OctaviaButler.net A fan blog for Octavia E. Butler, writer.

by Wrey F., Caguas, Puerto Rico

Octavia Butler’s work redeemed Science Fiction for me in many ways.

As a young, gay, Latino man in love with a genre which constantly betrayed me by making me invisible and unrepresented, Octavia’s work said to me, “I see you.  I recognize you.  I validate you, and I will write about you.”

Once the initial euphoria passed at finding a woman of color writing Science Fiction about diverse people, I took a deep breath and read again.

Although I have read most of her works, I am drawn again and again to her Xenogenesis trilogy.  It is raw, uncompromising, even brutal at times in the way it asks, “What is this thing that I am?  What kind of creature am I?”  She takes the question to its origin, to its root.  She does not complicate the matter with philosophical blankets to coddle and swath the sensibilities of the reader.  She asks how and why do we function in our most basic manner, as animals evolved along with the rest of life on this planet.  For most, this would seem a rude and base question.  But for me, it is the most honest and frank question one could ask because without an answer to this most basic of questions, no subsequent questions can truly be asked or answered with any meaning.

How refreshing to find honesty in literature.

How refreshing to find someone with the courage not to pander, not to lie, and not to treat me, the reader, as a dullard.

How refreshing to find someone willing to say, “Yes.  When I rip this bandage away, it is going to hurt.  A lot.  Ready?”

Her passing is a great loss, but she gave us her work to treasure, so she lives forever.