Olivia Barone
Editor in Chief
This year’s Open Books Open Minds (OBOM) book of choice, “Light from Uncommon Stars” features a woven tale of demons, aliens, donuts and music. Meet Ryka Aoki, the creative mind behind the novel as she reveals what inspired her story before her visit to RIC on Nov. 7.
“Light from Uncommon Stars” follows Katrina Nguyen, a transgender teen girl as she leaves home hoping to find her sanction. Katrina, on the run, brings little with her other than her violin and extreme musical talent. She catches the ear of Shizuka Satomi, the world’s best violin instructor, but this savant has a secret: Shizuka is playing a duet with the devil and has promised him the souls of seven violin prodigies to escape damnation. Meanwhile, alien refugee Lan Tran runs a donut shop on earth with her family after fleeing from her decaying home planet. Lan finds herself enchanted by Shizuka when the violinist visits the donut shop and unknowingly joins her star-crossed lover on her mission for a seventh soul.
Aoki found inspiration for her unique narrative in the books that became her sanctuary growing up. “I’ve always felt a bit like a misfit. Even before I could identify the reasons, or put words to what I was feeling, I never felt like I fit in. However, in libraries, none of that seemed to matter. My local library, my school libraries, they became my refuges. In libraries, I could find books, even spend an afternoon just reading.” In these safe havens for Aoki, she found worlds crafted on paper. Aoki credits Anna Sewell’s “Black Beauty” and Frances Hodgson Burnett’s “A Little Princess” for showing her compassion and it was through these books that she realized she wanted to write.
Despite Sci-fi fantasy being a complex genre to execute, Aoki managed to weave together a story detailing the queer experience among magic and mystery. She explained that the difficult part of writing “Light from Uncommon Stars” was not world building; avid readers are already familiar with otherworldly technology, summoning demons and the like. Aoki described that “the difficulty comes from putting unfamiliar characters into these spaces and places. Strange and alien races? Life forms with divergent biologies and methods of reproduction? Differences in abilities, appearances, philosophies? Fine. As long as they are out there. Over there. Not part of us, but that alien world that we need to explore, and yes, dominate and conquer.”
These otherworldly elements in “Light from Uncommon Stars” are akin to growing up outside of the norm in America, whether it be someone’s sexuality, race, religion or something else that makes them different. “Us and Them. It's a very pervasive paradigm, and I think being queer helps me see its limitations and pushes me to think of my worlds in alternate ways.”
Aoki’s goal in writing her novel is to break down the boundaries between marginalized groups. “It is easy to think of any marginalized group as static, as fixed in their otherness. This is an immigrant. That is a queer. There is a paraplegic.” Alternatively, Aoki prompts relationships beyond allyship in the form of neighbors, friends and partners. “I've spent most of my life dreaming of other stars...other galaxies. However, as I grew older, I learned more about the science of it all—and realized that I might not live to see humans colonize another planet, or visit even the nearest stars. But there are entire universes to be discovered right next to us… Walking past you, at this moment, could be an ‘alien’ whom you might one day trust with the keys to your starship—or even your soul.”
Aoki prompts writers at RIC to write for their truest selves, for the best work comes from one’s own vulnerability. “Most of the mistakes I've made as a writer have come from writing the work that I ‘should’ be writing. And all of my happiest moments, my most satisfying moments, have come from when I wrote my own words, my own poems and stories and music–no matter how unmarketable or weird they might have seemed. And sometimes, your words will help readers discover theirs, as well.” This feeling is the most rewarding for Aoki and she encourages aspiring authors to write with this in mind.
Aoki would like to thank RIC for choosing “Light from Uncommon Stars” as OBOM’s Common Book of 2024 and is excited to speak with RIC students this coming Thursday, Nov. 7 from 4:30–6:30 p.m. in Gaige Hall 100.
Amidst the wonderful weirdness of “Light from Uncommon Stars” lies a heartfelt tale of acceptance and compassion. As its author sought in the books she read years ago, it too provides readers with a sense of companionship when loneliness seems suffocating. Our world might not hold its secrets in the stars, our donut shops might be void of star captains and violinists without dark magic, but it still contains very real wonders in arms reach for those willing to reach out, something “Light from Uncommon Stars” can help readers to discover.
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