Parable of the sower [graphic novel] : a graphic novel adaptation

Introduction / Nalo Hopkinson -- 2024 -- 2025 -- 2026 -- 2027 -- Q & A with Damian Duffy and John Jennings -- Notes on process -- Teacher's guide -- About Octavia E. Butler -- For further reading -- About the adaptation and the artist -- Acknowledgments.

Summary:

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.

Format:

Book

Length:

v, 281 pages :

Copies:

Available:*

Collection	Call Number	Status	Item Holds
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On Display - New Items	GN/BUTLE/PARAB	Searching... Unknown	Searching... Unavailable
On Display - New Items	GN/BUTLE/PARAB	Searching... Unknown	Searching... Unavailable

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Summary

The acclaimed graphic novel adaptation of Octavia E. Butler's groundbreaking dystopian novel, Parable of the Sower, is a don't-miss classic that resonates today more than ever.As The Washington Post noted: " A 1993 dystopian novel imagined the world in 2024. It's eerily accurate."

This Hugo Award Winner for Best Graphic Story or Comic is the follow-up to Kindred , a #1 New York Times bestseller.

In this graphic-novel adaptation of Octavia E. Butler's Parable of the Sower by Damian Duffy and John Jennings, the award-winning team behind Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation , the author portrays a searing vision of America's future.

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.

"Alarmingly prescient and relevant. This accessible adaptation is poised to introduce Butler's dystopian tale to a new generation of readers." -- Publishers Weekly

"The graphic novel is faithful to Butler, yet still fresh in its world building." -- USA Today

Includes an introduction by SFWA Grand Master Nalo Hopkinson

Author Notes

Science-fiction writer and novelist Octavia Estelle Butler was born in Pasadena, California, on June 22, 1947. She earned as Associate of Arts degree from Pasadena City College in 1968 and later attended California State University and the University of California.

Her first novel, Patternmaster, was the first in a series about a society run by a group of telepaths who are mentally linked to one another. She explored the topics of race, poverty, politics, religion, and human nature in her works. She won a Hugo Award in 1984 for her short story Speech Sounds and a Hugo Award and Nebula Award in 1985 for her novella Bloodchild. She received a MacArthur Grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. The award pays $295,000 over a five-year period to creative people who push the boundaries of their fields. She died in Lake Forest Park, Washington on February 24, 2006 at the age of 58.

(Bowker Author Biography)

Reviews (2)

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.)

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.