Octavia E. Butler's Parable of the sower

Damian Duffy

Book - 2020

In the year 2024, the country is marred by unattended environmental and economic crises that lead to social chaos. Lauren Olamina, a preacher's daughter living in Los Angeles, is protected from danger by the walls of her gated community. However, in a night of fire and death, what begins as a fight for survival soon leads to something much more: a startling vision of human destiny . . . and the birth of a new faith.

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GRAPHIC NOVEL/Butler
2 / 2 copies available
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Subjects
Genres
Graphic novels
Graphic novel adaptations
Apocalyptic comics
Published
New York : Abrams ComicArts 2020.
Language
English
Main Author
Damian Duffy (author)
Other Authors
Octavia E. Butler (-), John Jennings, 1970- (artist), Nalo Hopkinson (writer of introduction)
Physical Description
v, 266 pages : chiefly illustrations (colour) ; 25 cm
ISBN
9781419731334
Contents unavailable.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

This nimble graphic adaptation of Butler's 1993 novel of capitalism-ravaged California feels alarmingly prescient and relevant. Duffy and Jennings (Kindred) skillfully rework the tale told through the eyes of teenage empath Lauren Oya Olamina, who navigates a world transformed by drought, gun violence, and exploitation. Lauren, daughter of a preacher, pushes back against her family and friends, who naively hope life will return to the good old days. "The old days aren't coming back," Lauren says, as she shares her own spiritual message, the Earthseed, which declares "God is Change." The adaptation captures the heart of Butler's message: survival depends on evolution, but also on breaking through isolation to build communities of trust and love. Jennings's color palette flames with reds, oranges, and yellows, evoking both vibrant Los Angeles sunsets and the city choked with smoke and fire. His blocky, busy line work portrays the brutal violence of Lauren's life (mobs of desperate people commit murder, rape, and mutilation every day) without lingering on the gore or turning the empathetic story into a grotesque thriller. Instead, the pain Lauren witnesses and feels as she travels across the state reinforces her resolve to become a leader. This accessible adaptation is poised to introduce Butler's dystopian tale to a new generation of readers. (Jan.)

(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review

In a postapocalyptic CA, teenager Lauren leaves what's left of her family to trek north, away from the chaos and death toward a hopefully safer place to live. Developing her own religion she calls "Earthseed," she shares her ideas with friends and allies she gathers along the way. Adapted from Butler's searing dystopian novel in blocky art with colors of flame and earth.

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