Continuing on the theme of women, as a prelude to International Women’s Day, I’m going to stick with the authors and activists, or author/activists, as the aforementioned Dorothy Parker and Zainab Salbiof fit that category.

Today it’s Octavia Butler.

Butler was an American novelist, short story writer, and essayist, as well as a subliminal activist. Though she has a huge fan base still, and there was heartfelt op-ed memorializing when she died, much too early, from a fall and head injury in 2006, the man on the street is not all that familiar with her work. Her work doesn’t often make the book club discussions list of the garden party class. That is unfortunate because not only was she a multiple award winning science fiction writer, in a world where most science fiction was written by men, she was African American author in a world where African American authors were ignored.

Photo, NikolasCo’s .

Butler once called herself “comfortable asocial” ‘a pessimist if I’m not careful, a feminist, a Black, a former Baptist, an oil-and-water combination of ambition, laziness, insecurity, certainty and drive.” She was somewhat of a hermit, did not like to lecture — if she had to be up front she preferred to answers questions and wasn’t likely to be caught on a talk show. She was also a genius, writing social commentary on feminism, racism and society while masquerading it as science fiction, yet making it genuine, brilliant science fiction and splendid social commentary.

The purpose of these posts is not to give book reviews but to introduce or reintroduce people to some women. In the case of Olivia Butler I was lucky enough to have been introduced to her in tenth grade English in a month long series we did on Women Writers. It’s a rare thing though for Octavia Butler to be introduced in a high school class not particular to science fiction or African American writers, and that my friends is a shame. So for those who did miss out, check out her work.

Exploratory Links Octavia Butler:

NPR ESSAY – UN RACISM CONFERENCEBy Octavia E. Butler Reflections on Octavia Butler
official site Octavia Butler
Octavia Butler, 1947-2006: Sci-fi writer a gifted pioneer in white, male domain
Books by Octavia E. Butler
Oh, Octavia

previously on Women’s Week
Zainab Salbi
Dorothy Parker

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