Living With a Nerd

As an avid fan of science fiction in movies, books, and other media, I am always searching for gems that defy the norms in the genre, especially as the genre has grown into such a commercial behemoth.  An author I discovered in my late teens has kept her place as having written some of my favorite stories in the genre.  The series that jolted to life in my mind is the ‘Pattern Master’ books, written by Octavia Butler.  If you’re not familiar with her, she broke barriers not just in the content of her writing but also by being one of the few (if not only) black women to break through into a largely male dominated genre.  In her works themselves, she breaks down racial and gender barriers and submerges us all into the human experience.  She explores and lays open sexuality, leaving not as something scorned but as part of the natural expression of being human.

 Her characters are real, believable, and serve as exciting vehicles for the journeys that she takes us on.  The language is typically gritty and well paced, with well captured, believable dialogue.  Even more so than her style is the content that she explores.  Without spoiling much of it, she has written some of the best psi-combat scenes that I have read.  She pushes the envelope on the imagination, and even though her books were written between 20-30 years ago, they are still very relevant today.  There is a certain timeless quality about them that transcends the generations and evolution of society.  We still have many of the same problems today that were present when she wrote them decades ago.

My recommendations:I also enjoyed Parable of the Sower and some of her short fiction collections. 

If you read only one series from her, read the Patternist series (available in a collection called ‘Seed to Harvest’).  If you read only one book, read Pattern Master.  This is the first one written in the series, last one in chronology, but by far the best. 

Overall, most of her books are quick reads and not more than 200 pages.  Enjoy!