In a projected near future novel, an author always takes a risk that they may live to see the timeline they are writing about. Butler didn’t quite make it, but she came close. The danger in this is, of course, that you are way off the mark and your writings and speculations seem ridiculous. I think Butler would despair in seeing just how close we’ve come to realizing her dystopian vision, but I also think she’d breath a big sigh of relief at what we haven’t done….yet.
This is a second book in a duo-logy, so I may inadvertently give things away from the first book, Parable of the Sower. I hope to keep any spoilers to a minimum. This second book begins close to where the first one left off, except we immediately are given a fresh point of view. This new point of view is jarring because it doesn’t quite fit with the original POV we were used to in Sower. This new look begins each chapter with commentary and at times feels contentious, bitter, and biased. It doesn’t paint Lauren in the best light. Even though Lauren was very critical of herself in her writings from Sower, she was still the protagonist and still had a healthy sense of self. This new POV places blame, which is new, and is a brilliant tactic by Butler to give the reader a new twist. We do get quickly back into Lauren’s writings, but we now have a harsh critic of her choices going forward.
The legacy of Lauren’s upbringing continues to be a major factor in her writings. She couches her teachings in the style of parables and this is a direct influence of her father. Butler uses these parables to frame the action and give us little clues to the upcoming narrative.
Butler’s thematic vision includes the ability of people to overcome adversity to form a community and sense of place to the displaced. This being a dystopian novel, it should come as no surprise that this idealistic and idyllic outlook does not last. Horrible things happen. Really horrible things. Butler pulls no punches and gives the reader some of the most horrific scenes I’ve ever read. This isn’t horror in the traditional sense. It’s the horror of knowing that what people are capable of doing to each other, they will do under the right circumstances. It’s a horror knowing that under the right circumstances, others will turn a blind eye.
Because this is a parable, and it’s the beginnings of a religion, religion is a big topic thematically. Butler doesn’t hold back with her views on current organized religions. Through Lauren, she skewers the status quo, specifically focusing on the Christian right and their theology. It would be easy to say she was prescient with her words based upon current events, but I assure you the views she’s railing against were quite prevalent at the time this was written. Science fiction has always been a commentary on the times it is written in, and rightfully so. You may be concerned that some of the views she points out are more worrisome than back then, and you may be right, but you may also be just more sensitive to the current atmosphere. Either, these social situations fuel Lauren’s drive to make Earth Seed greater. Her drive to do this also empowers her enemies to take harsh measures to stop her.
The last third of the book does seem a bit rushed, and some of the narrative is left without resolution. I had heard rumors that there was supposed to be a third book in this series that never got written, so I wonder if that played into some of the decisions toward to end. It wasn’t a negative for my enjoyment of this story though. Butler’s prose is fantastic. She really knows how to pull the reader into the story through the letters of her characters. The engagement engendered by this style is second to none, and Butler uses it to maximum effect.
