Classic Sci-Fi: Should You Read It? is a self-imposed project in which I read pre-1990 science fiction novels and categorize them as “classis sci-fi you should read,” “classic sci-fi you should read if you’re all hardcore about it,” or “classic sci-fi you don’t have to read.” For background on my project, please see the introduction to my review of 1984.
I’m working on a review of Octavia E. Butler’s Dawn/Xenogenesis and struggling to place it in the context of all which came before it (relatively speaking). I love Octavia E. Butler–she’s probably one of my top five favorite authors–but some of her books are more accessible than others. I don’t recommend folks new to her writing dive straight into Xenogenisis, because it is WEIRD, y’all. I find her weirdness brave and interesting and delightful, but maybe not for the uninitiated. So in an effort to initiate you and help you answer any “Should You Read It?” questions, here’s a quick synopsis of four Butler novels:
Kindred
Probably Butler’s most famous novel, about a Black woman, Dana, who is repeatedly pulled back in time to rescue her white ancestor from various dangers, on the plantation where his family owns her Black ancestors. Yowza. This is, of course, very dangerous for Dana, and pretty weird when she also pulls her white husband back in time with her, and even weirder when she has to decide whether or not to alter history and help her Black ancestors escape, when it means she may never exist. Things get complicated.
One of Butler’s recurring themes is the Surviver Hero: a person who accepts change and compromise with those in power and works within disenfranchised systems to survive. This is one of Butler’s unique themes in the genre: a Black woman in the 70s writing about a Black woman who gets yanked back in time and uses her familiarity with unjust systems to keep going. Butler was one of the only classic sci-fi authors who could write her own experiences as such a survivor right into her protagonists. They very clearly exist in the context of all in which they live and came before them.
Originally I classified Kindred as “read if you’re hardcore,” because, though the thought experiments are really interesting, the exposition and dialog can be a little clunky at times. And, thought I several years ago before the recent attempts to not teach any US history that might make white kids feel weird, do we really need a realistic depiction of the horrors of slavery, now? In 1979 I’m sure this was really impactful but we all get it NOW, right?
Apparently not. Kindred is classic sci-fi you should read. Put it on the high school reading list.
Parable of the Sower (and the Talents)
I decided I must read everything by Octavia E. Butler after I read Parable of the Sower. Now that I’m trying to sum it up in just a paragraph, maybe I can’t, but here’s my try: it’s about a Black young woman, Lauren, in a dystopian future that is surprisingly similar to our present, y’all, even though this novel was written in ’93. We’re talking climate change, socio-economic stratification, and even a celebrity running for president whose slogan is basically “Make America great again.” It’s eerie. Lauren is a super-empath, which means she feels nearby people’s sensations and emotions, which is complicated when she needs to fight for her life, because she feels every hurt she inflicts. Lauren is displaced from her home and forms a found-family on the road, where she starts spreading the proverbs she writes, many of which start with “God is change.” Lauren starts a religion, EarthSeed, that teaches change is the only constant, and that accepting and influencing change is a valuable survival power. The teachings are surprisingly fitting and soothing for Lauren’s time, Octavia’s time, and now. “All that you touch you change. All that you change changes you.” The sequel, Parable of the Talents (1998), tells the continuing history of Lauren, her daughter, her family, the EarthSeed religion, and its tenet that humans are destined to populate other planets.
Both the Parable novels were written in the 90s and are therefore outside the scope of my Classic Sci-Fi project, but Parable of the Sower is prescient, interesting, creates a fascinating in-world religion (one that has shaped my personal philosophy, honestly), and comes from a valuable voice in the genre. I have to recommend this novel; it’s classic sci-fi you should read.
(Related: my personal recommendation on Dune is to read it if you’re hardcore, and that fans of Dune‘s interesting sci-fi religion should check out Parable of the Sower instead.)
Wild Seed
We’re getting into it now y’all. Wild Seed is the fourth in the Patternist book series, but first in that universe’s chronology. This book is bonkers. The synopsis from Wikipedia sums it up: “Set in Africa and America during the 17th century, Wild Seed traces the struggle between the four-thousand-year-old parapsychological vampire Doro and his ‘wild’ child and bride, the three-hundred-year-old shapeshifter and healer Anyanwu.” Buckle up. God, I love Octavia E. Butler.
So immortal Doro, who survives by taking over any existing human body he desires, wants to create a breed of super-humans and is interested in Anyanwu because she can assume the form of any human or animal. Anyanwu is initially convinced to participate because she doesn’t want to watch any children die. Doro eventually reveals himself to be brutal and controlling, but in keeping with Butler’s themes of the Survivor Hero, Anyanwu must deal with him sometimes to survive and keep her loved ones safe. Because both Doro and Anyanwu can take the form of any human, of any gender (and sometimes of animals), shit gets weird. And because Doro and Anyanwu are both immortal, over the centuries they become the only constant in each other’s lives. They eventually use this bond to work out a compromise and continue to cultivate super humans.
Another Butler theme is the rebuilding or remaking of humans–humans mixed with anything different or strange such as mutations, magic, or aliens “to correct the sociobiological causes of hierarchical violence.” Hell yeah, Octavia. This theme definitely comes up in Xenogenesis.
I’m still going to read all of her books, but Wild Seed is pretty strange. Read it if you’re all hardcore.