“All that you touch You Change. All that you Change Changes you. The only lasting truth Is Change.”
Octavia E. Butler’s 1993 book Parable of the Sower remains one of the most powerful dystopia books written in recent times. Part science fiction, part fantasy, part speculative fiction, the story is set in 2024 and follows Lauren Olamina and her family living in one of the few safe neighbourhoods remaining on the outskirts of Los Angeles. When a fire destroys their compound, claiming the lives of her family in the process, Lauren is forced to venture outside with just a handful of other survivors on a journey northward in search of safety. Lauded for its themes of change and perseverance, community, inclusion and exclusion and dreams, plans and hopes for the future, if you love all things Octavia Butler, join us at What We Reading for the best books like Parable of the Sower!
The Fifth Season (The Broken Earth #1) – N.K. Jemisin
Kicking off our list of books like Parable of the Sower is NK Jemisin’s Broken Earth Trilogy, beginning with The Fifth Season. Similar to Octavia Butler, Jemisin’s series incorporates dark but hopeful messaging across stories that contain plenty of fantastical elements, without ever losing their grounded, compelling characters.
The Fifth Season follows Essun, a woman living an ordinary life in a small town when one day she returns home to find her husband has murdered her son and kidnapped their daughter. At the same time, the vast continent known as the Stillness has been ripped open, spewing ash into the sky and plunging the world into darkness. Essun must navigate through this treacherous land, deprived of basic resources, to pursue what remains of her family. But, as readers will discover, not even the end of the world, can stop her from saving her daughter.
The Handmaid’s Tale (The Handmaid’s Tale #1) – Margaret Atwood
No list of books similar to Parable of the Sower would be complete without mentioning The Handmaid’s Tale, and Margaret Atwood’s turbulent story of Offred remains as timeless today as when it was first published.
Offred is a handmaid in the Republic of Gilead. She is permitted to leave her commander’s house once a day to venture down to the food markets, where the signs are now solely pictures. In this world, women are no longer allowed to read, and handmaidens are only useful if they are still able to get pregnant. Atwood’s book is satirical, chilling and completely believable as a work of dystopia that feels very much like it’s grounded in a world not too dissimilar from our own.
Chain-Gang All-Stars – Nana Kwame Ajei-Brenyah
Nominated for Best Debut Novel and Best Science Fiction in the Goodreads Choice Awards, Chain-Gang All-Stars is a 2023 book similar to Parable of the Sower by Nana Kwame Ajei-Brenyah. Set in a dystopia America, Loretta Thurwar and Hamara ‘Hurricane Staxxx’ Stacker are the stars of the Chain-Gang All-Stars at the cornerstone of the CAPE, the country’s return to the era of gladiators where prisoners fight for their freedom.
Fighting to the death in front of packed arenas, Thurwar and Staxxx are two of the biggest stars of the programs and are only a handful of victories away from securing their freedom. Nana Kwame Ajei-Brenyah offers a striking commentary on America’s prison system and what freedom truly means through an exhilarating ride from the centre of these gladiatorial spectators to the righteous protestors standing in defiance against them outside the gates.
Severance – Ling Ma
Candace Chen is a millennial worker in a Manhattan office tower whose devotion to routine means she barely notices the apocalypse unfolding around her. But as the Shen Fever spreads, grinding the subways to a halt, corporate businesses close down and families flee the city. Entirely alone, but still unaffected by the disease, Candace begins photographing the abandoned city as the mysterious blogger known as ‘NY Ghost’.
A group of survivors enter the city led by the power-hungry IT technician, Bob. He explains he and his group are travelling to the Facility where he claims, they have everything they need to start society anew. But Bob knows a secret about Candace that she is certain he will exploit when the time comes. So should she run from her saviours? Like Parable of the Sower, Ling Ma’s Severance is a sharp coming-of-age tale that explores the rituals and missed opportunities that come with contemporary life.
Shadow Speaker (The Desert Magician’s Duology #1) – Nnedi Okorafor
New York Times bestselling author Nnedi Okorafor whisks readers to West Africa and Niger in 2074 in her Desert Magician’s Duology. In an era of tainted technology and mysticism, the laws of physics that once governed the world have disappeared, replaced by new and strange occurrences.
The story follows Ejii Ugabe, a fifteen-year-old born to the worst type of politician. Her father had been a cruel individual, and he had met his end when Ejii was only nine years old. As she continues to manifest the otherworldly abilities this strange new Earth have given her, Ejii embarks on a revenge mission against the killer of her father. But, is it really a mission being driven by revenge, or something else entirely?
The Splinter In The Sky – Kemi Ashing-Giwa
The Splinter in the Sky is a USA Today Bestselling 2023 space opera book by Kemi Ashing-Giwa. In it, she introduces a universe where the war between the Holy Vaalbaran Empire and the Ominirish Republic has just come to a close. Not that it means much to Enitan, a lowly scribe who wants nothing more than to quit her day job and establish her tea business.
That is until her lover is assassinated and her sibling is abducted by Imperial soldiers. She swaps out her hopes for the future for a quest for revenge, using all of her knowledge of tea to climb deeper and deeper into the heart of the Vaalbaran capital. Like in Parable of the Sower, she soon learns just how far she is willing to go to exact vengeance and free the ones she loves.
Life As We Knew It (Last Survivors #1) – Susan Beth Pfeffer
Another book similar to Parable of the Sower centred around familial connections as they struggle for survival in a post-apocalyptic world, Life As We Knew It is a YA dystopian novel by Susan Beth Pfeffer. The story kicks off when a meteor crashes into the moon, knocking it closer to Earth. Huge tsunamis knock out coastal settlements, volcanic explosions black out the sun, summer turns to winter and earthquakes cause devastation on every continent.
Miranda, her two brothers and their mother retreat to the only safe room they have: their sunroom. There, they survive on stockpiled canned food and limited water reserves, heated only by the warmth of their wood-burning stove. Told via journal entries, Miranda and her family’s story is a profound and gripping exploration of survival but, like Parable of the Sower, is also an exploration of finding hope in a desperate and ravaged world.
Love YA Dystopia? Check Out The Best Books Like Uglies By Scott Westerfield!
Part-time reader, part-time rambler, and full-time Horror enthusiast, James has been writing for What We Reading since 2022. His earliest reading memories involved Historical Fiction, Fantasy and Horror tales, which he has continued to take with him to this day. James’ favourite books include The Last (Hanna Jameson), The Troop (Nick Cutter) and Chasing The Boogeyman (Richard Chizmar).
