Wild Seed

Written by Octavia E. Butler

Narrated by Robin Miles

DDoro knows no higher authority than himself. An ancient spirit with boundless powers, he possesses humans, killing without remorse as he jumps from body to body to sustain his own life. With a lonely eternity ahead of him, Doro breeds supernaturally gifted humans into empires that obey his every desire. He fears no one—until he meets Anyanwu. Anyanwu is an entity like Doro and yet different. She can heal with a bite and
transform her own body, mending injuries and reversing aging. She uses her powers to cure her neighbors and birth entire tribes, surrounding herself with kindred who both fear and respect her. No one poses a true threat to Anyanwu—until she meets Doro. The moment Doro meets Anyanwu, he covets her, and from the villages of seventeenth-century Nigeria to nineteenth-century United States, their courtship becomes a power struggle that echoes through generations, irrevocably changing what it means to be human.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Jan 5, 2021
• ISBN: 9781980019367

Octavia E. Butler

Octavia E. Butler (1947–2006) was a renowned African American author of several award-winning novels, including Parable of the Sower, which was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year in 1993, and Parable of the Talents, winner of the Nebula Award for the best science fiction novel in 1995. She received a MacArthur Genius Grant and PEN West Lifetime Achievement Award for her body of work and was acclaimed for her lean prose, strong protagonists, and social observations in stories that range from the distant past to the far future.

Reviews for Wild Seed

[LaSharla · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Imaginative and enthralling up to the very end! Bravo Mrs. Butler!

[Sharon Traylor · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was a really good read. Y’all need to pick this one up.

[Baileys Wearables · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Pure gold. I would leave it at that but i have to write at least 10 words.

[Valery Bolliger · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A wonderful book; thrilling, mystical, excellent characters and so well read!

[Lucia Garcia · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

What a great and unique story. I do not appreciate the toxic relationship these two beings have, yet I understand the power of finding someone like one self.
The concept used as a baseline, these superhumans, I found it wonderful.
Butler always amazing.

[Janet Hebbert · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Loved this story! Interesting and unique. Expertly written and narrated.

[dantarlin · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is my first Octavia Butler book, and I'm not sure it was the right one to start on. Wild Seed is a story about two powerful humans: Doro, an immortal man born in ancient times, thousands of years old when we meet him. He cannot be killed because when his body is destroyed his consciousness leaps to the body closest to him and he just goes on in the new body. He has the ability to leap to new bodies at will, and when we meet him in the 1600s he is in Africa finding slaves to bring to America to improve his breeding program; he has fashioned a number of communities in Africa and the Americas where he breeds those with special talents.Doro has the ability to sense those with such talents, and is drawn to Anyanwu, an African villager who does not age, who is inhumanly strong, and who can change her shape and control the inner workings of her body. He brings her to New York state for his breeding program, but she is "wild seed", i.e. not yet a product of his program and thus not as easily controlled as his typical people. Anyanwu submits to him, as he has the ability to kill her and also to find and breed her offspring, but she never worships him as a god as others do.We then follow the two up to the 1840s, as Anyanwu first escapes but is eventually found, and then struggles to find her power and assert herself without fear.The book is a bit meandering- I didn't really see where it was going and it seemed unfocused, but the characters are compelling. Doro is a monster, killing and taking bodies to suit his purposes with no thought to others, while Anyanwu is a "healer", trying to figure out how to care for others in the communities Doro has built. I wonder if I should have started with a different book in this series- this is a prequel to others, I believe. Not a bad read, but I'm hoping others in the series will be more focused.

[reader1009-863136 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

diverse historical fiction with magical realism
prequel to patternmaster series (which I haven't read yet, but plan to). Basically, everything from Octavia Butler is gold.

[purpledog-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a most unexpected story from Butler. I have always considered her as a Science Fiction writer and this is most definitely a paranormal, historical fiction novel. I thought the story was original but it lacked in setting. I crave stories where the world is described with lush, vivid language and I did not get that here. However, the plot was good and I loved the originality. The characters were perfect and I could feel the pull between Doro and Anyanwu as two immortal supernatural beings. Though not my favorite Butler story is was still enjoyable and I look forward to reading book 2.

[librolindsay · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I faltered somewhere around halfway through the book, mainly due to slight confusion of the narration and a few editing errors, but when it picked back up when Anyanwu founded her Louisiana settlement, I couldn't put it down. I was in tears by the end and so ultimately relieved and comforted by the conclusion. Once this book has fully set in, I intend to follow up with the next in the series.

[bookczuk · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Pandemic Read. Least favorite of all the Octavia Butler books I've read.

[jakecasella · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

First time reading this! Butler is so good. This has lots going on; as always with Butler there is much here about power and agency, sex and race and community. And, like usual when I read Butler, I'm left uneasy—she doesn't make things morally easy for the reader. Brilliantly written, her style is invisible. Think Galactic discussed this just after the Le Guin documentary had come out, and it was kind of jaw-dropping to think about this as coming from the early '80s—nothing against Le Guin or other SF writers of the time, but I can't think of anything that feels this fresh almost four decades later.

[billycongo · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

So enjoyable! Great writing, well defined characters, and a compelling narrative. Darwin would be proud of Doro, and his interest in genetics. Of course, Ella (as we are now calling her) does the same without the messy business of killing everything in site. It's also about abusive relationships and that whole slavery thing. Onward to book #2!

[zoes_human · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is book is too good for a proper review. It's epic in scope, complex, and deeply absorbing. I've never seen witchcraft conceptualized quite like this. I loved every minute of it including, and perhaps especially, hating Doro.

[being_b-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I have no idea how to rate this-- it feels oddly formless. I did love the side note that when Anyanwu makes herself a male body, she can get women pregnant but only with female children (because she can only contribute X chromosomes). Attention to detail for the win.

Returning to this review several days later, and having read the rest of the Seed to Harvest set, the beauty of the writing and the depth of the ideas really strikes me.

[eldang-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was one of the most disturbing, uncomfortable books I have ever read, because it goes so deep into dehumanisation by those who wield power. And yet I finished it in a week because the key characters and the strange world Butler set up were so compelling.

[cindywho-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It was time to dip back into one of Butler's dark and difficult worlds of power in relationships, racism and slavery. This one throws in immortality, eugenics and history. I decided to read this series (Patternmaster) in chronological order instead of order written and it will be interesting to see the contrasts. The characters in this one were frightening and fascinating and I can't wait to see how their crazy experiments turn out.

[sprainedbrain · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

My second Butler, and I am loving her work. The combination of historical fiction with sci-fi elements, plus brilliant writing and excellent narration, made this book very hard to stop listening to. I loved some of these characters, and loathed some others, but was completely invested.

[david_david_katzman · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A unique fantasy novel that centers around supernatural/superhuman characters from Africa. The story begins in the time of slavery, when slaves were captured and brought to America. I found it to be a very unique and refreshing premise, compared to the common tropes of fantasy, be they paranormal or Tolkeinian.The two central characters (and antagonists) were interesting personalities. One seems to represent the Earth Mother--the power of healing and nature and animals. The other seems to represent Patriarchy and masculinity and control. And although they both have great power in many ways, the male force is dominant and relatively unstoppable. Doro, the male, can't be killed, and he can kill anyone at will by taking over his or her body, and then abandoing that body to move into a new one. He essentially takes over their brain and then leaves it empty when he's done. Anyanwu can heal almost any injury, sickness or disease in her own body and can transform it into an animal once she observes that animal closely. She has near total control of her body and can even disguise herself to appear as any human shape she chooses. She also does not age and like Doro may never die unless her body is physically destroyed.Wild Seed is a story of power, of slavery, of social control and of gender issues. It's also a story filled with powerful emotions, the pain of loss and the struggle to develop empathy. It's also a story of compromises, and the choices that are made by those with less power in order to survive.The following spoiler relates to what does NOT happen in the book, not what DOES happen. But if you are looking to avoid any tip-off, then please avoid it. In the hands of a lesser writter, Anyanwu would have figured out a clever way to kill Doro. She would have "won" by somehow defeating him with trickery or battle. That's what you'd read in a mainstream fantasy book or movie. The issue is faced more honestly and with complexity here. Patriarchy can't be defeated in battle or with trickery. It's a social force that requires significant social upheaval over long periods of team. We have not won this battle, as exemplified by the throw-back to cro-magnon-times President we have in place today.Wonderfully told with profound and meaningful themes invoked without facile answers. This is great storytelling. Would appeal to anyone looking for an unusual refreshing take on the fantasy genre with socially powerful meaning.

[lindoula-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Creative, but I can't say I found reading about abuse after abuse enjoyable.

[john_warner-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This science fiction classic is about two immortals: Doro and Anyanwu. Doro was born during the time of the Egyptians pharaohs and has sustained his life by transferring his soul into another's body, an act which eventually kills the host. Doro also collects other humans, through persuasion or slave trade, to create seed villages in the New World and using eugenics to produce super humans with paranormal powers. Anyanwu is a healer and a shapeshifter with the ability to transform into any human or animal. When Doro meets Anyanwu and is impressed with her abilities, he persuades her to go with him with a promise not to her any of her children. Over the decades, the relationship between the two deteriorate and Anyanwu runs away. When she is in animal form, Doro can't not discern her presence. However, Doro is very patient -- after all he has lived over four thousand years.This classic was groundbreaking since it was the first in the science fiction genre using an African protagonist. As I read the novel, I realized that the relationship between Doro and Anyanwu was allegorical for the slave trade and plantation life in early America. This was the first Octavia Butler I have read but it won't be the last. It was well-written and thought-provoking.

[violetbramble · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The story of two immortals and their attempts to find others with the same abilities. Anyanwu is a woman who lives in a small African village in the year 1690. She has lived for hundred of years. She is able to heal herself and others. She can change her appearance and change genders and species by completely altering her DNA. Doro finds her one day in her garden. Doro, once a human boy, is a spirit being who takes over human bodies. He kills indiscriminately. He collects people with special abilities into colonies around the world. He breeds them like animals in order to create beings with better powers and possibly other immortals. Doro has come to believe that he is a God, and his people believe it too. He lures Anyanwu to New York with promises that she will be his wife and bear him many special children. He then marries her to one of his sons, Isaac, and breeds her with them both. Doro is never able to "tame" Anyanwu or get her to revere him the way the others do. Isaac tells Anyanwu that she is the only one - because of their shared longevity- who can reach the remaining human part of Doro before it is extinguished forever. When Isaac dies Anyanwu runs away from Doro, and certain death, by becoming a dolphin. Doro eventually finds her living as a human with a new family. He immediately starts his breeding program with her new people. Disgusted by him, and her own inability to reach him, Anyanwu makes a drastic decision. With this act she is finally able to reach the small fragment of humanity inside Doro.This was a slow read, and the subject matter could be emotionally draining at times. But, I just kept going back to the book to see how it would all turn out. I'm ambivalent about the ending. However; Butler is one of my favorite SciFi authors and this one is up there with her best. Recommended.

[katesherrod · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It's been too long since I immersed myself in one of Octavia E. Butler's magical-biological-genealogical-alien-witchcraft-historical-futuristic-mind-blowing series. I always forget, until I'm deep into one, how much I love them, love her way with language, with imagery, with storytelling, with poetry, with imagination.

Wild Seed begins a series I've long had my eye on but had long avoided because my local public library didn't have all of it: the Patternmaster series, a late entry in which (Survivor) I accidentally picked up there many years ago. I have since learned that it is not specifically sequential, and that I could have enjoyed the books in any order, but now that I have them all in one convenient e-book file, my serial compulsion can be satisfied and I can submerge myself without anxiety.

Which is to say that I'm going to be picking up where I left off and starting the "next" Patternmaster book, Mind of My Mind, immediately after finishing this blog post.

Wild Seed concerns a sort of battle of body and mind between two all but supernatural beings in the colonial era, when black slaves were Africa's greatest export and white settlements in the New World depended on them utterly, north and south of a certain arbitrary boundary that would be drawn in a hundred years or so. Living and ruling several settlements in America (and elsewhere) is one Doro, thousands of years old, a being who takes over the bodies of others (sadly killing the original occupants in the process) and who has been breeding pockets of humanity in semi-captivity to produce individuals with unique abilities like telepathy and telekinesis -- with the attendant responsibility to protect them from the rest of humanity who would regard his human livestock as witches and torture and burn them as such. And in Africa, living quietly but treated with reverence as an oracle is Anyanwu, an immortal shape-changer, a woman with such minute control over her body that she can analyze and overcome any pathogen or poison, can alter her very DNA to become any creature she has "analyzed" (by eating), and who has thereby lived for a good 300 years. Anyanwu turns out to be a "wild seed" -- the descendant of some lost or escaped members of one of Doro's earlier captive populations, whose talents are beyond Doro's wildest dreams. He Must Have Her and breed her with his other stock, whether she is willing or not.

If you're guessing that Butler has found in this science fictional/magic realistic story a way to comment on gender, slavery, race, free will, coercion and class, you're guessing right, but if you're guessing that she ever beats the reader over the head with these heavy notions, you're not. As Doro and Anyanwu struggle for control, these ideas and problems naturally occur, but only subtly. Butler is too deft a hand to preach at the reader. While she is often regarded as Zora Neale Hurston in genre fictional disguise (and Butler does have some of that lyrical quality for which Hurston is praised), Butler never feels like she is writing polemics or parables, even when some of her novels have "parable" in the title.

That being said, there is often a slightly creepy quality to Butler's work. I trace it to its explicit physicality, its minute focus on biology and how biology can be manipulated. Thus the Oankali of Lilith's Brood/Xenogenesis trilogy fame are some of the most fascinating and frightening aliens I've ever encountered, and here in this book we find that Anyanwu herself is one of the most compelling heroines, very nearly omnipotent, but cowed by Doro's threat to round up and all but enslave* her descendants (two of whom were caught in the same net she herself was, and whom Doro promptly bred to one another over her objections that this was incest; Doro forces his populations to breed incestuously all the time and just kills off any babies born with too many undesirable traits). Her power just makes her subjugation all the more desirable, and Doro is just the being to try to keep her in check -- and to keep her from realizing that she alone in all the world could actually oppose him if she dared.

Despite it all, though, this pair has a kind of love, and Octavia E. Butler is one of the very best novelists in the world when it comes to writing about love -- agape, filia or eros, it doesn't matter which. Reading one of her novels is like gorging oneself at a feast, but without the bellyache afterwards. She leaves me wanting more.

Good thing there still is some. But I probably should hoard those works of hers I haven't read yet and ration them out like EssJay and I do with Philip K. Dick. That's what I should do.

But, you know, I'm weak, and silly, and don't always do what I should.

*Doro's people do not live like slaves, happily dwelling in rich and prosperous towns and villages here and there, thriving and free to exercise their weird talents within those carefully controlled and defended enclaves, but their apparent freedom is that of pampered zoo animals, who don't even really get to choose their mates.

[pwaites_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Anyanwu and Doro are two immortal beings. Doro is more of a spirit than a man. He lives through millennial by possessing other’s bodies, killing the original owners in the process. Anyanwu is a shape shifter who can constantly rejuvenate her body so that she stays young forever. Doro kills, Anyanwu heals. They are as opposite as they can be, and yet each is the only immortal the other knows. Wild Seed begins with the two coming into contact for the first time, when Doro happens upon the African village where Anyanwu’s living in the late 1600s and shows the relationship between them up until the late 1800s.Wild Seed is easy to read, but there’s a lot going on underneath the surface. There’s so many different topics at play here – race, slavery, gender, sexuality. Basically, if it’s a topic relating to power structures, Wild Seed deals with it. It doesn’t deal much with LGBTQ themes, but I’m still listing it under the tag since Anyanwu has a wife at one point (happens between chapters) and could probably be considered bisexual.Wild Seed deals with the difficulties of being immortal and the inherent loneliness of watching everyone you know die. This is the focal point of the relationship between Anyanwu and Doro. Anyanwu may not be able to condone what Doro does, but he’s the only person who will remain constant as the families she builds for herself die around her.I hate Doro, but I think you’re supposed to hate him. He’s spent his extraordinary long life on a eugenics project, creating a race of people with special powers. He’s controlling and manipulative and thinks nothing of killing others. He wants people to be under his control, to respect and obey him in all things. But Anyanwu cannot respect him, and she does not always obey him. She’s wild seed – a talented person born outside his breeding programs.I’m really not sure what to think about the relationship between Anyanwu and Doro. I really hope the ending wasn’t supposed to be an instance of the woman “changing” her man with her feminine influences, but I’m not sure. Anyanwu was also so passive. I really wanted to see her stand up to Doro and to oppose the things he did that she hated. But it feels more like she accepts powerlessness.A large part of why I have these feelings is that I don’t think Wild Seed had a real conclusion. The book just sort of ends. There problems with Doro’s actions haven’t been dealt with. Maybe it’s because this is a first book in a series? I’d want to keep reading to find out what happens to Anyanwu, but I’ve heard she’s not the protagonist of the next one.Do I recommend Wild Seed? Definitely. I can see why it’s considered a science fiction classic, one that I think I’d need to reread to appreciate more fully.Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.

[stige_3 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A curious book about power and abuse of power. I think.

[davidapino · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The first chronological story within the "Patternist Series," Octavia Butler's "Wild Seed" is one of the best science fiction novels within the past 30 years. It is an excellent read that explores two immortals: Doro, a "male" who has the power to steal bodies, and Anyanwu, a "female" shapeshifter with the power to assume any form she so pleases. After Doro convinces Anyanwu to leave her home continent Africa, they embark on a journey to the North American continent. The former seeks to find the "perfect" seed (an allegory on eugenics) while the latter wants children who cannot die (as she outlasts her offspring). Neither of the two can die by conventional means, thus making them uniquely tormented beings in their own right. Octavia Butler, as usual, explores social hierarchies such as race and gender through a science fiction lens. Doro is the embodiment of masculinity: powerful, controlling, abusive, and charming. Anywanu is the embodiment of femininity: strong, maternal, and empathetic. She also explores world building through slavery, as Doro seeks to create the "perfect breed" of mutated humans with paranormal abilities (not unlike X-Men in Marvel comics fame). However, he attempts to create the "perfect" being through manipulating, abusing, and murdering his offspring. He also lashes out against Anywanu, who tries to endure and escape his abuse on multiple occasions throughout the book. Ultimately, the ending will probably not leave the reader satisfied, but the story is not meant to do such a thing. There is no resolution that sees "good triumph over evil" so often that we see in popular fiction. Instead, it is a harrowing tale of what happens when people (human or superhuman) are enslaved, either as chattel or through personal relationships (particularly abusive ones). "Wild Seed" Definitely a must read if you're familiar with the Patternist Series or Octavia Butler's other work in general.

[imyril · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Excellent if challenging read. I found the prose slightly stilted initially, but as I soon got sucked in, although the book felt a lot like backstory / history - a recounting rather than a storytelling. I'll be intrigued to try other books by Butler and see if the style differs.The book explores the fiery relationship between two immortals, one with the ability to 'steal' bodies, the other a shapeshifter, both hoping to find others 'like them' to share more than a few years with. Butler throws gender, race and sexual orientation in the air, because her 2 leads can both be anything they choose. There's lots to like: people of colour, fluid gender and a strong central female character.But the central theme is control. Doro's attitude is proprietary; he engages in eugenics and he doesn't hesitate to kill those who he no longer considers useful to his gene pool. Independent Anyanwu correctly accuses him of being no better than a slaver; he doesn't value human life or recognise that his people have any rights. His own desires are the only thing that matter.Because Anyanwu identifies as female (although she can and does take male shape and even fathers children) and Doro generally appears male, this makes much of the tale read as a study of a strong, stubborn woman fighting to retain her identity and principles in the face of an oppressive man who holds all the cards - he can kill instantly without even a touch, and has no qualms about threatening her children to force her to his will. Technically, then, this is a book about abuse (and reads equally as a portrayal of slavery/emancipation and domestic abuse). Anyanwu's ferocity and independence obscures it to a degree: she refuses to be a victim, and her submission to Doro feels like a temporary accommodation, but I found it difficult to overlook, and it frequently made for an uncomfortable read as well as making me quite ambivalent about the ending. There are other issues, not least the treatment of the disabled (arguably period appropriate in the broader strokes, but the conflation of mental powers / mental instability / (attempted) rape also bothered me), but overall this was a good challenging read and I do want to explore the Patternist books further.

[thatpirategirl · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Although this book is a sci-fi classic that effectively explores genetics, race, and gender roles, I didn't quite connect with it on the level that I think I was meant to. The core of the story is the dynamic between two near-immortals who are constantly shifting from lovers to adversaries. But Doro, the antagonist, clearly has all the power in the relationship, and forces Anyanwu to obey his commands and tolerate his own heartless behavior so he can achieve his dream of breeding the perfect colony of super-humans. Anyanwu's only power over him is basically that her abilities would allow her to run away and stay hidden from him, if she chose to do so, which would leave him to live out his long life alone.

I guess I was upset that although the characters haven't changed many of their beliefs or behaviors even after all those years, the ending is mostly happy and redemptive for them, without any suggestion that maybe Doro deserves to be alone after all the shitty things that he did, or that Anyanwu is smart enough to recognize that he probably won't be able to change his behavior, since it's all based on attitudes that he's never questioned or shown remorse for. I wouldn't have such a problem with that if it was depicted as the next stage of an ultimately negative cycle, or if they decided that being with a person they couldn't get along with was better than being alone, but instead it felt like I'm supposed to be happy that Anyanwu was finally able to change Doro and now they can be happy together.

But I don't think I'm giving the good parts of the story enough credit by staying focused on this one aspect I didn't like, so I'd probably still recommend this as an engaging sci-fi story with an otherwise-strong protagonist and some (dated, but) interesting observations about race and gender.

[kimberlynwm · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

An evocative story that blends the harshness of slavery and racism with virtues like respect, trust, and connection. The small way in which Anyanwu slightly (very slightly) humanizes Doro is wrought with tears, terror, and pain, yet her perseverance is one of the very hallmarks of her nature. Butler's clear-eyed, yet sympathetic portryals are refreshing and well done.

[gwendydd · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is the story of two immortal god-like beings who live among humans and both relate to humans in different ways. Doro, the older male god-thing, must kill to continue living, and spends his millenia breeding humans, trying to create a line of people that share powers like his. Aynwanu, the female god-thing, has amazing powers of healing, and nurtures and heals those around her. The book explores their different relationships with normal people, as well as racism, differences between genders, and people's fear of what is different.I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this book... I found it very engaging, and I read it pretty quickly. However, I never really connected with any of the characters... I never got the point of Doro's big breeding project. Perhaps I would have liked it better if some of the people in the book had been normal humans, and Butler had explored their reactions to these immortals... [mild spoiler alert] The end seemed rushed and sudden. I didn't quite understand why Aynwanu suddenly reconciled with Doro. [/spoiler]