Star Child: A Biographical Constellation of Octavia Estelle Butler

Written by Ibi Zoboi

Narrated by Ibi Zoboi and Robin Miles

From the New York Times bestselling author and National Book Award finalist, a biography in verse and prose of science fiction visionary Octavia Butler.

Acclaimed novelist Ibi Zoboi illuminates the young life of the visionary storyteller Octavia E. Butler in poems and prose. Born into the Space Race, the Red Scare, and the dawning Civil Rights Movement, Butler experienced an American childhood that shaped her into the groundbreaking science-fiction storyteller whose novels continue to challenge and delight readers fifteen years after her death.

Cover art © 2022 by Zharia Shinn

• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
• Release date: Jan 25, 2022
• ISBN: 9780593503232

Ibi Zoboi

Ibi Zoboi is the New York Times bestselling author of American Street, a National Book Award finalist; Nigeria Jones, a Coretta Scott King Award winner; Pride; My Life as an Ice Cream Sandwich; Okoye to the People: A Black Panther Novel for Marvel; and the Walter Award and LA Times Book Prize–winning Punching the Air, cowritten with Exonerated Five member Yusef Salaam. She is also a two-time Coretta Scott King Honor Award winner for her picture book The People Remember and her middle grade biography of Octavia Butler, Star Child. She is the editor of the anthology Black Enough. Born in Haiti and raised in New York City, she now lives in New Jersey with her family. You can find her online at ibizoboi.net.

Reviews for Star Child

[bell7_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Octavia Estelle Butler dreamed of the stars, and Ibi Zoboi uses prose and poetry to give us what she terms a "biographical constellation" of a Black woman writing science fiction when it was very much still a white boy's club.

Though written for children, the biography offers much for adults familiar with Butler's work may appreciate, from the titles of the sections ("Parable of the Sower," "Parable of the Talents") to lines in the poems referencing Butler's work. Zoboi does a nice job of introducing the time frame in which Butler grew up as well as giving biographical details. The poetry was less successful for me, but I just let the words wash over me and went with it. I get from the author's note that she was doing something very intentional with that aspect of the biographical "constellation," and I admit as a very picky poetry reader, it was generally lost on me, though others may appreciate her craft. The final section was interesting, in which Zoboi talks about meeting Butler herself and what affect she had on Zoboi's own writing. Mostly, though, I was left wanting to read a full-length adult biography to answer all the questions I still have.

[salsabrarian · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This biography, made up of poems, quotes, and brief biographical entries, gave me a sense of who Octavia Butler was and how she came to be the esteemed science fiction writer she was. I am not sure though who I could interest in reading this book, considering the youth I serve. It would have to be a very particular young person, a bit outside the mainstream of life as was Octavia.

[ewyatt_16 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In a creative read, this biography of Octavia Butler is interspersed with poems and short chapters. It follows Butler's drive to write and create science fiction from an early age. Sets of poems are paired with short prose that elaborates on the poem and its connection to Butler's life. The book contains quotes from Butler as well as a section of images in the middle of the book.
It inspired me to read some of Butler's work!

[jennybeast · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Ibi Zoboi's love for Octavia Butler and her work really shines through this short book, and I love both her creativity and her thoughtful curation -- she highlights both Butler's accomplishments and her place as a major literary figure. The book is also very intentionally centered on Butler's youth, and the artifacts that are scattered throughout -- photos, images of Butler's childhood notebook -- do a stellar job of connecting the reader to Butler in an intimate way.

For me, the poetry felt a little off -- because the poetry is presented in so many different forms (concrete poems, haikus, acrostic, etc), it starts to feel more like a writing exercise that centers on Butler's life, rather than an organic creation, where a particular poem is needed in a particular space for a specific reason. However, I am reviewing an ARC, so this may shift and refine before publication. Certainly, the variety of storytelling techniques makes this book a useful addition to a poetry curriculum.

Advanced Reader's Copy provided by Edelweiss.

[reader1009-863136 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

nonfiction/young reader's biography (partially in verse) - recommended age group might center around 6th-9th grades?

I don't generally enjoy poems that much, but Zoboi's compositions make a nice complement to the short prose chapters and quotes from the great Octavia Butler herself (who was already showing a lot of talent and ability in her impressive science fiction stories written at the age of 10). I am not sure how many children are very familiar with her work, since her books are mainly written for an adult audience, but I'm sure that Butler is not the only one to be exploring books outside of her so-called "age level." And I am hopeful that some may begin to discover her books after reading this, and that some will be encouraged to become writers themselves.