A review by lisacanteven
Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler

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? Yes

5.0

This is my first Octavia Butler book to read, and I wish I had done so sooner. This book is brilliant. I am not sure what I was expecting, maybe Octavia's prose to be a bit less accessible. But I just clicked with it right away, and I think that is very important when writing a book that is such a powerful glimpse into our country and the faults that it has. Sure, we aren't there yet but we could be in the future. Lauren was such an intriguing character. Dare I say that I loved her? I think I did. Her strength and tenacity had me cheering for her the whole time. Does that mean I would be a great cult member? I won't look too deeply into that. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Body horror, Gun violence, Blood, Child death, Classism, Death, Physical abuse, Violence, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Murder, Grief, Death of parent, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Cannibalism, Drug abuse, Medical content, Mental illness, Slavery, Abandonment, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Police brutality, and Trafficking

Minor: Addiction, Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Incest, Suicide, and Alcoholism