Reviews tagging 'Excrement'

Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler

38 reviews

seph268's review

challenging dark informative sad tense fast-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

Octavia Butler wrote a manual for survival our unprecedented times and we’ve all been overlooking it. Would absolutely recommend, cannot wait to reread.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Rape, Self harm, Sexual violence, Slavery, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Excrement, Trafficking, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Cannibalism, and Injury/Injury detail

theemeraldgirl23's review

dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-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? Yes

4.5

A fantastic speculative fiction novel about our current times and what would happen if California became a dystopian wasteland. Lauren Olamina is a tremendous and refreshing protagonist from her view on God and community. It was unlike any book I've ever read before. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Body horror, Gore, Gun violence, Racism, Rape, Slavery, Cannibalism, Murder, and Pregnancy

Minor: Incest, Infidelity, Sexual assault, Suicide, and Excrement

keyradiator's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative 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

5.0

This book is really a marvel. Octavia Butler's writing is accessible, evocative, crisp, and visceral; reading her and Ursula K. Le Guin made me realize I took entirely too long reading several mediocre science fiction books from more mainstream authors.

There is a thing or two in this book that are structurally suboptimal, but overall, the pacing is biting and cohesive, the characters have deeeeep stories and flaws, and the world building is some of the best I've ever read.

This book is dark. You can't quite prepare yourself for just how dark it gets, yet, somehow Butler manages to make a beam of hope cut through all of the noise that carries you through. Please read this book!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Police brutality, Medical content, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, Vomit, Police brutality, Cannibalism, and War

Minor: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Confinement, Racism, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Excrement, Car accident, and Toxic friendship

lynxpardinus's review against another edition

dark reflective sad

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Incest, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Blood, Cannibalism, Pregnancy, and War

Minor: Fatphobia, Excrement, and Vomit

Adult/minor relationship warning is also for a relationship between a grown adult and an 18-year-old.

djeanine's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug use, Genocide, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Excrement, Grief, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

apollo0325's review

dark reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

A tense, sad, bleak, but hopeful look at the destruction humanity can wrought on both itself and the world. Octavia Butler sets the stage for us within the eyes of a young black girl with the hope that people can change because God is Change. The angle of Earthseed alongside the hyper-empathy angles gives us an unusual narrator for a dystopian story.

My only qualm with the story is mostly from a logistical standpoint, mainly the economic and government system in place. Like… why are people still using cash? Why not just barter? Why do people still go to jobs when it seems like the unemployment and houselessness rate is like 90% 😭 doesn’t make much sense to me but again, mostly a nitpick.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, and Death of parent

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Police brutality, Trafficking, Grief, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Excrement and Vomit

twu's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

decie's review against another edition

5.0

I'm usually not a fan of dystopian books, but this one is stunning. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Grief, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Misogyny, Racism, Slavery, Torture, and Kidnapping

Minor: Incest

dizzy_mittz's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Abandonment, and Pandemic/Epidemic

If you can handle the content, it’s a very sobering read - you may even find some hope in it. I highly recommend this book. I will, however, not be diving directly into the rest of the series. Breaks will be necessary if you are emotionally swayed by your reading - I should have taken more while reading.

scifi_rat's review

adventurous dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-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? It's complicated

4.75

Plot: 4.5★
Prose: 4.5★
Pace: 4★
Concept/Execution: 4★/5★
Characters: 4.75★
Worldbuilding: 4.75★
Ending: 4.75★

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Violence, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Addiction, Animal death, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Child death, Cursing, Gore, Infertility, Pedophilia, Suicide, Excrement, Medical content, Trafficking, Cannibalism, and Pregnancy