Reviews with content warning for Slavery - Parable of the Sower

I am a buffoon for waiting this long to read any of Ms. Butler's works. I finished this in February and immediately wanted to select it as my top read of 2024. Although this was written in 1993 taking place in 2024, it felt like Butler could have written this today based on current events.

This is a deeply unsettling and uncomfortable novel to read, but I still enjoyed it. It took me a few weeks to read on audio because I took breaks due to heavy content, but this is a novel I can see myself re-reading every few years or so. There's a graphic novel version I'm interested in reading for comparison as well.

The main character, Lauren, was on unlikeable, but in a relatable sort of way that made sense given her circumstances. She was making uncomfortable decisions that no one else in her community was willing to make, although she should never have been in such a position. Lauren, her family, her community, and frankly the world, are living in an extreme climate crisis where water is treated as a luxury commodity instead of a life giving necessity, and the police and emergency services are (expensive) for hire workers instead of working in the best interest of a community. (wow, this isn't familiar at all /s) These are just some of the extreme measures being taken against the regular people in this universe. Because of the extreme state of the world, there are "company towns" being constructed eerily similar to the mining towns of 1800s Appalachia or even slavery within the United States empire. Money is rarely given for payment, prices are intentionally inflated requiring workers to go into debt, therefore ensuring the workers are unable to leave because they owe the company labor (even though they were unfairly compensated and grossly overcharged for goods and services).

It was so frustrating to me that the adults in Lauren's life refused to acknowledge the truth surrounding them. Her father was the only one to admit that things were "bad", but no one else was willing to accept they lived in a dying town in danger of being

brutally attacked and killed.

Yes, Lauren was technically a teenager who shouldn't of had to worry about

climate crisis and murder and death

and a dozen other things, but she was at least willing to accept her reality and make efforts to improve her circumstances, which should have been her parents' responsibilities.

Lauren's relationship with Bankole was essentially my big issue with this novel. I'm not a fan of any age gap relationship, but especially not one where the older partner

could be the younger partner's grandparent

. It gives me the ick, but I was warned in advance by @katsmedialibrary that Butler's novels do tend to feature relationships of this nature.

Overall, this was an amazing work of literature. I know understand why Octavia E. Butler is such a well respected author and so many people say her work was so influential to modern science fiction writing today.

Content Warnings

cafejessnyc's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Content Warnings

sarahbearas's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

What to say about this book…

I’m having a hard time articulating just how much this book has lived in my brain. It’s been almost a month since I’ve read it, and I’ve only just sat down to write my review. I usually write my reviews right away to get my thoughts to paper as quickly as possible before I forget, but I didn’t know how to feel about this. I didn’t really know what to say. Now, if you asked me to describe this book, I would say it’s the most hopeful and most devastating book, all at once. And I really, really love it.

As a reader, dystopian/sci-fi/post-apocalyptic fiction are some of my favorite genres to read; specifically, the wave of YA dystopia in the 2010’s is what got me hooked onto reading in the first place. Parable of the Sower came highly recommended from reviewers I follow. However, this was somehow everything I expected and somehow nothing what I thought it would be at all.

I love this book a lot. I really do. It’s not often I remember a book long after reading it, and that’s not to disparage anything I’ve read before, it’s just how it is. But when I think about Parable of the Sower, it’s because I’m looking at the world around me and realizing that this piece of fiction is not necessarily fiction at all. It’s really silly of me to say, considering that all good apocalypse and dystopia just takes what’s really happened in the world and puts it into a novel. But goddamn, seriously, sometimes I think Octavia E. Butler was an oracle or something, and we didn’t listen to her closely enough. I think part of the reason this novel feels so close to home right now is because it really is; images coming out of the world right now resemble close to the events happening in the novel, to the life that Lauren lives. And just on, like, a practical level, this novel begins in 2023/2024 and that’s just crazy to be reading in the years that Butler wrote of the downfalls of America. Sometimes I’d read a particular passage and say “Well, that’s crazy, we don’t live like that.” And then I’d sit and stare at my wall for a while and then go, “Well, actually…”.

There are the things about the novel that I don’t completely love; the subject of Lauren’s hyper-empathy comes and goes, and doesn’t seem to have as much plot relevance as I anticipated. I felt the same about Lauren’s religion, Earthseed - relevant until it wasn’t, and then relevant again, even though that’s. There is a large cast of side characters that bring good life to the world, but there are just so many that really don’t go anywhere. A part of me feels like because this was intended to be a trilogy (hexology????) that this was the set-up for the payoff that would come in the following books. My jaw literally dropped when the book ended, I really sat there and was like “Hello!?!?! There’s got to be more???” A part of me hesitates reading the second book, just because I know this universe was left unfinished, but I really do like Butler’s writing. Very easy to read, never too simplistic or too flowery, for my tastes. Even if I don’t pick up Parable of The Talents (which I probably will, lol) I’ll definitely be reading everything she has to offer.

I really love this book. Highly, highly recommend it.

Content Warnings

seph268's review against another edition

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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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erikwmj's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective 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

Content Warnings

dragon_s_hoard's review

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

5.0

Content Warnings

henrybirdie's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

The good:
I went into this book knowing nothing about the plot, so was excited to realize it takes place in a dystopian, near-future setting — one of my favorite sub genres. Butler’s imagining of the 2020’s feels unsettling in the same way that Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale does. Both worlds feel extreme and hyperbolic while also giving you that nagging feeling of being scarily possible. This novel explores a version of California ravaged by climate change and late stage capitalism, where modern progress and technology has effectively collapsed and the economy has crumbled.

Throughout the novel I found myself wondering how I might fare in this version of America — where would I feel safe? Would I know how to effectively grow my own food? Learn how to mend, how to maintain and fortify my own home base? Would I be a useful asset in my community like Lauren, or cling to the old and dead ways of life?

I became totally immersed and engaged in Lauren’s journey and also appreciated Butler’s commentaries on American culture, race, status, and the pitfalls of capitalism.

The not so good:

I really didn’t connect with Earthseed, though it’s clearly a major plot element throughout. I suppose it serves as a vehicle to push Lauren— and by way of her leadership, the rest of her ragtag crew—towards a different way of living. A rejection of the imploding system that they’ve all been bound to. I just found it hard to believe that she was seemingly so alone in this endeavor. With all the chaos, violence, and dire lack of resources, were there no other people seeking out some kind of communal/alternative lifestyle?

This leads me to my next issue. Where the hell are all the bicycles, wagons, carts, trailers…any kind of low tech wheeled vehicle?! In a world where no one can afford to drive gas powered vehicles surely this would have become a major form of transportation and something that many people would learn to improvise. Characters ride bikes early on, in and around the immediate neighborhood but they’re never mentioned again once Lauren hits the road. Have all the horses and cows and donkeys been eaten? All forms of animal husbandry have been completely abandoned? Seems lazy!

Last and most importantly….the significant age gap romance gave me major ick. I’m really not seeing the greater purpose for our girl Lauren to fall for a man who is not only nearly the same exact age as her presumably dead father, but actively reminds her of her father. Like…I get it, Lauren has suffered significant trauma and latches onto a man that can take the place of her missing dad but ugggghhh, did it have to be a sexual relationship? A barely 18 year old girl and a 55 year old man??? I guess she’s just “an old soul”…. “mature for her age”…..etc. Sigh.

Content Warnings

reads2cope's review against another edition

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5.0

“Do you think our world is coming to an end?” Dad asked, and with no warning at all, I almost started crying. I had all I could do to hold it back. What I thought was, “No, I think your world is coming to an end, and maybe you with it.” That was terrible. I hadn’t thought about it in such a personal way before. I turned and looked out a window until I felt calmer. When I faced him again, I said. “Yes. Don’t you?”

I can't believe it took me this long to read Parable of the Sower, but any time since it's publication has been the perfect time to read. On Instagram, @bookishcrimson pointed out how Zarah recommended sucking on a plum or apricot pits to stave off thirst while Palestinian mothers are giving their babies dates to suck on because of the lack of milk and all other foods in the genocide on Gaza.
Every time the political race came up in the book, it felt so much like the USA race today. Describing one of the candidates as "a symbol of the past for us to hold on to as we’re pushed into the future. He’s nothing. No substance. But having him there, the latest in a two-and-a-half-century-long line of American Presidents make people feel that the country, the culture that they grew up with is still here — that we’ll get through these bad times and back to normal.” That exactly explains the current candidates to me.
The disease and environmental collapse is so obviously on-point that it hardly feels worth mentioning. COVID-19 has been on constant high waves, disabling and killing people in horrifying numbers? Ignore it. Every season is warmer than ever and every marker for irreversible damage is being met? "'These things frighten people. It’s best not to talk about them.” “ But, Dad, that’s like… like ignoring a fire in the living room because we’re all in the kitchen, and, besides, house fires are too scary to talk about.'"

The only thing I didn't like about this book was Earthseed. While I understand Laura wanting to have a clear mantra to help her through societal collapse, the "belief" in Earthseed seemed less religious to everyone around her and more a unifying idea. By which I mean, her friends and fellow travelers were happy to hear about it and agreed with some basic points, but no one gave up worshiping a different God or fully believed in the space travel promise of Earthseed. I was annoyed that Lauren wanted to make a religious cult rather than a commune, but as her main focus was survival, it didn't take up too much of the book.

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