Reviews tagging 'Classism'

Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler

148 reviews

djtoebeans's review against another edition

dark hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, and Gun violence

Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Violence, Trafficking, Cannibalism, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Addiction, Child abuse, Cursing, Drug abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, Racism, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Classism

just_ari's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

It felt so right to read this book at the end of 2024. This book was written in 1993 but takes place from 2024-2026 in the United States where things have been going seriously downhill since the 2000s. Climate change has cause horrible natural disasters, disease has spread, and extreme poverty is all around. It is astounding how much Octavia Butler was able to predict about the future. Yes, her idea of the modern world was more extreme than the actual world we live in but themes throughout the book resonated closely to me and it's scary to think about how close we currently are to living in Butler's version of the world. The main character of this book reminded me of the importance of emergency preparation and as well as the importance of having and relying on your community. This was probably the most important book I read this year. While parts of it scared me about our future, it also gave me a vision to prepare myself. I'm looking forward to reading the next book in this series, Parable of the Talents. Octavia Butler is an inspirational author and I highly recommend this book to everyone. Prepare yourself when reading it because it gets really dark but know that once you have finished you will see the world in a different light.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Slavery, Violence, Grief, Murder, and Classism

Moderate: Sexual assault and Cannibalism

sabiecee's review

dark emotional hopeful sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

Jarring, real, and thought-provoking. Having a hard time to coming to terms with it still.
The main character's relationship at the end and the weird age gap is making me really uncomfortable though, and I'm hoping that doesn't last long in the next book 😭

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Trafficking, Grief, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, War, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic

angievansprang's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Wow this was incredible. I know this has been said many times, but not only was Butler vastly ahead of her times, she also essentially predicted many parts of the future (our current reality) back in the late 90s/early 2000s. I am so impressed at her introspection and ability to formulate a novel religion that is so community-centered. It is very true that is what the world, especially here in the US, need right now. I adored our main character Lauren, who is wise far beyond her age and very believable. While this book covered deeply brutal topics, there is an air of hope by the end that I appreciated. It highlights that no matter how bad things get, we will prevail if we rely on one another. Community is Everything & God is Change.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Violence, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Drug abuse, Sexual assault, Slavery, and Blood

Minor: Child abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Cannibalism, Pregnancy, and Classism

catz0rz's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

missanareads's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

This book was heavy and hard to read. It’s hard to think that humanity would ever be like this so it’s hard to sink into. I also could have done without the religion creating, but maybe that just went over my head. Interesting read, but wouldn’t read again 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, and Classism

shay143mb's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic

njohnson246's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

This is an important book, but so horrifically dark. I’ve read a lot of dark books, but this was a whole new level. It was hard to get through at times. I think the worst part too is how scarily accurate Octavia Butler’s predictions are. It’s not hard to see that the future that she has laid out here is very possible if things in the United States continue in the way they are. I appreciated that the ending was hopeful though, and I think I will read the second one, although I will need a break to read something lighter. This is not for the faint of heart, but if you can read it, it will impact you significantly. I especially loved and resonated with the Earthseed verses. Overall, I would recommend, but check the trigger warnings before reading.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Cannibalism, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Classism

zams's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

I really thought a long time about how to review this book and I'm still not sure what to say.
It's scary close to what's already happening in a lot of places, and it fed my brain with tons of material to think about. I don't know if Lauren being a teenager made a lot of sense to me the way her character is behaving, but maybe she's a product of what's happening, and it doesn't seem too unusual, considering how the others around her age are acting. I think all of the characters were very fleshed out, I still don't know why the love interest had to be this old, but maybe one day I will understand.
It didn't seem like a lot was happening for a good chunk of the book, but the writing style made this go by without much fuss as well, which was verey surprising to me. I definitly think I might have to re-read this again in some time, after I've had a bit more time to process my thoughts.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Addiction, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Terminal illness, Torture, Blood, Police brutality, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, Cannibalism, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Pregnancy

otherwordy's review

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug use, Genocide, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic