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seascape62's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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? It's complicated
4.0
read this one as a part of a readalong with some other fellow book club members, and enjoyed (and still am enjoying!) the commentary and conversations that it fostered. having only read one of octavia's books so far (parable of the sower), i could still understand and appreciate the octavia-inspired central thread of change throughout this anthology. there were definitely some stories that resonated more than others, and a few that i was just dying to get even a few more pages of, given their intensity and intrigue. overall, a neat read by a collection of very talented artists, writers, researchers, and authors.
melindajune92's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
inspiring
reflective
tense
slow-paced
3.5
ashleykitkat's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
As in any short story collection, enjoyed some a lot and others were OK. Overall, it was a great read that made me want to read more works of Octavia Butler herself.
emath98's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
lachellerising's review against another edition
challenging
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
3.0
katieinca's review against another edition
3.0
If you are weary of reading stories where white is the default and no one seems aware that racism is exists in the world, this may be a balm for you. Since it's a short story collection, it *is* a bit uneven; as mentioned in the introduction, many of the authors here had never written fiction before. Some of them were great: "the river" and "22XX" were standouts for me. But because of that unevenness, and because short stories are tougher for me to get into, this took me a looong time. Then I got to the end and the last story wasn't even a story, it was a lecture on Octavia Butler! I was bummed at first, but ended up really enjoying it, and wish they'd have put it at the front of the book instead of the end.
matttruss's review
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- 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
4.0
As I big Octavia fan I was very excited to sit down and read this collection. They aren't all bangers, but there are several that really make you stop and think and all have an important message to share. It was neat reading some activists I was unfamiliar with and looking up their work in activism and the creative space. Not all of these creators are writers, so some stumbles are to be expected. If you know that going in and think about this more as a love letter to Octavia and social justice, you'll enjoy it much more.
letamcwilliams's review against another edition
5.0
Literally one of the best books I’ve ever picked up
mohr_adventurous's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
5.0
bigann's review against another edition
4.0
I have mainly read short stories separately or in an anthology, and I really haven’t read many sci-fi short stories, so this was something really new for me! I sometimes find it hard to get into sci-fi because of the feasibility of the world building, and I’ll admit I was a little scared of how this would pan out with short stories, but I really felt most of the stories did a wonderful job of immersing you and making their worlds realistic through the integration and development of current issues in their plot lines. Some of the stories were a little hard to follow, but a lot really excelled at world-building and I loved how different the formatting was throughout the stories. Definitely made me want to pick up some Octavia Butler!
Here are my favorite stories (many authors of which I wished wrote more!):
- The Long Memory by Morrigan Phillips
- Hollow by Mia Mingus
- Little Brown Mouse by Tunde Olaniran
- Runway Blackout by Tara Betts
- Aftermath by Levar Burton
- Homing Instinct by Dani McClain