Teaser

Earth as you know it is no more. In the aftermath of a devastating war, the survivors of humanity learn they are not alone. The alien Oankali have come, but what is it they want, and to what lengths are they willing to go . . ?

Review

There are a lot of science fiction books out there, and no one could ever expect to read them all. Even reading every major award winner would be a challenge beyond the average reader. there are just too many. Even for someone like myself, who is hopelessly addicted to reading science fiction, has gaps in their knowledge. One of those gaps came in the shape of Octavia E. Butler. Butler is one of those authors who is incredibly significant from a historical perspective, but whose stories have never really appealed to me. I have no interest in reading her dystopian novels, and my one prior exposure came in the form of a rather unimpressive and forgettable short story. But thanks to a friend who wouldn’t stop pestering me to read Butler, I eventually caved in and did so, especially when said friend was also kind enough to gift me a fancy edition of the Xenogenesis trilogy.

As with so many classics of science fiction, the first book is the best. After a war, Lilith wakes to find herself surrounded by aliens called Oankali. They are a starfaring species that seeks to trade with humans. The only issue is that by trade, they mean that they want to take human DNA into their own bodies, so that both species benefit by becoming joined. One thing I think Butler does very well is that the Oankali are not evil. They are simply acting on their biological and cultural impulses. Through human eyes (my eyes), however, they are utterly monstrous. In much the same way that I am happy to protect crops without saying that locusts are evil, I can confidently say that I would not be a collaborator with the Oankali. It’s not that they are evil, it’s not even that they don’t care, it’s that they are incompatible with humans on a cultural level. Biologically, however, it’s an altogether different story. The Oankali see cancer as an opportunity to regrow dead tissue, and can readily heal any number of genetic faults in humans. On the downside, they do also forcibly sterilise humanity. so, you know, swings and roundabouts.

To go briefly into spoilers, the first book of this trilogy ends with the protagonist being forcibly impregnated without her consent. It’s a horrific end to the book that gets right to the meat of why humans and Oankali are so different. Unfortunately, the rest of the trilogy backs away from this.

Adulthood Rites picks up years later, where it turned out that Lilith was actually grateful to be impregnated. We don’t get a human perspective from these second two books, as our protagonists are now Oankali hybrids. It might be that Butler is exceptionally good at getting into alien headspaces, and for sure there’s an element of that here, but every interaction with humans rings false. The humans we see are either brainwashed into accepting the human way of life (I’m pretty sure every one of them is suffering from Stockholm Syndrome) or has been driven feral by the fact they can no longer bear children. None of this is dwelt on, however, and I can’t help but feel Butler was so swept up by the Oankali that she overlooked how horrific life would be for the humans.

As you might have gathered, these books are full of sex. Alien sex, to be precise. Because the Oankali can’t move two steps without accidentally seducing someone. There’s even an incestuous threesome thrown in for good measure. It’s not just the aliens, either. The humans here are perpetually horny. Now, these books were written in the eighties, so I don’t expect much in the way of social commentary when it comes to the non-binary ooloi, the third gender of the Oankali. What we get is incredibly progressive for the time, but I do think a modern version of the book would read very differently if it factored in modern ideas about queer identities. That’s far outside my realm of expertise, however, so I’ll leave it at that.

Now, you might be wondering if I disliked these books, given what I’ve already said. I don’t. Butler is a fantastic writer. For all my qualms about they way the horror aspects are abandoned, these are still phenomenally readable books. Dawn is one of the best books I’ve read this year, and the trilogy as a whole is well worth reading. It might tail off a little towards the end, but it’s still a worthy journey for any science fiction fan to take. Just don’t let the tentacles get to you. That way sexy madness lies.

Book Stats

• Contains Dawn, Adulthood Rites, and Imago
• This edition published 2025 by Library of America
• 671 Pages