Octavia E. Butler was a fabulous sci-fi author who wrote a decent number of sci-fi books that have influenced the genre to this day. While, sadly, she’s no longer with us to put out more groundbreaking novels, you can delve into her works this year to broaden your horizons.
You may not have heard of Octavia E. Butler because she passed away in 2006, but she produced a fair number of sci-fi books in her time alongside non-fiction, short stories, and even some tragically incomplete works that will never be finished. I often find that if you’re looking for something new to read that’ll pique your interest and inject new themes into the genre you might be a little exhausted of, you’re best off reading older books that were around before the tropes you’re growing tired of.
The best Octavia E. Butler books you should be reading this year
Below, I’ve listed the best Octavia E. Butler books you should dive into this year. They’re all sci-fi and well worth your time, regardless of whether you’re just getting into the genre or have read what feels like everything in it available from your local bookstore.
Note that many of these are part of a series that Butler wrote, so I’ve listed them in order here because you should absolutely get into them, but they need to be read from start to finish to fully appreciate the sheer scope of the author’s storytelling.
10. Wild Seed (Patternist Series #1)
Wild Seed is the first entry in the Patternist series and tells the tale of two impossible beings meeting and forging a destiny that not even immortals can imagine. The most interesting thing about this book is the relationship between the two main characters, Doro and Anyanwu, who each have powerful gifts and are equally suspicious of each other from the word go. It creates a tension you can’t resist turning to the next page.
9. Mind of my Mind (Patternist Series #2)
Mind of my Mind follows Doro’s plans through to a new generation in a sickeningly fascinating way that only great sci-fi can achieve. It’s also a story of a creator ultimately failing to control their creations and explores the results of that amid immortal beings and telepaths in a modernist society. You see, Doro is now about 4,000 years old and thinks it controls everything, but one telepath is about to ruin its plans to continue living forever.
8. Clay’s Ark (Patternist Series #3)
Clay’s Ark really is a wild ride. It’s a pretty sudden shift from the previous Patternist books to an even more dystopic future where most of humanity lives as ‘car families.’ These nomadic groups just drive about eking out an existence, but a few are disappearing, having been taken hostage by a mysterious stranger infected with an alien virus. This book has huge consequences for the world and maintains that gross sci-fi edge that you can’t help but dive into and not stop reading until you hit the end.
7. Survivor (Patternist Series #4)
Survivor is an early novel that Butler wrote, and she described it as her Star Trek novel. She didn’t like the story much, but it fits in the Patternist series after Clay’s Ark. If you want to get the full picture of everything going on in this universe, you should read it. Note that because this book hasn’t been reprinted, it’s pretty rare and valuable. I’d recommend keeping an eye out for it in second-hand bookstores or borrowing a copy where possible.
The story follows a group of missionaries fleeing a plague on Earth as they come into contact with an alien species. The protagonist, an adopted daughter of the missionaries’ leader, must work to help her group avoid assimilation at the hands of this alien race by drawing on her experiences as an adopted child.
6. Patternmaster (Patternist Series #5)
The final book in the Patternist series but the first to be published, Patternmaster shows you what has become of Doro’s plans in the distant future. The alien disease has created a race of mutants known as the Calyarks, sworn enemies of the superior telepathic Patternists who dominate enslaved human mutes. This is a coming-of-age story for a young Patternist who realizes he’s got the potential to become the next Patternmaster in this incredibly broken world.
5. Kindred
Kindred is a story frequently studied in US high schools because it analyzes slave narratives. It tells the impossible story of Dana, a young black woman who begins falling through time and must piece together the tales around her using the information she gleans from each scenario she encounters. If you want something mind-bending that also feels grounded, this book is it.
4. Fledgling
Fledgling is a really interesting novel that explores the Ina, a race that’s very much like humans but needs to drink our blood to survive. This book’s gripping tale of clan-like families going to war over little more than the color of the protagonist’s skin.
You can also see a lot of vampire mythos originating here, which is what I find most interesting about it The main character can heal quickly, is incredibly strong, can tame humans to do her bidding, and even demonstrates the perfect way to kill one of her own kind. It highlights the brutality of our own past while exploring what a vampire story is like when you give it a sci-fi hook.
3. Bloodchild and Other Stories
You aren’t ready for the short stories you’ll read in Butler’s Bloodchild and Other Stories, but you owe it to yourself to open your mind and explore them nonetheless. This book consists of four stories, but it’s Bloodchild you need to read it for. It tells the story of how humans have effectively been herded into a preserve on an alien world and are forced to choose which of their children will carry one of the native aliens’ eggs.
This story should not be read while eating because you won’t be able to stop turning its pages. It doesn’t go full Alien but it does explore pretty much every aspect you can think of for this situation.
2. Parable of the Sower (Earthseed Series #1)
The Earthseed series is regarded as Butler’s best work. It all begins with Parable of the Sower, which happens to begin in 2024 if you really want to scare yourself. The Earth is in turmoil due to climate change reaching a critical point and wealth inequality crippling many. Sound familiar?
You follow Lauren, a young African American teenager who has been left with the incredible ability to feel the sensations and emotions of others around her, particularly negative ones. As inequality spreads, Lauren realizes she has only one choice: to escape to the north and acquire one of the rare paid jobs by following what she sees as her own new religion, Earthseed, and that God is change.
1. Parable of the Talents (Earthseed Series #2)
Parable of the Talents is a dark look at the Earth’s future under a leader who isn’t unlike a past US President. This time, we follow a few protagonists, including Lauren, as their peaceful lives are upturned in the most horrific ways possible. Humanity is a mess in this book, with people opting to use VR masks to escape the harsh realities of life in some cases.
Parable of the Talents has some pretty serious themes, but it’s worth reading if you want to see the hope that rises out of the darkness. It explores how flawed humanity is, how broken our systems are today, and how we can achieve anything if we have enough faith to see our dreams through.
