KINDRED

by Octavia Butler

MINI REVIEW

I have my friend Ellen to thank for recommending Kindred.  Written in 1979, Kindred is another landmark Black American novel that I hadn’t read, by a novelist I had always intended to read. Set in modern-day California, Butler tells the story of a newly married woman, Dana, who one day without warning or explanation, finds herself transported to the antebellum South.  Shaken and confused, she immediately comes to the rescue of a plantation owner’s son, Rufus, who is drowning.  What follows are years of unplanned time-travel visits to the plantation, where Dana, a black woman, establishes a real bond with Rufus, but still must endure living the life of a slave when she is there.  If time-travel isn’t your favorite literary device, I encourage you to give this novel a read anyway.  Butler’s story about Dana, who in our time is married to a white man, but who also experiences the antebellum South firsthand, will draw you in and fascinate you.  Kindred has become an iconic book and Butler’s use of time-travel is one of the reasons why. I highly recommend Kindred. (Liz)

A SECOND HELPING

Kindred has been sitting on my shelf for years and I have hesitated to pick it up because I’m extremely cautious choosing books about slavery due to the graphic violence and disturbing psychological issues they often contain. And although Kindred has both of these elements, it has so much more. I now understand why it has attained its classic status. Since it was published in the 70s and was made into a successful film, I am going to risk a spoiler here and tell you the crucial plot point of which I was unaware: The protagonist is an underemployed Black writer living in 1970s Los Angeles when she accidentally time travels to an 1830s Maryland plantation and saves the life of a young white boy. The added layer of her perspective as a ‘modern’ woman gives the book so much depth and tension, not to mention a huge mystery that unravels throughout the story. So if you, like me, somehow haven’t made time to read this brilliant book, please don’t wait any longer! (Lily)