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Wild Seed
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
100 posts | 96 read | 7 reading | 112 to read
When two immortals meet in the long-ago past, the destiny of mankind is changed foreverFor a thousand years, Doro has cultivated a small African village, carefully breeding its people in search of seemingly unattainable perfection. He survives through the centuries by stealing the bodies of others, a technique he has so thoroughly mastered that nothing on Earth can kill him. But when a gang of New World slavers destroys his village, ruining his grand experiment, Doro is forced to go west and begin anew.He meets Anyanwu, a centuries-old woman whose means of immortality are as kind as his are cruel. She is a shapeshifter, capable of healing with a kiss, and she recognizes Doro as a tyrant. Though many humans have tried to kill them, these two demi-gods have never before met a rival. Now they begin a struggle that will last centuries and permanently alter the nature of humanity. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Octavia E. Butler including rare images from the authors estate.
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review
Kenyazero
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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Anyanwu and Doro are powerful, immortal, godlike beings who may or may not be human. What a wild, up and down ride with a slow burn satisfying (?) payoff. It was a lot of fun seeing the ways that Anyanwu challenged Doro, and I loved the insight we got into her body-focused powers (which reminded me of the Ooloi from Butler‘s Xenogenesis saga). Used for my before I was born prompt for #RushathonChristmasBingo. #Classic #SciFi #Spirits

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Kenyazero
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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Finished the last book of my first #RushathonChristmasBingo bingo! I‘m close to two others so far, but I don‘t think I‘ll get that 400+ pages prompt. #BookBingo

willaful I'm pretty dubious about that one too. 😁 3mo
Kenyazero @willaful Glad I‘m not the only one! 😆 3mo
PuddleJumper Oh yeah, 400+ pages won't get done! 🤣 3mo
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willaful Oh, my team read turns out to be over 400 pages! It's a pretty easy read too.

@Kenyazero
3mo
Kenyazero @willaful Haha noted! When you‘re dyslexic, nothing is an easy read 😆 3mo
willaful Oh that's rough! Do dyslexic fonts on ereaders help at all? 3mo
Kenyazero @willaful I haven‘t used it much, actually, so I am still undecided on that. I don‘t do as much ereading (not because I avoid it, I just don‘t somehow) 3mo
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Kenyazero
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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I'm close to my first bingo for #RushathonChristmasBingo as I work on finishing Wild Seed (my published before I was born pick). #RushathonBingo

Andrew65 Doing brilliantly! 🎄🎄🎄 4mo
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Kenyazero
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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My husband had several seizures yesterday (he had a first back in 2019) and is in the ICU last night and tonight to evaluate any further seizure activity.
I spooled these books up earlier this week for #RushathonChristmasBingo, but now I think I'm going to need something a lot lighter to read!

Ruthiella Hoping first the best possible outcome for you and your husband. ❤️ 4mo
Dilara This must be a very stressful time. I hope everything goes well. 4mo
batsy I hope everything goes well 💐 4mo
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LiteraryinLawrence I‘m so sorry you‘re both going through this. 💗💗 4mo
Reggie This is late but I hope he‘s ok. 4mo
Kenyazero @Ruthiella @Dilara @batsy @LiteraryinLawrence @Reggie Thank you all for your supportive thoughts ♥️ after 2 nights in the ICU and 1 in a general hospital wing, my husband is back home and recovering smoothly. 4mo
Ruthiella @Kenyazero Great news. Thanks for letting us know. 4mo
Dilara @Kenyazero 💜 💐 4mo
batsy That's great news. Best wishes for a full recovery. 4mo
16 likes9 comments
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Melismatic
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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#Scarathlon - Photo Challenge - Orange

Octavia hasn‘t let me down yet! Hoping to get to this this month but if it doesn‘t happen, it‘ll be a November read for sure. Picked it up at the Ripped Bodice in Brooklyn.

#TeamWhoYaGonnaCall

FlynnDewey Secret history/societies in fiction are so much fun. 6mo
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Johanna414
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
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This was an amazing story, and Robin Miles did a stellar job narrating. I‘ll definitely be continuing the series!

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ChaoticMissAdventures
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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I have been sitting with this book for a couple of days. The focus on breeding was so unsettling.
The writing is lush and captivating. The ending propels you to the next book in the series.
Overall it gives much to think about, what is it to be immortal, how do you come to view life when you do not know if yours can end? What if you need to kill to keep living, do you?
I can see why people call her a Queen of fantasy.

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ChaoticMissAdventures
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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"She turned away. They were on deck, so she stared out at the sea where several large fish were leaping into the air and arcing down again into the water. She had watched such creatures before, watched them longingly. She thought she could do what they did, thought she could become one of them. She could almost feel the sensation of wetness, of strength, of moving through the water as swiftly as a bird through air."

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ChaoticMissAdventures
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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#20in4

Goals:

Finish: True Biz ✔️ Chain-Gang All-Stars ✔️ Untamed State (not finished, 100 pages read)
Read : When We Were Birds ✔️
Stretch Goal: Dawn -. Replaced with Wild Seed ✔️

Pretty good weekend! I am struggling a bit with Untamed State so not surprised I didn't finish it.

Thanks for hosting @Andrew65

Andrew65 Fantastic, thanks for playing along 👏👏👏🙌🎊🥳🍾🥂😍 13mo
17 likes1 comment
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CynDC
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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BarbaraTheBibliophage
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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Two weeks ago was Octavia Butler‘s birthday. Had cancer not taken her too soon, surely she‘d still be writing today at 75. It‘s a terrible loss for SFF readers everywhere. This book is a unique take on modifying human DNA to include supernatural qualities over the course of centuries. Incredible pair to read alongside Upgrade by Blake Crouch. Same topic, vastly different executions.

Full review https://www.TheBibliophage.com #thebibliophage2022

Ruthiella She was definitely taken from us too soon. I know she had to have had many, many more stories to tell. 😢 2y
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vivastory
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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I have had a long affinity for magical showdowns. My love for this trope originates with my childhood fascination with the '63 animated film Sword in the Stone. Produced by Walt Disney & based on Arthurian legend this was a childhood favorite, especially the wizard duel between Merlin & Mim at the end. In Butler's truly epic Wild Seed immortals Doro & Anyanwu are at odds with one another from the moment that they meet in 16th century Africa.

vivastory Anyanwu is a shapeshifter & is 300 years old when she meets Doro, while he is able to move from body to body. Their antagonism spans hundreds of years. As Doro seems to become less human the longer he lives, while Anyanwu only seems to learn more & become even more compassionate. Butler upends many of the typical immortality tropes, as she portrays many of the people encountered as wiser than both Doro & Anyanwu. Despite their longevity they (edited) 2y
vivastory keenly feel the loss of their loved ones & have as much difficulty with grief as those who live a normal lifespan. I have now read 5 Butler novels & after Parable of the Sower this is my favorite. Absolutely extraordinary & engaging work that has much to say about compassion & grief. (edited) 2y
Kammbia1 Wild Seed is a good novel. Parable of the Sower is my favorite though. Glad you read Wild Seed. 2y
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vivastory @Kammbia1 I flew through it. Once I started i just couldn't put it down! I picked up the next entry in Patternist series which I plan to read soon. 2y
Addison_Reads I love Butler, but I haven't read this one yet. I'll have to move it up on my list. 2y
vivastory @Addison_Reads I think you'd like it. 👍 2y
LeahBergen I remember watching that movie! (edited) 2y
64 likes7 comments
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vivastory
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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I'm a little under halfway through, but this book is excellent so far.

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rsteve388
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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Octavia Butler never disappoints and this book, the first in the pattern it series, is an interesting story about two immortals who each have abilities that make them god like to other people. This was an excellent, rich, deep story that brings to light what it would be like to be immortal.

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Sargar114
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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Finished this epic tale of two immortals who have found each other and are in a constant battle of love and hate. It was a little slow to start, but intriguing enough to continue and I‘m so glad I did. A fantastical take on historical fiction. I‘ll definitely be continuing the series. My first read from Octavia Butler and I absolutely buy into the hype. Beautifully written. #doublespin for August

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 3y
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SheilaChew
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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I started the audiobook, but I needed the print version to finish. The audio is a good reader, but the cadence was comforting and I kept falling asleep. Once I switched to print, I was able to connect to the story and finish it.
This is the story of Doro and Anyanwu, two immortals with exceptional gifts. Doro uses his power to gather and breed gifted humans. Anyanwu is a healer.
Excellent and disturbing. I want to read the series.

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Sargar114
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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Some lakeside reading of my #doublespin

Nute Pretty spot! Nice photo! 3y
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HeyT
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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#BookReport
This week I managed to finish two of the Patternist series books in my omnibus edition but then I needed a break and went on to the SFFBC selection of the month. I think I enjoyed Wild Seed the most out of the three.

#WeeklyForecast
My goal for the week is to finish Many Colored Land and then the rest of the Patternist series. Slowly but surely catching up with my BookSpin backlog.

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TheSpineView
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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This is a most unexpected story from Butler since I consider her more of a Sci-Fi author and this is a paranormal historical novel. Good plot and loved the originality. I thought thre characters of Doro and Anyanwu were perfect and I could feel the pull between the two immortals. However, I thought the setting was lacking. I always want the setting to be described in lush, vivid words and I didn't get that with this one. Though not my favorite⬇️

TheSpineView Butler novel, I still enjoyed it and look forward to reading book two. 3.8 - 4ish ⭐ 3y
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rachelsbrittain
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
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So excited about my list for #NewYearWhoDis from @Laughterhp ! The House on the Cerulean Sea was on my list too, and I also spy several other favorites (Six of Crows and Gideon), not to mention several on my TBR as well as lots that are new to me. Thanks for all the work you did in pairing us up and putting this all together @monalyisha ! Cant wait to start digging into these books in January. I already know Wild Seed will be first up!

Laughterhp I hope you love all of them as much as I did! 3y
rachelsbrittain @Laughterhp I've just been going through goodreads to look at them all and add them to my want to read shelf! About to go check what my library has on Libby 😊 3y
Laughterhp I‘m planning to do that tomorrow with your list! I can‘t wait to look through them all. 3y
rachelsbrittain @Laughterhp ahhh I really hope you find some you're excited about and enjoy them!! 3y
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lovelybookshelf
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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The #FallReadathon goal was to read for 8 hours over 4 days. I did that and a little more! 🎉 Started and finished 2 books (Aster's Good, Right Things and How To Slowly Kill Yourself and Others in America), started Wild Seed for the #OEBSlowRead, and listened to 75 min. of a David Graeber (💔) audiobook I'd started before the readathon. 📚

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ErinSBecker
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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My first #bookspinbingo book this month is an omnibus of Octavia Butler's Patternmaster series. First is Wild Seed (in order of story chronology, not publication - think Magician's Nephew, not Lion, Witch, Wardrobe). Published only a year after her standalone classic Kindred (1979), Wild Seed is also set in antebellum USA. Instead of time travel, here we interact with the practice of chattel slavery through the viewpoints of two immortals. Cont.

ErinSBecker One Immortal, Doro, is a literal body snatcher, enslaving and breeding bodies for his use. The other, Anyanwu, is a shape shifter and powerful healer. Over the course of centuries, the two engage in a fiercely unhealthy and abusive relationship (imagine a semi-divine Heathcliff). Throughout, Butler explores the question of bodily autonomy, freedom, and devotion. Those familiar with her Xenogenesis trilogy, will also notice many themes of (cont) 3y
ErinSBecker Oankali biology show up here. Butler's imagination is so profound, however, that she weaves an entirely fresh story from these shared elements. This book is challenging - the first two chapters didn't hold my attention, but once I got further in I was completely hooked. 3y
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khooliha
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
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Another tale of cruelty, power, and presumption. I don't know if I ever want to discuss a book more than when I finish a Butler novel.

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khooliha
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
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The only other Butler I've read is the Xenogenesis trilogy, and both have similar things on their minds. One thing this means, materially for me, is I can only read so much at once, what with all the incest. It's way more direct in this book!

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Kanarthi
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
Pickpick

Loved it. Gripping psychological struggle between two Africans with fantastical gifts. Takes place over centuries of American history. Looks at slavery, autonomy, inherent abilities, building communities, family, and more. This novel makes any investment in the series worth it!

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Laughterhp
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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Read 13 Books
3 Audio
6 #ReadBlackAuthors
11 1/2 Women Authors
1 #ownvoices for Neurodiverse

Finished 7 #BookSpinBingo (with no bingos)
Finished 4 more #SummerFun prompts (still no bingos)

Favorite Reads: Tagged, Daring and the Duke, Girl in Disguise, and The Mothers

Honestly I really only disliked 1 book this month

#JulyStats #JulyReads

TheAromaofBooks I like your “how many books can I read without actually making a bingo“ challenge! 😂 4y
Laughterhp @TheAromaofBooks Believe me it was unintentional 😂😂 but maybe I‘ll keep this streak going in August. 4y
MidnightBookGirl I'm really hoping the only book you disliked wasn't A Deadly Inside Scoop, because that's waiting on my audiobook TBR!
4y
Laughterhp @MidnightBookGirl Nope! I really like that one. It was a lot of fun and made me want ice cream all the time! 4y
49 likes4 comments
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SpiderGoddess
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
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At the service center getting my car detailed, so I'm indulging in this audiobook.

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Laughterhp
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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Pickpick

Finished my #BookSpin book! Still don‘t have a bingo.

This book was a little slow to start or slow for me to get into. Once I had some time to sit down and get into the book, I was hooked. I definitely want to read the rest of the books in this series! It such an interesting take on sci-fi. And such a great love hate relationship.

That brown blob is my dog trying to photobomb 😂
Haven‘t been a Litsy this week, super busy at work and no time

TheAromaofBooks Great review!! 4y
JoScho 🖤🖤🖤 4y
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underground_bks
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
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Continuing on my Octavia E. Butler binge with Wild Seed, the first novel in her Patternist series! I stacked this book from @xicanti who described it as “the X-Men across 150 years of African and American history,” add in eugenics and that is damn accurate! Wild Seed is a brutal, century-spanning book that transfixed me utterly. I love how Octavia E. Butler seems to counterbalance the horrors of history with the unrelenting agency of her heroines.

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jenlbean
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
Pickpick

The writing is magnificent. I had a hard time reading the difficulties Anyanwu went through, but sometimes having your eyes opened is uncomfortable. I will definitely be continuing the series. I can't wait to see what happens to Anyanwu and Doro and their children. Looks like I've got a huge pile added to my tbr stack.

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Laughterhp
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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My #BookSpin and #DoubleSpin picks are perfect for #ReadBlackAuthors for July.

I‘m still waiting for my copy of the Vanishing Half to come in but I‘ll hopefully be reading Wild Seed this weekend.

marleed The vanishing Half is on of my top 5 for the year! 4y
TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 4y
Laughterhp @marleed Oh good! I have The Mothers out from the library too right now. 4y
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squirrelbrain I‘ve just ordered a copy of The Vanishing Half - and it‘s a *real* book. I haven‘t had a new book for months! 4y
SamAnne What a great duo for your #bookspin and #doublespin! 4y
JoScho Awesome 👏🏼 4y
Laughterhp @squirrelbrain I did really well at the beginning of the year not buying new books. But I‘ve bought so many books in June 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️ 4y
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Laughterhp
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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My local indie started doing curbside pick up last week. You order books online/pay and then schedule a time to pick them up. It‘s the closest I‘ve been to a bookstore since last year.

Picked up my 2 books for #black publishing power and The 3 Body Problem for July/August #BBBBC pick. I got Lies My Teacher Told Me in the mail today too. I ordered it from Bookshop.org about 2 weeks ago. Still waiting on 3 more to come in.

#bookhaul

vivastory I picked up the same Butler this week. I hope you like Three Body Problem. 4y
mhillis Nice stack! 4y
InLibrisVeritas Awesome stack!! 4y
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Karisa What #bbbbc stand for? I've been wanting to read Three Body Problem and might jump on board. 🤗 4y
Laughterhp @Karisa Book Bows & Blasters Book Club - it‘s a sci-fi/fantasy book club. We switch between a fantasy and a sci-fi book every 2 months. 4y
Karisa @Laughterhp Awesome! Thank you! 4y
60 likes6 comments
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Karisa
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
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Wow! Octavia Butler's characters and complexity leapt out of every page. This book, spanning centuries, centers around two god-like beings with very different worldviews. The tension between them propels the story. I could not put it down.

It's in development for a series on Prime by Viola Davis and Nnedi Okorafor. I can't wait to see how they capture it!

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Karisa
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
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This book challenge is making the Twitter rounds.

So many great books out there! Just finished How to be an Antiracist (excellent) and now moving on to Octavia Butler's Wild Seed. It's in the works for screen adaptation by Viola Davis and Nnedi Okorafor (who wrote the amazing Binti books).

Riveted_Reader_Melissa Oh, that‘s awesome to hear! 4y
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Laughterhp
Wild Seed | Octavia E Butler
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Here‘s the 2 books I bought to support Black publishing. I bought them from my local indie. Unraveling was sold out, so I have to wait for it to come in so I can do curbside pickup.

I‘ve been dying to read these books, so this gave me the push to bump them up on my TBR and buy them.

#blackpublishingpower #blackoutbestsellerlist

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YaYa_Reads
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
Bailedbailed

😳😳😳

MsLeah8417 🤭 4y
YaYa_Reads @MsLeah8417 Is it safe to assume you and I have similar thoughts on this book? 🤔 (edited) 4y
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xicanti
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
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Pickpick

WILD SEED is “Octavia E. Butler does the X-Men across 150 years of African and American history,” and if you think that sounds awesome YOU‘RE RIGHT! It‘s frickin amazing!

I‘m especially impressed with how Butler writes hope in desperate circumstances. She‘s so, so good at demonstrating how people hold on to their agency in situations designed to wear them down. There‘s a lot of cruelty herein, but it‘s always countered with compassion.

LogiKitty I'm so excited to get reading this one 😍 5y
xicanti @LogiKitty it‘s sooooo good! Definitely worth bumping it up the list. 5y
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xicanti
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
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I‘m loving Butler‘s WILD SEED, y‘all. This morning, though, it hit me that it‘s an intensely cruel book—which wouldn‘t be all that noteworthy if I hadn‘t recently abandoned Atwood‘s ORYX AND CRAKE because its cruelty shut me out.

I ruminated on the difference, and I think I‘ve determined that Atwood assumes the reader‘s complicity in the cruelty while Butler assumes the reader will rail against it. Now I‘m down a CanLit thematic rabbit hole.

AvidReader25 I struggled with Oryx and Crake too. That‘s a fascinating difference on a similar topic. 5y
xicanti @Avidreader25 now I have all these still-undefined thoughts about cruelty in Atwood‘s wider body of work and how that may have affected the modern Canadian literary landscape, paired with other hazy speculations on hope and desperation in Butler. Clearly I need to do some more reading. 5y
AvidReader25 @xicanti did you read the rest of the series that Oryx and Crake starts? I couldn‘t bring myself to read it after that one, but I‘m curious if it‘s the same. 5y
xicanti @Avidreader25 O&C was actually a late bail for me (I gave it 300 pages because so many people told me they loved it), so it‘s unlikely I‘ll ever read the other two. Most Littens seem really taken with the rest of the trilogy, though. 5y
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suzisteffen
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
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Pickpick

AHHHHH this was a hard one to read, knowing that things change and there are sequels but hating, HATING one of the main characters so much, and hurting for the other one. Whew, this is going to be a VERY interesting TV series! #sciencefiction #ThePatternist

ShyBookOwl Whoa. I wouldn't have pegged this as a TV adaptation. Interesting. I can't quite picture it. Still anxious for the movie adaptation of Dawn though! 😍 5y
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suzisteffen
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
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Following the news that Nnedi Okorafor & Wanuri Kahiu are writing this series into an Amazon TV show, I decided I needed to get off the duff and read the books ... which I already owned, luckily. So, started this today. Do I have time to finish in April? MAYBE!!

Weaponxgirl Good luck! 5y
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Liatrek
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
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Finally!!!! Someone is adapting one of Octavia Butlers books 🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾 https://www.essence.com/entertainment/amazon-wild-seed-viola-davis-julius-tennon.... @EchoLogical so beyond excited 🤩

RealLifeReading Woohoo! 5y
EchoLogical Yessssssssss! Thank you for tagging me! 💕💕💕💕 5y
Tanisha_A I loveee Viola Davis 5y
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SW-T Can‘t wait! 5y
Nute Long-awaited! 5y
MaleficentBookDragon ♥💙♥ 5y
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CuriousG
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
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Pickpick

Can't even begin to explain how weird and wonderful this one is. Octavia Butler manages to paint the most intricate portraits of her characters, without ever resorting to flowery prose. And the subjects she tackles - wow! I'm left with a total love-hate relationship with Doro, & the feeling that his son Isaac and Sam Hamilton (from East of Eden) woud be great friends #brilliant #octaviaforthewin

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CuriousG
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
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Loving this book, but really struggling to put my finger on why it reminds me of East of Eden. In many ways Isaac reminds me of Sam Hamilton, but it's definitely more than that. I might drive myself crazy trying to figure it out - too bad I can't just let it go because then it would probably come to me in a second. Anyone who read this and got the same feeling I have?

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CuriousG
Wild Seed | Octavia E. Butler
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Finally stopped staring at this yesterday and started reading it - now I'm hooked. When I have a book from an author I love I always hesitate to start it - nervous it won't live up to expectations. Anyone else do this?

MCYmermaid I can empathize... 5y
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