Octavia E. Butler: Parable of the Talents (2008, Paw Prints 2008-04-18)
424 pages
Published April 18, 2008 by Paw Prints 2008-04-18.
Environmental devastation and economic chaos have turned America into a land of depravity. Taking advantage of the situation, a zealous bigot wins his way into the White House. Lauren Olamina leads a new faith group directly opposed to the new government. This is the story of the group's struggle to preserve its vision.
As the government turns a blind eye to the violent bigots who consider a black female leader a threat, Lauren Olamina must either sacrifice her child and her followers or forsake her religion. The plot contains profanity, sexual situations and violence,
I loved the sequel as much as the first book. It's simultaneously tragic and utopian; I don't know how Butler (and other black women authors) does it!
Content warning spoiler
i know im projecting, but i kept hoping that butler's sequels would have been different. instead, like in xenogenesis and many other scifi and fantasy sagas, the defeating of one enemy/the end of one conflict just meant the rising of a new one. and so the stories are always about death and rebirth and never about whatever comes after birth.
moreover, having earthseed being a religion drawn away even more of what could be the tiniest possibility of having a community-building/community-driven story. in fact, eventually, it was just about the rising of scientology. lol. for real.
on a personal note, i really dislikes asha vere. she got the chillest life ever compared to her moms and still was unable to show a hint of empathy towards her. olamina could have been as particular as you want, but giving her less than nothing while still grasping onto your uncle priest who abducted you was kind of grim.
finally, she was such a fucking good writer. like, literally, it's so hard to stop once you start reading anything of her. i wish she's happy and doing well, wherever she is. may her rest in power.
Powerful
Powerful, and heartbreaking.
Also amazingly prescient. Butler died 10 years before Trump was elected but here he is in all his Christo-fascist glory.
A must read and a shame that she never finished the series. I felt like the end was a little rushed but that might be the audiobook format.
