Octavia E. Butler

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About Octavia E. Butler

OCTAVIA E. BUTLER (1947-2006) was the renowned author of numerous ground-breaking novels, including Kindred, Wild Seed, and Parable of the Sower. Recipient of the Locus, Hugo and Nebula awards, and a PEN Lifetime Achievement Award for her body of work, in 1995 she became the first science- fiction writer to receive the MacArthur Fellowship 'Genius Grant'. A pioneer of her genre, Octavia's dystopian novels explore myriad themes of Black injustice, women's rights, global warming and political disparity, and her work is taught in over two hundred colleges and universities nationwide.

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Kindred Feb 1, 2004

by Octavia E. Butler

( 6,269 )

$9.99

The visionary author’s masterpiece pulls us—along with her Black female hero—through time to face the horrors of slavery and explore the impacts of racism, sexism, and white supremacy then and now.

Dana, a modern black woman, is celebrating her twenty-sixth birthday with her new husband when she is snatched abruptly from her home in California and transported to the antebellum South. Rufus, the white son of a plantation owner, is drowning, and Dana has been summoned to save him. Dana is drawn back repeatedly through time to the slave quarters, and each time the stay grows longer, more arduous, and more dangerous until it is uncertain whether or not Dana's life will end, long before it has a chance to begin.

Other Formats: Audible Audiobook , Hardcover , Paperback , Audio CD , Textbook Binding

Parable of the Talents Jul 24, 2012

by Octavia E. Butler

( 2,083 )

$11.99

Winner of the Nebula Award for Best Novel: The powerful and compelling sequel to the dystopian classic Parable of the Sower

Lauren Olamina was only eighteen when her family was killed, and anarchy encroached on her Southern California home. She fled the war zone for the hope of quiet and safety in the north. There she founded Acorn, a peaceful community based on a religion of her creation, called Earthseed, whose central tenet is that God is change. Five years later, Lauren has married a doctor and given birth to a daughter. Acorn is beginning to thrive. But outside the tranquil group’s walls, America is changing for the worse.

Presidential candidate Andrew Steele Jarret wins national fame by preaching a return to the values of the American golden age. To his marauding followers, who are identified by their crosses and black robes, this is a call to arms to end religious tolerance and racial equality—a brutal doctrine they enforce by machine gun. And as this band of violent extremists sets its deadly sights on Earthseed, Acorn is plunged into a harrowing fight for its very survival.

Taking its place alongside Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, Butler’s eerily prophetic novel offers a terrifying vision of our potential future, but also one of hope.

This ebook features an illustrated biography of Octavia E. Butler including rare images from the author’s estate.

Other Formats: Audible Audiobook , Hardcover , Paperback , Mass Market Paperback , Preloaded Digital Audio Player

This title and over 1 million more available with Kindle Unlimited.

Parable of the Sower Jul 24, 2012

by Octavia E. Butler

( 5,153 )

$10.70

A New York Times Notable Book: In 2025, with the world descending into madness and anarchy, one woman begins a fateful journey toward a better future.

“A stunner.” —Flea, musician and actor, TheWall Street Journal

Lauren Olamina and her family live in one of the only safe neighborhoods remaining on the outskirts of Los Angeles. Behind the walls of their defended enclave, Lauren’s father, a preacher, and a handful of other citizens try to salvage what remains of a culture that has been destroyed by drugs, disease, war, and chronic water shortages. While her father tries to lead people on the righteous path, Lauren struggles with hyperempathy, a condition that makes her extraordinarily sensitive to the pain of others.

When fire destroys their compound, Lauren’s family is killed and she is forced out into a world that is fraught with danger. With a handful of other refugees, Lauren must make her way north to safety, along the way conceiving a revolutionary idea that may mean salvation for all mankind.

This ebook features an illustrated biography of Octavia E. Butler including rare images from the author’s estate.

Other Formats: Audible Audiobook , Hardcover , Paperback , Mass Market Paperback , Audio CD

This title and over 1 million more available with Kindle Unlimited.

Lilith's Brood: The Complete Xenogenesis Trilogy (The Xenogenesis Trilogy) Jul 24, 2012

by Octavia E. Butler

( 1,413 )

$3.99

The complete series about an alien species that could save humanity after nuclear apocalypse—or destroy it—from “one of science fiction’s finest writers” (The New York Times).

The newest stage in human evolution begins in outer space. Survivors of a cataclysmic nuclear war awake to find themselves being studied by the Oankali, tentacle-covered galactic travelers whose benevolent appearance hides their surprising plan for the future of mankind. The Oankali arrive not just to save humanity, but to bond with it—crossbreeding to form a hybrid species that can survive in the place of its human forebears, who were so intent on self-destruction. Some people resist, forming pocket communities of purebred rebellion, but many realize they have no choice. The human species inevitably expands into something stranger, stronger, and undeniably alien. From Hugo and Nebula award–winning author Octavia Butler, Lilith’s Brood is both a thrilling, epic adventure of man’s struggle to survive after Earth’s destruction, and a provocative meditation on what it means to be human.
This ebook features an illustrated biography of Octavia E. Butler including rare images from the author’s estate.

Other Formats: Library Binding , Paperback

Adulthood Rites (The Xenogenesis Trilogy Book 2) Jul 24, 2012

by Octavia E. Butler

( 416 )

$8.69

The futures of both mankind and an alien species rest in the hands of one hybrid son in the award-winning science fiction author’s masterful sequel to Dawn.

Nuclear war had nearly destroyed mankind when the Oankali came to the rescue, saving humanity—but at a price. The Oankali survive by mixing their DNA with that of other species, and now on Earth they have permitted no child to be born without an Oankali parent. The first true hybrid is a boy named Akin—son of Lilith Iyapo— and to the naked eye he looks human, for now. He is born with extraordinary sensory powers, understanding speech at birth, speaking in sentences at two months old, and soon developing the ability to see at the molecular level. More powerful than any human or Oankali, he will be the architect of both races’ intergalactic future. But before he can carry this new species into the stars, Akin must decide which unlucky souls will stay behind.

At once a coming-of-age story, science fiction adventure, and philosophical exploration, Butler’s ambitious and breathtaking novel ultimately raises the question of what it means to be human. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Octavia E. Butler including rare images from the author’s estate.

Other Formats: Audible Audiobook , Paperback , Mass Market Paperback , MP3 CD

Imago (The Xenogenesis Trilogy Book 3) Jul 24, 2012

by Octavia E. Butler

( 559 )

$7.99

The stunning conclusion to a postapocalyptic trilogy about an alien species merging with humans—from “one of science fiction’s finest writers” (TheNew York Times).
Human and Oankali have been mating since the aliens first came to Earth to rescue the few survivors of an annihilating nuclear war. The Oankali began a massive breeding project, guided by the ooloi, a sexless subspecies capable of manipulating DNA, in the hope of eventually creating a perfect starfaring race. Jodahs is supposed to be just another hybrid of human and Oankali, but as he begins his transformation to adulthood he finds himself becoming ooloi—the first ever born to a human mother. As his body changes, Jodahs develops the ability to shapeshift, manipulate matter, and cure or create disease at will. If this frightened young man is able to master his new identity, Jodahs could prove the savior of what’s left of mankind. Or, if he is not careful, he could become a plague that will destroy this new race once and for all.

Readers of Ursula K. Le Guin and N. K. Jemisin will be fascinated by bestselling author Octavia Butler’s thought-provoking and compelling vision of humanity.
This ebook features an illustrated biography of Octavia E. Butler including rare images from the author’s estate.

Other Formats: Audible Audiobook , Hardcover , Paperback , Mass Market Paperback , MP3 CD

Bloodchild: And Other Stories Jul 24, 2012

by Octavia E. Butler

( 835 )

$9.99

Six extraordinary stories from the author of Kindred, a master of modern science fiction—including a Hugo and Nebula award–winning novella.

Octavia E. Butler’s classic “Bloodchild,” winner of both the Nebula and Hugo awards, anchors this collection of incomparable stories and essays. “Bloodchild” is set on a distant planet where human children spend their lives preparing to become hosts for the offspring of the alien Tlic. Sometimes the procedure is harmless, but often it is not. Also included is the Hugo Award–winning “Speech Sounds,” about a near future in which humans must adapt after an apocalyptic event robs them of their ability to speak. “The Evening and the Morning and the Night,” another esteemed title in this collection, is a Nebula Award finalist. In these pages, Butler shows us life on Earth and amongst the stars, telling her tales with characteristic imagination and clarity. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Octavia E. Butler including rare images from the author’s estate.

Other Formats: Audible Audiobook , Paperback , MP3 CD , Textbook Binding

This title and over 1 million more available with Kindle Unlimited.

Seed to Harvest: The Complete Patternist Series (The Patternist Series) Jul 24, 2012

by Octavia E. Butler

( 913 )

$3.99

The complete Patternist series—the acclaimed science fiction epic of a world transformed by a secret race of telepaths and their devastating rise to power.
In the late seventeenth century, two immortals meet in an African forest. Anyanwu is a healer, a three-hundred-year-old woman who uses her wisdom to help those around her. The other is Doro, a malevolent despot who has mastered the power of stealing the bodies of others when his wears out. Together they will change the world. Over the next three centuries, Doro mounts a colossal selective breeding project, attempting to create a master race of telepaths. He succeeds beyond his wildest dreams, splitting the human race down the middle and establishing a new world order dominated by the most manipulative minds on Earth. In these four novels, award-winning author Octavia E. Butler tells the classic story that began her legendary career: a mythic tale of the transformation of civilization. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Octavia E. Butler including rare images from the author’s estate.

Other Formats: Paperback

This title and over 1 million more available with Kindle Unlimited.

Mind of My Mind (The Patternist Series Book 2) Jul 24, 2012

by Octavia E. Butler

( 398 )

$7.99

From “one of science fiction’s finest writers”: A young woman with tremendous psychic power battles to set a new course for mankind (The New York Times).
The baby’s name is Mary, and her father is immortal. For thousands of years he has orchestrated a selective breeding project, attempting to create a master race capable of controlling others through thought. Most of his attempts have resulted in volatile mutations, but Mary—whom he has raised in the rough part of a Southern California town—is the closest he has come to perfection. If he doesn’t handle her carefully, this greatest experiment will be his last. As Mary comes of age, she begins to grow aware of her psychic powers. And when she learns of her father’s plans for her, she refuses to acquiesce. She challenges him to a psychic war, battling to free her people and set a new course for mankind.

Multiple Nebula and Hugo award–winning author Octavia Butler’s epic and thought-provoking Patternist series has fascinated generations of readers, exploring the effects of power and what it means to be human. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Octavia E. Butler including rare images from the author’s estate.

Other Formats: Audible Audiobook , Hardcover , Paperback , Mass Market Paperback , MP3 CD

Unexpected Stories Jun 24, 2014

by Octavia E. Butler, Walter Mosley

( 249 )

$7.99

An NPR Books Great Read: Two never-before-published stories from the archives of one of science fiction’s all-time masters.

The novella “A Necessary Being” showcases Octavia E. Butler’s ability to create alien yet fully believable “others.” Tahneh’s father was a Hao, one of a dwindling race whose leadership abilities render them so valuable that their members are captured and forced to govern. When her father dies, Tahneh steps into his place, both chief and prisoner, and for twenty years has ruled without ever meeting another of her kind. She bears her loneliness privately until the day that a Hao youth is spotted wandering into her territory. As her warriors sharpen their weapons, Tahneh must choose between imprisoning the newcomer—and living the rest of her life alone.

The second story in this volume, “Childfinder,” was commissioned by Harlan Ellison for his legendary (and never-published) anthology The Last Dangerous Visions™. A disaffected telepath connects with a young girl in a desperate attempt to help her harness her growing powers. But in the richly evocative fiction of Octavia E. Butler, mentorship is a rocky path, and every lesson comes at a price.

The award-winning author of science fiction classics Parable of the Sower and Kindred bestows these compelling, long lost gems “like the miraculous discovery that the beloved book you’ve read a dozen times has an extra chapter” (Los Angeles Review of Books).
Harlan Ellison and Dangerous Visions are registered trademarks of the Kilimanjaro Corporation. All rights reserved.

Other Formats: Hardcover

Earthseed: The Complete Series May 16, 2017

by Octavia E. Butler

( 313 )

$20.99

A multiple Hugo and Nebula Award winner’s powerful saga of survival and destiny in a near-future dystopian America.

One of the world’s most respected authors of science fiction imagines an apocalyptic near-future Earth where a remarkable young woman discovers that her destiny calls her to try and change the world around her. Octavia E. Butler’s brilliant two-volume Earthseed saga offers a startling vision of an all-too-possible tomorrow, in which walls offer no protection from a civilization gone mad.

Parable of the Sower: In the aftermath of worldwide ecological and economic apocalypse, minister’s daughter Lauren Oya Olamina escapes the slaughter that claims the lives of her family and nearly every other member of their gated California community. Heading north with two young companions through an American wasteland, the courageous young woman faces dangers at every turn while spreading the word of a remarkable new religion that embraces survival and change.

Parable of the Talents: Called to the new, hard truth of Earthseed, the small community of the dispossessed that now surrounds Lauren Olamina looks to her—their leader—for guidance. But when the evil that has grown out of the ashes of human society destroys all she has built, the prophet is forced to choose between preserving her faith or her family.

The Earthseed novels cement Butler’s reputation as “one of the finest voices in fiction—period” (TheWashington Post Book World). Stunningly prescient and breathtakingly relevant to our times, this dark vision of a future America is a masterwork of powerful speculation that ushers us into a broken, dangerously divided world of bigotry, social inequality, mob violence, and ultimately hope.

Clay's Ark (The Patternist Series Book 3) Jul 24, 2012

by Octavia E. Butler

( 229 )

$7.99

In a “haunting, apocalyptic, compelling” near future, one man and his daughters must stop an alien virus from becoming a deadly global epidemic (Essence).
Blake Maslin and his two daughters are driving to Flagstaff when bandits swarm their car. At gunpoint, the marauders kidnap one of Blake’s children, promising to keep her safe in return for medical care. Warily, the doctor goes with them, not realizing that he has just taken the first step down a terrifying path that will consume his life. The gunmen take him deep into the desert, to a colony of people infected with a gruesome alien disease. It causes weakness, sallow skin, and birth defects so horrible that the children who suffer them cannot rightly be called human. The victims have quarantined themselves in the desert lest their illness spread and doom mankind. But as their willingness to accept isolation falters, Blake becomes the last hope for the survival of an uncontaminated Earth.

Octavia E. Butler’s groundbreaking and award-winning science fiction and dystopian novels have inspired generations of readers all over the world. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Octavia E. Butler including rare images from the author’s estate.

Other Formats: Audible Audiobook , Hardcover , Paperback , Mass Market Paperback , MP3 CD

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