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stefanicox's Reviews (519)
I'm not sure I've ever read a memoir this honest before. I wish I could personally thank Roxane Gay for the extent to which she lets us into her experiences on food, trauma, and the body.
Octavia Butler was the master of social commentary through science fiction. Parable of the Talents is surprisingly complex, and not just an obligatory sequel to the first book in the series. Having read Parable of the Sower too, it was interesting to see how the main character of Lauren changed throughout the different challenges and sociopolitical realities she ran into.
I found it interesting that much of the book is about the religion Earthseed that Lauren is trying to get started in a post-apocalyptic world. I'm not sure I've read anything else that really grapples with the question of how you go about forming, sharing, and building a new belief system.
And like lots of other are saying the politician in the novel who wins a surprise upset to the presidency on the platform of "making America great again" is unsettling to say the least...
I found it interesting that much of the book is about the religion Earthseed that Lauren is trying to get started in a post-apocalyptic world. I'm not sure I've read anything else that really grapples with the question of how you go about forming, sharing, and building a new belief system.
And like lots of other are saying the politician in the novel who wins a surprise upset to the presidency on the platform of "making America great again" is unsettling to say the least...
One of those terrifying post-apocalyptic imaginings of what our future as the human race might be -- and it's not pretty. I loved the premise and the setting.
This is one of those really challenging books to get through on an emotional level. Far more than any history book I've read, Octavia Butler takes the reader through an examination of the emotional and psychological tolls of slavery.
The main character, Dana, is living a normal live with her white husband, Kevin, in the 1970s, when she finds herself inexplicably time-traveling back to the site of one of her white ancestor's plantations to save his life. The plot evolves as Dana shuttles back and forth between times and tries to ensure both her own survival and the survival of her family.
One of the main themes of the book is how easy it is to get used to a system of oppression such as slavery (both from the perspective of the slave owner and the slave), and it's a point that Butler illustrates chillingly well. There are several scenes and mentions of physical and/or psychological violence that are hard to get through. Props to Butler for being able to navigate the reader through such a complex and emotionally-laden setting and plot.
See my full review here.
The main character, Dana, is living a normal live with her white husband, Kevin, in the 1970s, when she finds herself inexplicably time-traveling back to the site of one of her white ancestor's plantations to save his life. The plot evolves as Dana shuttles back and forth between times and tries to ensure both her own survival and the survival of her family.
One of the main themes of the book is how easy it is to get used to a system of oppression such as slavery (both from the perspective of the slave owner and the slave), and it's a point that Butler illustrates chillingly well. There are several scenes and mentions of physical and/or psychological violence that are hard to get through. Props to Butler for being able to navigate the reader through such a complex and emotionally-laden setting and plot.
See my full review here.
