The novel “Parable of the Sower” by Octavia Butler was published for the first time in 1993. It’s the first book of the Parables series, also known as the Earthseed series.

In July 2024, Lauren Olamina lives in an enclave surrounded by a wall that includes a small group of homes near Los Angeles. Her father, a Baptist minister, tries to keep the small community together but the inhabitants must defend themselves from external criminals. They are far from rich but the people who live around enclaves like that one are in much worse conditions.

Lauren Olamina’s life is made even more difficult by her hyperempathy which leads her to physically feel the pain of others. Her father expresses optimism for the future but Lauren wonders how long the enclave will last. She prepares for the worst and starts developing some ideas in a religion she calls Earthseed based on the idea that God is Change.