Earthseed Series — Octavia Butler

Finally, after almost six months, I managed to finish Octavia Butler’s Earthseed series. For those who may not know Octavia, she was one of the most extraordinary science fiction writers ever to appear in this universe. I’m a huge fan of her work, and I deeply regret that she passed away so young. I mention this because the Earthseed series is one that Butler never got to finish, leaving us without the continuation of what was meant to be a trilogy.

Octavia Butler - Font: Pinterest.

The first book in the trilogy is Parable of the Sower, a dystopian future in which American society collapses due to political and environmental crises. It is in this context that we meet the main character, Lauren Olamina, and follow her struggle to survive after the community where she lived with her family is destroyed in an attack by people from outside the walled neighborhood. What deeply moves us in this book, and what is part of Octavia Butler’s genius, is the fact that the dystopian world she describes so precisely is not far from the reality we are living in in 2026, in a world increasingly hostile to minorities and differences. Within this context, Octavia Butler is surgical in showing that Black people, Latinos, and religious minorities are the ones who suffer most within the system that emerges after the collapse of this society.

Parable of the Sower does not stop at describing the calamities and horrors that take place after this true apocalypse. It shows how Lauren rebuilds her sense of purpose through Earthseed: The Books of the Living, in which a new philosophy begins to emerge from the ruins of Lauren’s life and from the cities and people around her. Here, Octavia strongly warns us to be prepared in case we ever find ourselves amid such social collapse: through knowledge of our surroundings, of the environment, and of the instincts for communal survival that were part of the beginning of humanity.

Another important point to mention is that several people have a physical condition that allows them to share the feelings, pain, and pleasure of those around them, a direct result of the drug abuse experienced by the society of that period. This condition makes us reflect on how the exploitation of others by the powerful has always existed, and it shows us the worst depths humanity can reach when power is in its hands.

I must admit that this reading left me thinking deeply about our current world and the consequences that can arise when a society’s decision-making power is left in the hands of extremists or large corporations.

Parable of the Sower and Parable of the Talents cover. Font: The Christian Century.

In the second book, Parable of the Talents, Octavia continues Olamina’s story after the events involving the first Earthseed community that was created. This reading is accompanied by a complete sense of hopelessness that things will improve—whether for the main protagonist and her community or for society in general. At several moments, I thought about giving up because of this profound feeling of despair that never leaves you as you follow Lauren in her search for answers about her family, her brothers, and her daughter, as well as in her own faith in the philosophy she created. Still, Octavia Butler does not disappoint us and shows her creative strength by bringing this arc of the series to a close in a way that leaves us a little more relieved and hopeful about the future.

A third book, The Parable of the Trickster, was begun by Octavia Butler, but she was unable to finish it because of her premature death. While researching for this text, I found a very interesting article showing what was discovered about this third book in Octavia Butler’s archives. That leaves it up to our imagination whether the legacy created by Lauren Olamina and the philosophy that God is Change would continue to spread throughout the universe.

And you? Have you read these works, or any other book by Octavia Butler afrofuturism universe? Leave your comment below.

Note: As a fan of this wonderful writer, you’ll see other posts here about more of her books that I’ve read.

For those who became interested in the books—or for those who have already read them and would like more information about their context directly from Octavia Butler herself—I recommend reading this interview she gave to Amazon about the series and about her experience as a writer.

Book Synopsis

Parable of the Sower

This first Earthseed novel by ground-breaking writer Octavia E. Butler feel like a prophetic nod to our current world. If you were glued to The Handmaid's Tale, you'll love this beautiful new edition of a seminal American classic. 'If there is one thing scarier than a dystopian novel about the future, it's one written in the past that has already begun to come true. This is what makes Parable of the Sower even more impressive than it was when first published' Gloria Steinem We are coming apart. We're a rope, breaking, a single strand at a time. America is a place of chaos, where violence rules and only the rich and powerful are safe. Lauren Olamina, a young woman with the extraordinary power to feel the pain of others as her own, records everything she sees of this broken world in her journal. Then, one terrible night, everything alters beyond recognition, and Lauren must make her voice heard for the sake of those she loves. Soon, her vision becomes reality and her dreams of a better way to live gain the power to change humanity forever. All that you touch, You Change. All that you Change, Changes you. What readers are saying about Octavia Butler: 'Kindred was written in 1979 but could have been written last year. Incredible. I couldn't put it down ''Emotionally and viscerally alive and challenging. I don't know how I missed it before now ''A masterpiece by a matchless artist. Butler is simply sublime ''Reading these books will change your life ''A finely crafted work, rife with emotional power, horrifying in its believability, with a message that cannot be ignored'

Publisher ‏ : ‎ HACHETTE INTL

Publication date ‏ : ‎ August 20, 2019

Edition ‏ : ‎ International Edition

Language ‏ : ‎ English

Print length ‏ : ‎ 320 pages

ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1472263669

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1472263667

Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8 ounces

Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.6 x 0.91 x 4.88 inches

Parable of the Talents

In 2032, Lauren Olamina has survived the destruction and ruin of everything she knew. Her peaceful community based on her newly founded faith, Earthseed, provides refuge for outcasts facing persecution after the election of an ultra-conservative president. Under his rule, Lauren's colony—a minority religious faction led by a young Black woman—becomes a target for the president’s reign of terror and oppression.

Years later, Asha Vere reads the journals of a mother she never knew. As she searches for answers, she struggles to reconcile with the legacy of a mother caught between her duty to her chosen family and her calling to lead humankind into a better future.

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Grand Central Publishing

Publication date ‏ : ‎ August 20, 2019

Edition ‏ : ‎ Reprint

Language ‏ : ‎ English

Print length ‏ : ‎ 448 pages

ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 153873219X

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1538732199

Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12.2 ounces

Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.05 x 1.13 x 8.65 inches