Octavia E. Butler – författare

The extraordinary, prescient New York Times bestseller - a modern classic about a young girl fighting for survival in a post-apocalyptic world.'If there is one thing scarier than a dystopian novel about the future, it's one written in the past that has already begun to come true. This is what makes Parable of the Sower even more impressive than it was when first published' GLORIA STEINEM'Unnervingly prescient and wise' YAA GYASIWe are coming apart. We're a rope, breaking, a single strand at a time.America is a place of chaos, where violence rules and only the rich and powerful are safe. Lauren Olamina, a young woman with the extraordinary power to feel the pain of others as her own, records everything she sees of this broken world in her journal.Then, one terrible night, everything alters beyond recognition, and Lauren must make her voice heard for the sake of those she loves.Soon, her vision becomes reality and her dreams of a better way to live gain the power to change humanity forever.Lauren's story continues in Parable of the Talents.PRAISE FOR OCTAVIA E. BUTLER'In the ongoing contest over which dystopian classic is most applicable to our time... for sheer peculiar prescience, Butler's novel may be unmatched' NEW YORKER'Butler's prose, always pared back to the bone, delineates the painful paradoxes of metamorphosis with compelling precision' GUARDIAN'Octavia Butler was a visionary' VIOLA DAVIS'One of the most significant literary artists of the twentieth century. One cannot exaggerate the impact she has had' JUNOT DIAZ'An icon of the Afrofuturism world, envisioning literary realms that placed black characters front and center' VANITY FAIR'Butler writes with such a familiarity that the alien is welcome and intriguing. She really artfully exposes our human impulse to self-destruct' LUPITA NYONG'O

Octavia E. Butler's ground-breaking masterpiece, with an original foreword by Ayòbámi Adébáyò.'A marvel of imagination, empathy and detail' NEW YORK TIMES'The marker you should judge all other time-travelling narratives by' GUARDIAN'One of the most significant literary artists of the twentieth century. One cannot exaggerate the impact she has had' JUNOT DIAZIn 1976, Dana dreams of being a writer. In 1815, she is assumed a slave.When Dana first meets Rufus on a Maryland plantation, he's drowning. She saves his life - and it will happen again and again. Neither of them understands his power to summon her whenever his life is threatened, nor the significance of the ties that bind them.And each time Dana saves him, the more aware she is that her own life might be over before it's even begun.This is the extraordinary story of two people bound by blood, separated by so much more than time.'No novel I've read this year has felt as relevant, as gut-wrenching or as essential' CAROLINE O'DONOGHUE**MAJOR TV SERIES NOW ON DISNEY+**PRAISE FOR OCTAVIA E. BUTLER'Unnervingly prescient and wise' YAA GYASI'Butler's evocative, often troubling, novels explore far-reaching issues of race, sex, power and, ultimately, what it means to be human' NEW YORK TIMES'Butler's prose, always pared back to the bone, delineates the painful paradoxes of metamorphosis with compelling precision' GUARDIAN'Octavia Butler was a visionary' VIOLA DAVIS'An icon of the Afrofuturism world, envisioning literary realms that placed black characters front and center' VANITY FAIR'Butler writes with such a familiarity that the alien is welcome and intriguing. She really artfully exposes our human impulse to self-destruct' LUPITA NYONG'O

From the celebrated author, the thrilling sequel to Parable of the Sower - an extraordinary novel ahead of its time. 'In the ongoing contest over which dystopian classic is most applicable to our time... for sheer peculiar prescience, Butler's novel may be unmatched' NEW YORKER'Octavia Butler was playing out our very real possibilities as humans. I think she can help each of us to do the same' GLORIA STEINEMIn order for me to understand who I am, I must begin to understand who she was.Asha was born into a broken world. There are many things she needs to know: how her country could embrace a violent, far-right President promising to make America great again, why they turned a blind eye to the suffering - and the truth about her mother.In her journals, Lauren Olamina tells of a great love divided between her young daughter, her community and the revelation that led her to found a new faith that teaches 'God Is Change'. But under a tyrannical religious regime who consider the mere existence of a black female leader a threat, Lauren knows she must soon either sacrifice her daughter and her followers - or forsake the beliefs that could transform human destiny.PRAISE FOR OCTAVIA E. BUTLER'Unnervingly prescient and wise' YAA GYASI'If there is one thing scarier than a dystopian novel about the future, it's one written in the past that has already begun to come true. This is what makes Parable of the Sower even more impressive than it was when first published' GLORIA STEINEM'Butler's prose, always pared back to the bone, delineates the painful paradoxes of metamorphosis with compelling precision' GUARDIAN'Octavia Butler was a visionary' VIOLA DAVIS'One of the most significant literary artists of the twentieth century. One cannot exaggerate the impact she has had' JUNOT DIAZ'An icon of the Afrofuturism world, envisioning literary realms that placed black characters front and center' VANITY FAIR'Butler writes with such a familiarity that the alien is welcome and intriguing. She really artfully exposes our human impulse to self-destruct' LUPITA NYONG'O

Lauren Oya Olamina är 15 år gammal. Hon bor i Robledo, utanför Los Angeles. Hon bor i ett område omgärdat av murar som skyddar mot kaoset utanför. I ett USA år 2024 drabbat av finanskriser och klimatkriser är vatten dyrare än bensin, och bränder ödelägger stora delar av landet. Hon inser att det bara kommer att bli värre, och att hon och hennes familj måste jobba hårt på att överleva det som kommer. Men vem lyssnar på en femtonåring? Vem lyssnar på en femtonåring som har grundat en egen religion – Jordfrö? Efter en kaotisk natt står Lauren Oya Olamina ensam utanför murarna som skyddat henne hela livet. Kommer nödväskan hon packat räcka, och kommer hon ha studerat tillräckligt för att överleva mot alla odds? Octavia E. Butler (1947 – 2006) var en av USA:s främsta författare. Hon vann flera priser, samt tilldelades som den första science fiction-författaren någonsin The MacArthur Genius Award. Hon var kvinna och afrikanamerikan i ett fält som dominerades av vita män. Hennes verk har banat vägen för en ny verklighet inom litteraturen. ”Jag är en 53-årig författare som kommer ihåg när jag var en tio-årig författare, och som förväntar mig vara bli en 80-årig författare. Jag är bekvämt asocial – en ensling mitt i Los Angeles – en pessimist om jag inte aktar mig, feminist, före detta baptist, en omöjlig blandning av ambition, lathet, osäkerhet, övertygelse och drivkraft.” - Octavia E. Butler

'One of the most significant literary artists of the twentieth century' JUNOT DIAZ'Octavia Butler was playing out our very real possibilities as humans. I think she can help each of us to do the same' GLORIA STEINEMOne woman is called upon to reconstruct humanity in this hopeful, thought-provoking novel by the bestselling, award-winning author. For readers of Margaret Atwood, Toni Morrison and Ursula K. Le Guin. When Lilith lyapo wakes in a small white room with no doors or windows, she remembers a devastating war, and a husband and child long lost to her.She finds herself living among the Oankali, a strange race who intervened in the fate of humanity hundreds of years before. They spared those they could from the ruined Earth, and suspended them in a long, deep sleep. Over centuries, the Oankali learned from the past, cured disease and healed the world. Now they want Lilith to lead her people back home. But salvation comes at a price - to restore humanity, it must be changed forever...PRAISE FOR OCTAVIA E. BUTLER, THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR'In the ongoing contest over which dystopian classic is most applicable to our time... for sheer peculiar prescience, Butler's novel may be unmatched' NEW YORKER'Butler's prose, always pared back to the bone, delineates the painful paradoxes of metamorphosis with compelling precision' GUARDIAN'Octavia Butler was a visionary' VIOLA DAVIS'Her evocative, often troubling, novels explore far-reaching issues of race, sex, power and, ultimately,what it means to be human' NEW YORK TIMES'An icon of the Afrofuturism world, envisioning literary realms that placed black characters front and center' VANITY FAIR'Butler writes with such a familiarity that the alien is welcome and intriguing. She really artfully exposes our human impulse to self-destruct' LUPITA NYONG'O

'Octavia Butler was playing out our very real possibilities as humans. I think she can help each of us to do the same' GLORIA STEINEM'Her evocative, often troubling, novels explore far-reaching issues of race, sex, power and, ultimately, what it means to be human' NEW YORK TIMESFrom the groundbreaking, award-winning author of Parable of the Sower: one young man with extraordinary gifts must reconcile his own heritage before he can change the fate of humanity. Lilith's son Akin looks like an ordinary child. His family live together on Earth, but not in complete peace. The Oankali saved humanity years before, compelled by the desire to create an extraordinary new race of children. But there are those who resist the Oankali and the salvation they offer.The first of his kind, Akin is more powerful than any other being. He understands the desire to fight for the independence of humanity. He also fears that, if left alone, humanity will destroy itself again.And when young Akin is stolen from Lilith and their hybrid family, he soon faces an impossible choice. But first he must reconcile with his own heritage in a world already torn in two. PRAISE FOR OCTAVIA E. BUTLER, THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR'In the ongoing contest over which dystopian classic is most applicable to our time... for sheer peculiar prescience, Butler's novel may be unmatched' NEW YORKER'Butler's prose, always pared back to the bone, delineates the painful paradoxes of metamorphosis with compelling precision' GUARDIAN'Octavia Butler was a visionary' VIOLA DAVIS'One of the most significant literary artists of the twentieth century. One cannot exaggerate the impact she has had' JUNOT DIAZ'An icon of the Afrofuturism world, envisioning literary realms that placed black characters front and center' VANITY FAIR'Butler writes with such a familiarity that the alien is welcome and intriguing. She really artfully exposes our human impulse to self-destruct' LUPITA NYONG'O

'Butler writes with such a familiarity that the alien is welcome and intriguing. She really artfully exposes our human impulse to self-destruct' LUPITA NYONG'O'An icon of the Afrofuturism world, envisioning literary realms that placed black characters front and center' VANITY FAIRFrom literary pioneer Octavia E. Butler, the acclaimed Lilith's Brood trilogy concludes with the story of Jodah, child of the Earth and stars, who risks the future of humanity just by growing up.Jodahs is a child of the Earth and stars, born from the union between humans and the Oankali, who saved humanity from destruction centuries before.But Jodahs is approaching adulthood, a metamorphosis that will take him beyond gender and family, and into a great but dangerous unknown.Frightened and alone, Jodahs must come to terms with this new identity, learn to master lifechanging powers and bring together what's left of humankind - or become the biggest threat to their survival.PRAISE FOR OCTAVIA E. BUTLER, THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR'In the ongoing contest over which dystopian classic is most applicable to our time... for sheer peculiar prescience, Butler's novel may be unmatched' NEW YORKER'Octavia Butler was playing out our very real possibilities as humans. I think she can help each of us to do the same' GLORIA STEINEM'Butler's prose, always pared back to the bone, delineates the painful paradoxes of metamorphosis with compelling precision' GUARDIAN'One of the most significant literary artists of the twentieth century' JUNOT DIAZ'Octavia Butler was a visionary' VIOLA DAVIS'Her evocative, often troubling, novels explore far-reaching issues of race, sex, power and, ultimately, what it means to be human' NEW YORK TIMES

'A book that shifted my life... Epic, game-changing, moving and brilliant' VIOLA DAVIS on Wild Seed'A literary pioneer' VANITY FAIR on Octavia E. ButlerA PATTERNIST NOVEL: BOOK TWOThe baby's name is Mary, and her father is immortal.For thousands of years, Doro has pursued perfection, experimenting with humanity and seeking out rare - and powerful - talents. His finest creation is Mary, a young black woman who grows up on the rough outskirts of Los Angeles.Doro knows he must handle Mary carefully or risk her ending like his previous experiments - dead, either by her own hand or his.What he doesn't suspect is that Mary is beginning to learn just how much power she wields. As she comes of age, Mary must harness her newfound abilities to challenge the ruthless man who controls her - and fight to free her people once and for all.

The wise words of science fiction icon Octavia E. Butler live on in this beautiful and giftable little volume.There's no single answer that will solve all our future problems. There's no magic bullet. Instead there are thousands of answers-at least. You can be one of them if you choose to be."Originally published in Essence magazine in the year 2000, Octavia E. Butler's essay "A Few Rules for Predicting the Future" offers an honest look into the inspiration behind her science fiction novels and the importance of studying history and taking responsibility for our actions if we are to move forward.Organized into four main rules, this short essay reminds readers to learn from the past, respect the law of consequences, be aware of their perspectives, and count on the surprises. Citing the warning signs of fascism, the illusive effects of fear and wishful thinking, and the unpredictable nature of what is yet to come, Butler shares realistic but hopeful suggestions to shape our future into something good. An inspiring and motivational gift for students and recent graduates, fans of Butler's work, and anyone seeking a brighter day tomorrow, this exquisite gift book includes stunning Afrofuturist artwork by Manzel Bowman alongside the full text of the original essay.LITERARY ICON: Octavia E. Butler was a pioneering science fiction writer whose novels, written decades ago, remain eerily relevant, reflecting on themes of racial injustice, women's rights, environmental collapse, and political corruption. In 1995, she became the first science fiction author to win a MacArthur Genius grant, and her books are taught in over 200 colleges and universities nationwide. This book shares Butler's timely but lesser-known essay and is a must-read for fans of her classic sci-fi works.CELEBRATE BLACK CREATORS: This book spotlights one of the greatest authors of Afrofuturism, a genre and philosophy that explores and reimagines Black culture, creativity, and liberation through fiction, art, music, film, and other media. Octavia E. Butler's forward-thinking essay is paired with contemporary illustrations by Manzel Bowman, whose evocative images are also inspired by Afrofuturist visions.INSPIRING GIFT: A unique gift for students, recent graduates, and anyone celebrating life milestones or looking forward in life, this beautifully designed hardcover book is sure to inspire. Octavia E. Butler's essay is also an important, evergreen reminder for writers, creatives, dreamers, and activists who want to envision and work toward a brighter future.Perfect for:- Fans of Octavia Butler and her novels, including Kindred and Parable of the Sower - People interested in nonfiction and essays by Black women writers - Afrofuturism lovers and social justice-minded sci-fi readers - Literary bibliophiles looking for a stunning new addition to their bookshelf - Gift-giving to graduating high school and college students - Activists and community leaders - Inspirational essay readers - Fans of Manzel Bowman and Afrofuturist art

'A book that shifted my life... Epic, game-changing, moving and brilliant' VIOLA DAVIS on Wild Seed'Butler's evocative, often troubling novels explore far-reaching issues of race, sex, power and, ultimately, what it means to be human' NEW YORK TIMESA PATTERNIST NOVEL: BOOK THREE Blake Maslin is a doctor. In an alternate America marked by volatile class warfare, he and his twin daughters are taken captive by armed men demanding urgent medical care.In an isolated desert compound, the family encounter a collective of people suffering from an unknown and deadly disease. They appear sickly yet possess unnatural strength, torn between the dangerous compulsion to infect others or to hold on to their own humanity.In the following hours, Blake and his daughters each must make a vital choice: risk everything to escape infection and warn the rest of the world, or accept their place in this strange new society.

'A book that shifted my life... Epic, game-changing, moving and brilliant' VIOLA DAVIS on Wild Seed'In the ongoing contest over which dystopian classic is most applicable to our time... for sheer peculiar prescience, Butler's novel may be unmatched' NEW YORKERA PATTERNIST NOVEL: BOOK FOURThe Patternmaster is all powerful. His every thought can control, heal or destroy.The only threat to his command are the Clayarks, a society of people born out of terrible disease, who now live enslaved by the ruling Patternists or in the wild.Coransee, son of the Patternmaster, wants the throne and will stop at nothing to succeed his father, even if it means killing every one of his siblings.But when one brother - his rival and his equal - takes refuge amongst the Clayarks, a war ensues that will change the world forever.

'A book that shifted my life... Epic, game-changing, moving and brilliant' VIOLA DAVIS'Will rewire the mind of whoever reads it... you don't emerge from the journey unaffected' NNEDI OKORAFOR A PATTERNIST NOVEL: BOOK ONEIt begins when two immortals meet in an African forest.Doro is an ancient spirit who, for thousands of years, has cultivated a small village of people in search of perfection. He steals from their bodies to sustain his own life. Doro fears no one - until he meets Anyanwu.Anyanwu is like Doro and yet different. She uses her wisdom to help others, healing injuries, birthing tribes and shifting the shapes of her own body. Anyanwu feels no threat - until she meets Doro.In an epic story of love and hate, Doro and Anyanwu chase each other across continents and centuries - a power struggle that echoes through generations. Together they will change the world.

'The Octavia Butler novel for our times' THE ATLANTIC'My book of the year . . . completely devours the genre which gave rise to it' JUNOT DÍAZThe final ground-breaking novel from renowned, bestselling author Octavia E. Butler.A young girl wakes up in the woods, gravely injured and alone, with no memory of what happened or who she is.As Shori heals, she realises that she isn't like the people around her, which leads to a shocking discovery. She is a fifty-three-year-old vampire, and in terrible danger.To save herself, Shori must learn anew everything about the power and desires that she holds, the life that was stolen from her - and those who want her dead.PRAISE FOR OCTAVIA E. BUTLER, THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR'In the ongoing contest over which dystopian classic is most applicable to our time... for sheer peculiar prescience, Butler's novel may be unmatched' NEW YORKER'Octavia Butler was playing out our very real possibilities as humans. I think she can help each of us to do the same' GLORIA STEINEM'Butler's prose, always pared back to the bone, delineates the painful paradoxes of metamorphosis with compelling precision' GUARDIAN'One of the most significant literary artists of the twentieth century' JUNOT DIAZ'Octavia Butler was a visionary' VIOLA DAVIS'Her evocative, often troubling, novels explore far-reaching issues of race, sex, power and, ultimately, what it means to be human' NEW YORK TIMES

Octavia E. Butler's ground-breaking masterpiece, with an original foreword by Ayòbámi Adébáyò. Now an acclaimed TV series streaming on Disney +'A marvel of imagination, empathy and detail' NEW YORK TIMES'The marker you should judge all other time-travelling narratives by' GUARDIAN'One of the most significant literary artists of the twentieth century. One cannot exaggerate the impact she has had' JUNOT DIAZIn 1976, Dana dreams of being a writer.In 1815, she is assumed a slave.When Dana first meets Rufus on a Maryland plantation, he's drowning. She saves his life - and it will happen again and again.Neither of them understands his power to summon her whenever his life is threatened, nor the significance of the ties that bind them.But each time Dana is pulled back to the past, she finds herself confronting secrets she never knew ran through her blood. PRAISE FOR OCTAVIA E. BUTLER, THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR'Unnervingly prescient and wise' YAA GYASI'Butler's evocative, often troubling, novels explore far-reaching issues of race, sex, power and, ultimately, what it means to be human' NEW YORK TIMES'Butler's prose, always pared back to the bone, delineates the painful paradoxes of metamorphosis with compelling precision' GUARDIAN'Octavia Butler was a visionary' VIOLA DAVIS'An icon of the Afrofuturism world, envisioning literary realms that placed black characters front and center' VANITY FAIR'Butler writes with such a familiarity that the alien is welcome and intriguing. She really artfully exposes our human impulse to self-destruct' LUPITA NYONG'O

In strange and uncertain times, where better to turn than Octavia E. Butler?Her honest, wise and hopeful words are for anyone who wants to shape our future into something good. They live on this little book, brought to life with beautiful new artwork by Manzel Bowman.'There's no single answer that will solve all our future problems.There's no magic bullet.Instead there are thousands of answers - at least.You can be one of them if you choose to be'A legendary writer and Afrofuturist pioneer, Octavia E. Butler died in 2006. Her advice feels as timely now as it was when she first wrote this essay twenty-five years ago - prescient, grounded and enduring. Praise for A FEW RULES FOR PREDICTING THE FUTURE...'A little gem of wisdom and art''Perfect, hopeful little book with beautiful illustrations''We all need the voice of Butler to give us a moment of clarity and reflection''What everyone needs to hear when they're feeling helpless''The art alongside this essay is stunning''Such an astute understanding of humanity and the world'

A special hardback edition of Octavia E. Butler's groundbreaking modern classic. In 1976, Dana dreams of being a writer. In 1815, she is assumed to be a slave.On her twenty-sixth birthday, Dana is suddenly wrenched through time to a Maryland plantation. Rufus, the white son of a slaveholder, is drowning. Without thinking, Dana rushes into the river to save him.In that moment, neither Dana nor Rufus knows who they are to each other. But they will meet again and again as he realises his power to summon her whenever his life is threatened.And as each stay grows longer and more dangerous, Dana begins to question whether her life is ending long before it's even begun.An unflinching tale of power, brutality, survival, identity and love, Kindred is Butler's enduring masterpiece that reminds us how our present lives are shaped by history in ways we cannot afford to ignore.Selected by The Atlantic as one of the 'most consequential novels of the past 100 years''A marvel of imagination, empathy and detail' New York Times'The marker you should judge all other time-travelling narratives by' Guardian'One of the most significant literary artists of the twentieth century. One cannot exaggerate the impact she has had' Junot DiazWith stunning cover artwork by Eleni Debo and beautifully designed colour endpapers.

A beautiful new edition of a modern classic by celebrated, award-winning author, Octavia E. Butler. With an introduction by Levar Burton and an afterword by N.K. Jemisin.'If there is one thing scarier than a dystopian novel about the future, it's one written in the past that has already begun to come true' GLORIA STEINEMWe are coming apart. We're a rope, breaking, a single strand at a time.The time is 2025. The place is California, where small walled communities must protect themselves from the violence breaking out across America. Lauren Olamina, a young woman with the extraordinary power to feel the pain of others, records everything she sees of the fracturing world in her journal.One terrible night, her home is overrun, and Lauren sets off on foot along the dangerous coastal highways, moving north into the unknown.But what begins as a fight for survival soon leads to something much more: a startling vision of a better way to live - and the birth of a new faith that will change humanity forever. Praise for Octavia E. Butler'Unnervingly prescient and wise' YAA GYASI'Butler's prose, always pared back to the bone, delineates the painful paradoxes of metamorphosiswith compelling precision' GUARDIAN 'One of the most significant literary artists of the twentieth century. One cannot exaggeratethe impact she has had' JUNOT DIAZ'Butler's evocative, often troubling, novels explore far-reaching issues of race, sex, power and, ultimately, what it means to be human' NEW YORK TIMES'An icon of the Afrofuturism world, envisioning literary realms that placed black characters front and center' VANITY FAIR'Octavia Butler was a visionary' VIOLA DAVIS

A stunning new contemporary edition of Octavia E. Butler's award-winning sequel to Parable of the Sower. With an introduction by Akwaeke Emezi.'Octavia Butler was playing out our very real possibilities as humans' GLORIA STEINEMTo understand who I am, I must begin to understand who she was.There are many things Asha needs to know. How her country could embrace a presidential reign of terror and oppression, why the people turned a blind eye to the suffering - and the truth about her mother.Reading the journals of Lauren Olamina, the mother she barely knew, Asha struggles to reconcile herself to the legacy of a woman caught between love for her daughter and her calling to lead humanity to a better future.WINNER OF THE NEBULA AWARD FOR BEST NOVELPraise for Octavia E. Butler'Unnervingly prescient and wise' YAA GYASI'Butler's prose, always pared back to the bone, delineates the painful paradoxes of metamorphosis with compelling precision' GUARDIAN'One of the most significant literary artists of the twentieth century. One cannot exaggerate the impact she has had' JUNOT DIAZ'Butler's evocative, often troubling, novels explore far-reaching issues of race, sex, power and, ultimately, what it means to be human' NEW YORK TIMES'An icon of the Afrofuturism world, envisioning literary realms that placed black characters front and center' VANITY FAIR'Octavia Butler was a visionary' VIOLA DAVIS

From the bestselling and award-winning novelist, Octavia E. Butler. Completing the Patternist series, a new edition of her cult classic novel, now in print for the first time in fifty years.When Alanna flees a plague-scarred Earth to a new planet, she believes she has found a peaceful new home for humanity. Instead, she finds herself caught between two battling civilisations - the Kohn and Tehkohn. Now she must play a dangerous game to survive.Make alliances, while plotting betrayals. Assimilate, while retaining her humanity. Open her heart, while risking everything.Alanna knows that the mission of her fellow colonists is to preserve the human race. But what if the best way to retain her humanity is to leave it all behind?A PATTERNIST NOVELThis long-awaited new volume includes new essays from scholar and the Huntington Library's Octavia E. Butler Fellow, Alyssa Collins, along with 'A Necessary Being' - the only short fiction set in the Patternist universe, completing the Patternist series for readers everywhere.

From the bestselling and award-winning novelist, Octavia E. Butler. Completing the Patternist series, a new edition of her cult classic novel, now in print for the first time in fifty years.When Alanna flees a plague-scarred Earth to a new planet, she believes she has found a peaceful new home for humanity. Instead, she finds herself caught between two battling civilisations - the Kohn and Tehkohn. Now she must play a dangerous game to survive.Make alliances, while plotting betrayals. Assimilate, while retaining her humanity. Open her heart, while risking everything.Alanna knows that the mission of her fellow colonists is to preserve the human race. But what if the best way to retain her humanity is to leave it all behind?A PATTERNIST NOVELThis long-awaited new volume includes new essays from scholar and the Huntington Library's Octavia E. Butler Fellow, Alyssa Collins, along with 'A Necessary Being' - the only short fiction set in the Patternist universe, completing the Patternist series for readers everywhere.

A stunning new edition of Book One of the Patternist series, in which two immortals chase each other across continents and centuries, binding their fates together - and changing the destiny of the human race.'A book that shifted my life... Epic, game-changing, moving and brilliant' VIOLA DAVIS'Will rewire the mind of whoever reads it... you don't emerge from the journey unaffected' NNEDI OKORAFOR --It begins when two immortals meet in an African forest.Doro is an ancient and powerful spirit. Facing a lonely eternity, he breeds supernaturally gifted people into empires of human perfection. He kills without question, jumping from body to body to sustain his life. Doro fears no one - until he meets Anyanwu.Anyanwu wields her power differently. She can heal injuries, reverse aging and transform her body into human or animal. Her wisdom helps birth entire tribes; people respect and fear her. But Anyanwu never feels threatened - until she meets Doro.The moment they meet, Doro covets Anyanwu. Theirs is an epic story of love and hate, one that echoes down the generations as they chase each other across continents and centuries. Neither will bend to the other's will. But together they could change the world. A PATTERNIST NOVEL: BOOK ONE