Status
Checked out
Collection
Publication
New York, NY : Grand Central Pub., 2020.
Description
Fiction. Science Fiction. HTML:From "one of science fiction's finest writers": A young woman with tremendous psychic power battles to set a new course for mankind (The New York Times). The baby's name is Mary, and her father is immortal. For thousands of years he has orchestrated a selective breeding project, attempting to create a master race capable of controlling others through thought. Most of his attempts have resulted in volatile mutations, but Mary�??whom he has raised in the rough part of a Southern California town�??is the closest he has come to perfection. If he doesn't handle her carefully, this greatest experiment will be his last. As Mary comes of age, she begins to grow aware of her psychic powers. And when she learns of her father's plans for her, she refuses to acquiesce. She challenges him to a psychic war, battling to free her people and set a new course for mankind. Multiple Nebula and Hugo award�??winning author Octavia Butler's epic and thought-provoking Patternist series has fascinated generations of readers, exploring the effects of power and what it means to be human. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Octavia E. Butler including rare images from the author'… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member LibroLindsay
I think I became too invested in the characters of Anyanwu (Emma) and Doro in Wild Seed to fully appreciate this book. Perhaps if I had read this first, in its order of publication, I would have enjoyed the book more. As it was, I found the constantly rotating narratives from such a wide variety of
Did Butler intend for this reaction? She wrote the complicated relationship between Anyanwu and Doro so well in Wild Seed, but nearly all the Patternist characters--including Mary--felt so flat. Nothing about their telepathy intrigued me, but I awed at Emma's and Doro's ability. I am so very confused!
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people (who weren't terribly distinct, all being Patternists) distracting and not at all sympathetic. Which is strange. If anything, I should sympathize with Mary, but I had come to know Doro so well. I stuck with the book just to see what happens to Emma and Doro, and while I'm slightly curious to see the direction the rest of the series takes, I suspect I might not ever be too eager to read through them all.Did Butler intend for this reaction? She wrote the complicated relationship between Anyanwu and Doro so well in Wild Seed, but nearly all the Patternist characters--including Mary--felt so flat. Nothing about their telepathy intrigued me, but I awed at Emma's and Doro's ability. I am so very confused!
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LibraryThing member StigE
Hard book to like. It touches on several complex and important themes such as bodily and mental integrity, slavery and racism, but moves quickly and never really delves into the material. Elements of the book stays with you afterwards.
LibraryThing member PuddinTame
Octavia Butler's work tends to be absolutely gripping, but harsh, gory and sexually explicit (and certainly not romantic).
This is the story of a loosely connected groups of psychics, some with astounding powers, founded by one man whose consciousness still lives after centuries. He, and his
Their powers cause them many psychological problems, and a group of them decide to get together and organize for their own good.
This is the story of a loosely connected groups of psychics, some with astounding powers, founded by one man whose consciousness still lives after centuries. He, and his
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descendents, are able to leap from body to body. Not all of them are aware of their heritage. Apparently the power resides with the consciousness, not with the body. He, or the bodies he inhabits, have fathered a great many of his descendents.Their powers cause them many psychological problems, and a group of them decide to get together and organize for their own good.
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LibraryThing member anyanwubutler
Doro from Wild Seed has created some very powerful telepaths. So powerful that they create a society without him. Mary is the most powerful, she creates a pattern of minds, that can make weak telepaths stronger, can heal physical and mental aches, and by the book’s end kills Doro.
Butler’s
It also gives a little attention to the slavery of the mutes to the telepaths. There are three more books in this series, the newer ones, I’ll bet, give more attention to this part of the new society.
Butler’s
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second novel, published in 1977, this mentions that “mutes” (non-telepaths) are just another way of saying the "n" word. (Butler's books use the actual word where it is warranted.)It also gives a little attention to the slavery of the mutes to the telepaths. There are three more books in this series, the newer ones, I’ll bet, give more attention to this part of the new society.
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LibraryThing member booksofcolor
My favorite Octavia Butler book, well toward the top of my list of favorite books ever, is Mind of My Mind, which is part of the Patternmaster/Clay's Ark universe. It follows Mary, daughter of Doro (from Wild Seed, as her mental powers develop and she actually creates the Pattern. Origin stories
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done well are really excellent, and this one creates something that I was familiar with after Patternmaster and makes it all logical and fascinating and easy to see, and it also focuses hard on a powerful Black woman who's in no way willing to turn away from the responsibilities her power grants her. It's awesome. Show Less
LibraryThing member betula.alba
Part of Butler's Patternist series. Mary, the main character (chapters telling her story are written in first person) is not very likeable. She seems to develop more and more compassion towards fellow human beings as the story develops, but it's still not enough. When reading the book you
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ultimately find yourself rooting for the lesser evil, with the greater evil being Doro, and the lesser being Mary and her "First Family". There is a chilling savageness about what almost all the characters do, which works in the books favor. Character development is somewhat lacking however. You really don't get to know Mary, Doro, Emma, Karl, Vivian or any of the others. All in all, a somewhat interesting (albeit fast) read mainly because of its chilling nature. Show Less
LibraryThing member bragan
Doro is an immortal, mind-controlling, body-snatching mutant who has spent 4,000 years on a human breeding program in an attempt to produce more creatures like him. Mary, a telepath with powerful new abilities, is his most promising result yet, but she also may be proof that he's succeeded a little
I should mention that this is the third book in a series. I read the first one so long ago that I remember little of it, and I managed to miss the second one, but it didn't really matter. This one stands on its own well enough.
I'm really not sure quite what to think about it, though. It's reasonably well written, if a little talky. It's also disturbing, as it features incest, domestic violence, eugenics, murder, and various kinds of mental coercion from the violently forceful to the insidiously subtle. None of which I necessarily have a problem reading about, but there's something about the casual, matter-of-fact way the characters generally accept all this as just the way things are, even when they're the victims, that gets to me. (The book never spells it out explicitly, but I can only imagine that to some extent they're programmed to accept their place in the grand plan, with all that entails. They may baulk at specific things, but you never see them questioning the basic assumptions.) I felt vaguely unclean while reading it, but the book never develops enough emotional intensity for that disturbed feeling to lead to any kind of catharsis. Unfortunately, this also robs the story of any real sense of investment I might have felt. The only ending that seemed remotely worth caring about or hoping for would be one where the slaves rebel not just against their puppetmaster but against the whole premise of their lives. And that seemed to be almost literally unthinkable.
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too well. I should mention that this is the third book in a series. I read the first one so long ago that I remember little of it, and I managed to miss the second one, but it didn't really matter. This one stands on its own well enough.
I'm really not sure quite what to think about it, though. It's reasonably well written, if a little talky. It's also disturbing, as it features incest, domestic violence, eugenics, murder, and various kinds of mental coercion from the violently forceful to the insidiously subtle. None of which I necessarily have a problem reading about, but there's something about the casual, matter-of-fact way the characters generally accept all this as just the way things are, even when they're the victims, that gets to me. (The book never spells it out explicitly, but I can only imagine that to some extent they're programmed to accept their place in the grand plan, with all that entails. They may baulk at specific things, but you never see them questioning the basic assumptions.) I felt vaguely unclean while reading it, but the book never develops enough emotional intensity for that disturbed feeling to lead to any kind of catharsis. Unfortunately, this also robs the story of any real sense of investment I might have felt. The only ending that seemed remotely worth caring about or hoping for would be one where the slaves rebel not just against their puppetmaster but against the whole premise of their lives. And that seemed to be almost literally unthinkable.
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LibraryThing member comixminx
The first Octavia Butler I ever read - they had it in my school library. I'm amazed really that they did, given some of the content, but definitely grateful. Excellent stuff; I love all her work.
LibraryThing member cindywho
This is pt. 2 of the Patternist series (by story timeline). It's short and intense, marking an important turning point that leads up to whatever will be. Things are wrapped up for the main characters from Wild Seed and many new ones are introduced. The themes of ownership and symbiosis are very
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present as in just about anything I've read by Butler. Show Less
LibraryThing member billycongo
Not as good as the first. More emphasis on action, and less on character. Of course that makes it a pretty exciting read. It retains a certain amount of unpredictability, except for the ending. If it the writing gets worse in book #3, I won't be continuing. I'm not a completist.
LibraryThing member stevesmits
A fascinating and quite imaginative novel. Doro, an immortal from the time of the Pharohs, has been attempting to breed a race of telepathics that can control the world. (Doro is thousands of years old and must kill people and adopt their bodies to remain alive.) The succesful results of his
Doro attempts to mitigate these failures by marrying Mary and Karl, two actives who he hopes can develop a compatible and productive bond. Mary is going through transition and at Doro's insistence marries Karl. (Karl shows another power of active telepaths. They are able to control ordinary people called mutes by placing thoughts into their minds.)
Mary proves to have extraordinary powers. She telepathically draws latents from all across the country and abroad to their home in California. She and others assist the latents in transitioning to actives. Her influence is such that, rather than conflicting, they form a community called Patternists. When she has gathered 1,500 in this society, Dora orders her to stop. It's plain he see his dominance threatened by Mary. He has insisted on complete obedience to his wishes, but Mary refuses, realizing that Doro will seek to kill her for her disobedience. Mary is able to draw telepathically on the strengths of her followers and is able to kill Doro.
The themes of power and will are at the heart of the novel. Written in 1977, there is a strong element of feminism seen in Mary in her determination to exercise power as she sees it. This is part of a series of novels called the "Patternist" novels.
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centuries-long attempts to create this race have been mixed. There are two types of telepaths: actives and latents. Actives can receive and send mental messages and, to greater or lessor degree, can shield their minds from unwanted messages. Latents cannot control the messages coming into them, the effect of this instrusive chatter often drives them insane; suicide is common among the latents. Actives because their powers are so dominant do not get along with one another and usually clash violently. Whether a Doro offspring becomes active or latent depends on a transition process at late teenage years which is tortuous and often fails.Doro attempts to mitigate these failures by marrying Mary and Karl, two actives who he hopes can develop a compatible and productive bond. Mary is going through transition and at Doro's insistence marries Karl. (Karl shows another power of active telepaths. They are able to control ordinary people called mutes by placing thoughts into their minds.)
Mary proves to have extraordinary powers. She telepathically draws latents from all across the country and abroad to their home in California. She and others assist the latents in transitioning to actives. Her influence is such that, rather than conflicting, they form a community called Patternists. When she has gathered 1,500 in this society, Dora orders her to stop. It's plain he see his dominance threatened by Mary. He has insisted on complete obedience to his wishes, but Mary refuses, realizing that Doro will seek to kill her for her disobedience. Mary is able to draw telepathically on the strengths of her followers and is able to kill Doro.
The themes of power and will are at the heart of the novel. Written in 1977, there is a strong element of feminism seen in Mary in her determination to exercise power as she sees it. This is part of a series of novels called the "Patternist" novels.
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LibraryThing member ChrisRiesbeck
Early Butler with all the themes in place and the strong characters, but with more emphasis on plot than later more mature books. An interesting contrast to the Earthseed books, as both are centered on a woman building a community with religious overtones, seen from both her perspectives and others
Recommended
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not so happy with what she's doing. In this earlier book, there's less vision on the main character's part and more happens because of super-powers than because of sheer strength of will. Recommended
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LibraryThing member DanTarlin
Book 2 of the Patternist series, though I believe the books were written out of order. Wild Seed told the story of Doro and Emma, two immortals with very different purposes. Doro has been alive for thousands of years, and through a breeding project is trying to create... well it's not clear exactly
Mary then starts to build her own community of people like her. She binds people to her in "the pattern" and successfully builds toward her dream. But as this happens she becomes a threat to the immortal and apparently invulnerable Doro.
Good world-building here, and I'm in for the rest of this series- the books are easy to read and economical. Butler is a worthy read, though not at all my favorite sci-fi writer. I think the story she's forming here cries out for more exploration of the ethical problems of enslaving normal people (or "mutes" as they're called here), but this is apparently not part of the project. I can't get to 4 stars for a rating without some exploration of some of these types of themes- what's left is just a cool story.
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what he's trying for. But in Mary, his work has culminated. She is a 19 year old powerful telepath, though still latent as the book begins. But early on, she goes through her "transition" and instinctively locates and binds herself to six other active telepaths around the US who are also part of Doro's breeding program. Mary then starts to build her own community of people like her. She binds people to her in "the pattern" and successfully builds toward her dream. But as this happens she becomes a threat to the immortal and apparently invulnerable Doro.
Good world-building here, and I'm in for the rest of this series- the books are easy to read and economical. Butler is a worthy read, though not at all my favorite sci-fi writer. I think the story she's forming here cries out for more exploration of the ethical problems of enslaving normal people (or "mutes" as they're called here), but this is apparently not part of the project. I can't get to 4 stars for a rating without some exploration of some of these types of themes- what's left is just a cool story.
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LibraryThing member littlel
Thought provoking, so current and fresh despite being written in 1970s
LibraryThing member BarnesBookshelf
I read this book years ago for a class, but it was interesting to read it again as I work my way through the Patternist series. There were several things I forgot, like the fact that the story is told from more than one pov. I liked it just as much as I did before, especially the growth that Mary
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has. I'm excited to see what new topics and perspectives thr next book brings. Show Less
Language
Original publication date
1977-06
ISBN
1538751496 / 9781538751497