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Dawn (1987)

by Octavia E. Butler

Other authors: See the other authors section.

Series: Xenogenesis (1)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
3,2121223,889 (4.02)166
Fiction. Science Fiction. HTML:An alien race calls on one woman to revive mankind after Earth's apocalypse in this science fiction classic from the award-winning author of Parable of the Sower.
Lilith Iyapo has just lost her husband and son when atomic fire consumes Earthâ??the last stage of the planet's final war. Hundreds of years later Lilith awakes, deep in the hold of a massive alien spacecraft piloted by the Oankaliâ??who arrived just in time to save humanity from extinction. They have kept Lilith and other survivors asleep for centuries, as they learned whatever they could about Earth. Now it is time for Lilith to lead them back to her home world, but life among the Oankali on the newly resettled planet will be nothing like it was before. The Oankali survive by genetically merging with primitive civilizationsâ??whether their new hosts like it or not. For the first time since the nuclear holocaust, Earth will be inhabited. Grass will grow, animals will run, and people will learn to survive the planet's untamed wilderness. But their children will not be human. Not exactly.
Featuring strong and compelling characters and exploring complex themes of gender and species, Octavia E. Butler presents a powerful, postapocalyptic interplanetary epic, as well as a ray of hope for humanity. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Octavia E. Butler including rare images from the author's est
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» See also 166 mentions

English (117)  Finnish (2)  Catalan (1)  Hungarian (1)  All languages (121)
Showing 1-5 of 117 (next | show all)
Wow. I usually hate hard sci-fi. But this was captivating -- Butler taps into ideas about what makes us humans, at a core, biological level. As a parent, the concept of what we desire for our offspring - the desire for sameness in our offspring competing with a desire for the greatness beyond what one could desire for oneself was very compelling. ( )
  settingshadow | Aug 19, 2023 |
Description of the aliens is very well done.
I find it interesting that the last 2 scifi books i've read, have NOT made me proud to be a human!
  Mantra | Jun 14, 2023 |
I came across this book when it was featured in a podcast about the treatment of aliens in scifi. The book is well written - tight prose and brisk action, but it is also compulsively thought provoking, the best form of scifi.
I have previously read Kindred by the same author when I was binge-reading time travel books several years ago. Kindred was good; Dawn is better. It is pure sci-fi - with aliens and spaceships and a devastated earth. But the scifi aspects are there as background - there's no attempt to explain the science, it just supports the narrative. And the story is engaging - the reader is drawn into the story and I, for one, felt compelled to put myself in the role of the characters - how would I have reacted? Would I have done things the same or differently?? To me this reaction epitomizes good scifi. And of course,this cerebral aspect is why the book was featured in the podcast.
Great book and I'm looking forward to the next two volumes of the trilogy. ( )
  mbmackay | May 19, 2023 |
The good: very good, straightforward easy to read story. Excellent description of what it feels like to be a slave/pet, an inferior people (technologically and maybe also ethically), a "tolerated" different race, a woman. Very good anthropological POV of discovering a different society and civilization as an outsider, even if welcomed (but still an alien). Excellent description of the dilemma for collaborators with a benevolent occuppant (but still an invader): should we trade our violent, murdereous freedom for a better, but less free future?
The bad (therefore not 5/5): a TOO straightforward easy to read story. Meaning it only deals with the human MC POV and completely lacking any social depth for the aliens (no history, religion, beliefs, plots, different parties). It feels like Shogun without the intrigues and civil war, just with the love story and the adaptation to social rules.
Still, overall a very good book, I will start book 2 right away. This one reminded me strongly of Ender, but without the war, just the relentless training and the social ejection by his/here her peers. ( )
  milosdumbraci | May 5, 2023 |
Excellent! This book gets 8 stars really. I mean I’m totally bothered and creeped out by what’s going on here, but it is a GOOD book. Read it! ( )
  juliais_bookluvr | Mar 9, 2023 |
Showing 1-5 of 117 (next | show all)
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» Add other authors (12 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Octavia E. Butlerprimary authorall editionscalculated
Enric.Cover artistsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Palencar, John JudeCover artistsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Underwood, GeorgeCover artistsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed

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Fiction. Science Fiction. HTML:An alien race calls on one woman to revive mankind after Earth's apocalypse in this science fiction classic from the award-winning author of Parable of the Sower.
Lilith Iyapo has just lost her husband and son when atomic fire consumes Earthâ??the last stage of the planet's final war. Hundreds of years later Lilith awakes, deep in the hold of a massive alien spacecraft piloted by the Oankaliâ??who arrived just in time to save humanity from extinction. They have kept Lilith and other survivors asleep for centuries, as they learned whatever they could about Earth. Now it is time for Lilith to lead them back to her home world, but life among the Oankali on the newly resettled planet will be nothing like it was before. The Oankali survive by genetically merging with primitive civilizationsâ??whether their new hosts like it or not. For the first time since the nuclear holocaust, Earth will be inhabited. Grass will grow, animals will run, and people will learn to survive the planet's untamed wilderness. But their children will not be human. Not exactly.
Featuring strong and compelling characters and exploring complex themes of gender and species, Octavia E. Butler presents a powerful, postapocalyptic interplanetary epic, as well as a ray of hope for humanity. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Octavia E. Butler including rare images from the author's est

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Book description
Haiku summary
Lilith kidnapped,
probed by aliens (nice!)
plans to restock Earth
(DarrylLundy)

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Average: (4.02)
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1 9
1.5 1
2 27
2.5 8
3 131
3.5 34
4 334
4.5 34
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Hachette Book Group

2 editions of this book were published by Hachette Book Group.

Editions: 0446603775, 0445207795

 

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