)

A Stranger in Olondria by Sofia Samatar (2013)

Beasts Made of Night by Tochi Onyebuchi (2017)

Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi (2018)

Children of Virtue and Vengeance by Tomi Adeyemi (2019)

Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James (2019)

Pet by Akwaeke Emezi (2019)