Parable of the Talents

Earthseed, #2

by Octavia E. Butler

Paperback, 464 pages

English language

Published Jan. 26, 2000 by Grand Central Publishing.

ISBN:: 978-0-446-67578-9

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(77 reviews)

In 2032, Lauren Olamina has survived the destruction of her home and family, and realized her vision of a peaceful community in northern California based on her newly founded faith, Earthseed. The fledgling community provides refuge for outcasts facing persecution after the election of an ultra-conservative president who vows to "make America great again." In an increasingly divided and dangerous nation, Lauren's subversive colony–a minority religious faction led by a young black woman–becomes a target for President Jarret's reign of terror and oppression.

Years later, Asha Vere reads the journals of a mother she never knew, Lauren Olamina. As she searches for answers about her own past, she also struggles to reconcile with the legacy of a mother caught between her duty to her chosen family and her calling to lead humankind into a better future.

12 editions

reading crustacean reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler (Earthseed, #2)

a book I won't forget very soon

4 stars

the writing is fantastic. also there is more... story than in parable of the sower, definitely more things happening and also more hope. somebody (I forgot the source) wrote about this "parable of the sower is about problems, while parable of the talents is about solutions" and yeah, this seems true. it is also still about horrible, horrible problems. some of these chapters were really hard to get through.

also everything seems so realistic - the characters and the choices they have to face, but also the USA/world politics.

the earthseed verses feel so much on point by now. they're definitely the thing I will remember most. as religions go, it's a good one.

EDIT: I wanted to add, if you want to read this book, check out the Octavia's Parables podcast by adrienne maree brown and Toshi Reagon. It is worth it for the songs from the opera "parable …

also everything seems so realistic - the characters and the choices they have to face, but also the USA/world politics.

the earthseed verses feel so much on point by now. they're definitely the thing I will remember most. as religions go, it's a good one.

EDIT: I wanted to add, if you want to read this book, check out the Octavia's Parables podcast by adrienne maree brown and Toshi Reagon. It is worth it for the songs from the opera "parable of the sower" alone!

Julien Martlet reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler

Review of 'Parable of the Talents' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

3,75

Anuradha Reddy reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler (Earthseed, #2)

Fantastic read and too real!

5 stars

I loved the sequel as much as the first book. It's simultaneously tragic and utopian; I don't know how Butler (and other black women authors) does it!

outofrange reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler (Earthseed #2)

Feels like a history of a parallel universe

5 stars

Octavia Butler wrote with such iron-hard conviction and uncompromising vision, it's humbling and gripping to read. Her sense of human behavior on the individual and global scale is uncanny. I feel certain I've only gleaned a small portion of what her work has to offer.

capypokoymal reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler (Earthseed #2)

scientology origin story lol

3 stars

Content warning spoiler

i know im projecting, but i kept hoping that butler's sequels would have been different. instead, like in xenogenesis and many other scifi and fantasy sagas, the defeating of one enemy/the end of one conflict just meant the rising of a new one. and so the stories are always about death and rebirth and never about whatever comes after birth.

moreover, having earthseed being a religion drawn away even more of what could be the tiniest possibility of having a community-building/community-driven story. in fact, eventually, it was just about the rising of scientology. lol. for real.

on a personal note, i really dislikes asha vere. she got the chillest life ever compared to her moms and still was unable to show a hint of empathy towards her. olamina could have been as particular as you want, but giving her less than nothing while still grasping onto your uncle priest who abducted you was kind of grim.

finally, she was such a fucking good writer. like, literally, it's so hard to stop once you start reading anything of her. i wish she's happy and doing well, wherever she is. may her rest in power.

Martinza reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler

Review of 'Parable of the Talents' on 'Storygraph'

5 stars

Follows a small community and mainly their leader how they try to survive and re-establish under religious oppression. Partly pretty brutal, but it shows how a kinder way tries to persist . I cried sometimes.

Kind of a How to establish an opposing cult under christian nationalism

Ginny Wood reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler (Earthseed, #2)

Review of 'Parable of the Talents' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

Powerful

Powerful, and heartbreaking.

Also amazingly prescient. Butler died 10 years before Trump was elected but here he is in all his Christo-fascist glory.

Leaving_Marx@wyrmsign.org reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler

Review of 'Parable of the talents' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

Quick review. Really loved the first book and was happy to reconnect with the characters and hear what happens to them but this felt like it was enjoyable for wrapping up a story but didn't hit the same as the first book. I think sowers stands out as the strongest book in the series.

lijadora reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler

Review of 'Parable of the talents' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

See review of part 1 (parable of the sower).

Jonathan Zacsh reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler (Earthseed, #2)

Review of 'Parable of the Talents' on 'GoodReads'

5 stars

This series is amazing. I wish I could read what Butler would've produced for Parable of the Trickster

Trey Hunner reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler

Review of 'Parable of the talents' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

A dystopian future (2030's) plagued by a pandemic with a xenophobic president running on the slogan "make America great again", and the president's Christian extremist supporters aren't explicitly supported or admonished by then president. Slightly familiar.

I liked the different perspectives in this one. Unlike the first book, the variety of narrators in this sequel allowed the author to point out flaws (and perceived flaws) in the protagonist.

philipp reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler

Review of 'Parable of the talents' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

good book, although I found the many bible and religious references kind of tiring...

ManyRoads reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler

Review of 'Parable of the Talents' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

A tour de force.... once again Octavia Butler's ability to read and predict details of the future are amazing. Her view of today's world politics from her writing perspective in the late 1990s astonishes me. As always, her characters and their lives are real, uncertain, painful, and touching.

Laura Lemay reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler

Review of 'Parable of the Talents' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

I loved Parable of the Sower, as grim as it was, and found Butler's prediction of a society in the middle of collapsing very disturbing. "Talents" has some very interesting time and point of view shifts, but is not as compelling as "Sower." It is more uneven: still very grim, much more violent, and ..kind of dull?