Parable of the Talents

by Octavia E. Butler

Paperback, 365 pages

English language

Published July 1, 2001 by Women's Press Ltd,The.

ISBN:: 978-0-7043-4682-6

(103 reviews)

Environmental devastation and economic chaos have turned America into a land of depravity. Taking advantage of the situation, a zealous bigot wins his way into the White House. Lauren Olamina leads a new faith group directly opposed to the new government. This is the story of the group's struggle to preserve its vision.

As the government turns a blind eye to the violent bigots who consider a black female leader a threat, Lauren Olamina must either sacrifice her child and her followers or forsake her religion. The plot contains profanity, sexual situations and violence,

15 editions

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

All that you touch, you change

5 stars

I fought my way through Parable of the Talents, not because it isn’t masterful - it is - but because Octavia Butler’s writing unflinchingly covers ideas and traumas that have become more relevant in the time since its publication. Butler was a soothsayer, unfortunately able to accurately predict the future based on the treatment of people in her present. It’s a harrowing read with obvious parallels to our current right-wing context. But it wasn’t until the epilogue that it completely destroyed me. This is a human story at its heart, with living, breathing characters who love and yearn, sometimes messily. It’s real, for every definition of real. I fought my way through Parable of the Talents, not because it isn’t masterful - it is - but because Octavia Butler’s writing unflinchingly covers ideas and traumas that have become more relevant in the time since its publication. Butler was a soothsayer, unfortunately able to accurately predict the future based on the treatment of people in her present. It’s a harrowing read with obvious parallels to our current right-wing context. But it wasn’t until the epilogue that it completely destroyed me. This is a human story at its heart, with living, breathing characters who love and yearn, sometimes messily. It’s real, for every definition of real.

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

Great sequel

5 stars

The second (and unfortunately last) Earthseed book addresses most of the things that bugged me about the first one. Changing the perspective of the narration to Olamina’s daughter and thus a retrospective and slightly academic one is a real masterstroke. It continues the themes of the first book, especially how you have to build community - and a large one - to survive. What also struck me was how well the book conveys the lifelong pain of deeds that seem small in the grand scale of it. This is the one where a guy, running a hateful election campaign with the slogan "Make America Great Again“ becomes President. It's interesting that Butler thought that it would take a lot of societal collapse and an established religious figure to do it. Some people close to Olamina end up voting for him or supporting him and she shows that conflict in a …

Jenny Jaybles reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler

Somehow Hopeful with all it's darkness

5 stars

I was expecting to be way more triggered and upset by this book than I was but probably because all the trigger warnings about the book had adequately prepared me to emotionally handle it. It's a great book and I am a little sad she did not get to write the third one to complete the series but I am satisfied with the ending. The two books are really interesting, beautiful and contemplative. It is also really freaky the predictions she made about what she called Christan America but what has become the Far Right in our time. It is so frightening. She saw that shit for what it was and it is scary as hell. But she ends the book with so much hope and that is beautiful.

Geoff reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler

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

4 stars

It cuts between perspectives and timelines, sometimes from the protagonist of the first novel, and sometimes from her adult daughter many years later. This is a clever trick for an epistolary novel. The struggles of the mother carry more weight as we have information she does not, information about her own future.

Having finished the pair, it is obvious to me why these stories are on so many favorites lists. They are deeply though-provoking, deeply compassionate, and ultimately deeply hopeful. I really needed some of that right now.

I immediately followed The Parable of the Sower with this, its sequel and conclusion. This book is more cynical than Sower, perhaps in answer to criticism, or perhaps because it comes from the mind of an older author.

It cuts between perspectives and timelines, sometimes from the protagonist of the first novel, and sometimes from her adult daughter many years later. This is a clever trick for an epistolary novel. The struggles of the mother carry more weight as we have information she does not, information about her own future.

Having finished the pair, it is obvious to me why these stories are on so many favorites lists. They are deeply though-provoking, deeply compassionate, and ultimately deeply hopeful. I really needed some of that right now.

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!

lukethelibrarian reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler

Jaw-droppingly prescient

5 stars

Jaw-droppingly prescient for a novel written 25 years ago. "Hunting for scapegoats is always popular in times of serious trouble," notes Butler in an interview in the afterword of this edition. "So is hunting for the great leader who will restore prosperity and stability... He turns his true believers - his thugs - loose on those he chooses as scapegoats and he looks around for an external enemy to use as an even bigger scapegoat and a diversion from the reality that he doesn't really know what to do. Because of him, innocent people lose their freedom, lose custody of their children, lose their lives."

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.

periwinkleReads reviewed Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler

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

5 stars

A gift.

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.