Dawn

This is my first book by this author and... im not sure how I feel about it. I dont even know what I was expecting but this was a heavy book. There's not a lot of action, but i was hooked. I listened to this in a day. The interactions between the main character, aliens, and later the other humans was fascinating. I kept asking myself, what would I do in their shoes. The ending... so sad. I'm definitely going to read the next book but I need something lighter in between these books.

I have loved the late Octavia E. Butler's novels since I read KINDRED. Sci-Fi and Afro-futurism merge in DAWN to create a vision of a new genetically engineered society by alien captors, explores the challenges of morality, with vivid imagination and galactic suspense.

A dystopian novel about aliens “rescuing” the human race. It’s full of provocative themes about individual will, social constructs, morality, and how humanity defines itself. The novel moves forward quickly but the themes can get kind of intense. It’s also written in a straightforward non-literary prose which isn’t for those who like a more stylized poetic flow (like me).

Octavia Butler packed a lot of thought-provoking material into this book. The first in a trilogy (often you can find them bound in a single omnibus edition), Dawn tells the story of an alien abduction and human re-integration to Earth that captures the complexity of such a plot while moving along at thriller-level pacing. It’s a story of survival, trust, and humanity, in all its glory and all its ugliness. I was so worried for the heroine throughout the book, and when I finally relaxed near the end, Butler delivers a throat punch of a plot twist that really needs a whole book club to sift through. There are no easy choices, and there’s so much to unpack and discuss. Honestly this would be a perfect adult science fiction book club read, or a great addition to a college curriculum. 9/10 highly recommmend.