This excerpt is adapted from “A Handful of Earth, A Handful of Sky: The World of Octavia E. Butler” by Lynell George. Growing up in Pasadena, Octavia E. Butler began writing at age 10, filling notebooks and diaries with her ideas. To begin to fully grasp Octavia Butler is to sink into the worlds from which she came. She knew that science fiction didn’t have to be spaceships or super bugs; the most compelling science fiction for her offered readers alternative versions of not just the universe but also themselves. Science fiction is … a handful of earth and a handful of sky and everything around and in between.

Source: Los Angeles Times November 11, 2020 15:32 UTC