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

dark hopeful 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

4.75

This might be one of the top dystopian books I've ever read. The world building was phenomenal, as was the building of tension - there's a constant unease underlying every sentence. So often in dystopian fiction, the reader is thrust into a world in which the apocalypse is long past - this one was thorough and imaginative enough to slowly let the world crumble in a way that felt too amazingly parallel for the modern day.

My only critique, and the reason why this didn't get 5 stars, is because the main character came to us fully formed as a 15 year old, with a fully fleshed-out ideology for life. I wish we saw more of the internal conflict that informed her precociousness.