Reviews

Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler

kathom21's review against another edition

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

4.5

I can appreciate what this book is and its impact on speculative fiction and dystopian literature. However, I don't think it was for me. I still enjoyed it, but I don't think I'll ever go back and read it again. Maybe the graphic novel version, just for the heck of it, but the actual novel itself is probably a no.

I appreciated the motif of fire. Fire can be cleansing and comforting, but it is also a force of destruction. The people in pyro wanted to watch the world burn. We have people like that in our current world.

I actually started reading this book because a lot of people said that if our world.was a dystopian novel, it's Parable of a Sower more than anything else.

thechanelmuse's review against another edition

4.0

"There is no end to what a living world will demand of you."
“All struggles are essentially power struggles...two rams knocking their heads together.”

Is this book speculative fiction or did Octavia E. Butler step into a time machine in the early 1990s and pen the harrowing experience she witnessed in the mid-late 2020s into a novel?

katwolffcreates's review against another edition

challenging dark hopeful mysterious 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

4.75

A classic for a reason. A rough read because we aren’t incredibly far off from Butler’s imagined reality.

2000s's review against another edition

4.5

Like the other Octavia Butler work I've read, I'm sick to my stomach now but also feel like the world has been shattered and slowly reimagined. Dread-inspiring but excellent as always. 

youngthespian42's review

4.0

Haunting and beautifully written book. Paints a “it could happen here” vision of a crumbling America. The focus on a religion and building something new separates this book from so many dystopian speculative fiction. This was my first Butler and I am excited to read more.

anareads19's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

5.0

amelyy's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful fast-paced

4.5

olka_ruzik's review

dark reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

silverfronds's review

3.75

I think I wanted a little more from this after hearing so much praise about how fitting it was for our current times. It was still a great book, but maybe because I'm not religious I didn't connect with the Earthseed concept as much as others might. I still thought this was a great, almost post-apocalyptic story, very haunting and dark, but also hopeful and abounding in appreciation for human perseverance. I definitely plan to read the second book.

nika_reads's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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

4.5