The Inky Phoenix | Kindred

Kindred

Octavia E. Butler

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From the New York Times bestselling author of Parable of the Sower and MacArthur “Genius” Grant, Nebula, and Hugo award winner. The visionary time-travel classic whose Black female hero is pulled through time to face the horrors of American slavery and explores the impacts of racism, sexism, and white supremacy then and now.

“I lost an arm on my last trip home. My left arm.”

Dana’s torment begins when she suddenly vanishes on her 26th birthday from California, 1976, and is dragged through time to antebellum Maryland to rescue a boy named Rufus, heir to a slaveowner’s plantation. She soon realizes the purpose of her summons to the past: protect Rufus to ensure his assault of her Black ancestor so that she may one day be born. As she endures the traumas of slavery and the soul-crushing normalization of savagery, Dana fights to keep her autonomy and return to the present.

Blazing the trail for neo-slavery narratives like Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad and Ta-Nehisi Coates’s The Water Dancer, Butler takes one of speculative fiction’s oldest tropes and infuses it with lasting depth and power. Dana not only experiences the cruelties of slavery on her skin but also grimly learns to accept it as a condition of her own existence in the present.

“Where stories about American slavery are often gratuitous, reducing its horror to explicit violence and brutality, Kindred is controlled and precise” (New York Times).

“Reading Octavia Butler taught me to dream big, and I think it’s absolutely necessary that everybody have that freedom and that willingness to dream.” —N. K. Jemisin

Developed for television by writer/executive producer Branden Jacobs-Jenkins ( Watchmen), executive producers also include Joe Weisberg and Joel Fields ( The Americans, The Patient), and Darren Aronofsky ( The Whale). Janicza Bravo ( Zola) is director and an executive producer of the pilot. Kindred stars Mallori Johnson, Micah Stock, Ryan Kwanten, and Gayle Rankin.

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Posts about this title from The Inky Phoenix

The Inky Phoenix\ \ Kathryn Budig\ \ • Jun 5

Happy Pride from The Inky Phoenix! 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

Some of our favorite LGBTQ+ books and authors

16 books

The Inky Phoenix\ \ Kathryn Budig\ \ • Feb 3 2025

Celebrate Black History Month

with our amazing Inky Phoenix authors!

10 books

The Inky Phoenix\ \ Kathryn Budig\ \ • Nov 5 2024

Today’s the Day! 🗳️

For the love of books …

21 books

The Inky Phoenix\ \ Kathryn Budig\ \ • Jan 10 2023

It’s Zoom discussion time for Kindred! Join us this Saturday, Jan 14th at 3pm EST! Add your email in our bio link if you’ve never joined a discussion — everyone will get the Zoom invite the morning of.

1 book

The Inky Phoenix\ \ Kathryn Budig\ \ • Dec 31 2022

August 2022: THRUST\ \ The kind of book you can read 20 times and always learn something new. A wild cast of characters connected through time travel, this book is fiercely feminist and deliciously mind-boggling.\ \ September: TOMORROW AND TOMORROW AND TOMORROW\ \ Just a little book that no one has heard of (jokes: it won the ‘best book of the year’ pretty much everywhere). An ode to love, loss, and redemption set in the world of gaming. This book is a delight.\ \ October: HOUSE OF HUNGER\ \ Need a gothic horror centered around classism, blood as currency, and dangerous liaisons? Look no further.\ \ November: SCYTHE + MY FIRST POPSICLE \ \ Scythe: our only YA pick of the year and the start of a series that Inky club members can’t get enough of. Imagine a world without natural death, hence the need for gleanings to regulate the population. Whoa.\ \ Our non-fiction pick: @zosiamamet curated a delightful book of essays around the power of food, including recipes and a vast array of names you’ll certainly know.\ \ December: KINDRED\ \ Decided to wrap the year with Octavia Butler’s classic. She braided the slave narrative with time travel and fantasy, resulting in a completely unique and gut-wrenching look at the antebellum south.

August 2022: THRUST

The kind of book you can read 20 times and always learn something new. A wild cast of characters connected through time travel, this book is fiercely feminist and deliciously mind-boggling.

September: TOMORROW AND TOMORROW AND TOMORROW

Just a little book that no one has heard of (jokes: it won the ‘best book of the year’ pretty much everywhere). An ode to love, loss, and redemption set in the world of gaming. This book is a delight.

October: HOUSE OF HUNGER

Need a gothic horror centered around classism, blood as currency, and dangerous liaisons? Look no further.

November: SCYTHE + MY FIRST POPSICLE

Scythe: our only YA pick of the year and the start of a series that Inky club members can’t get enough of. Imagine a world without natural death, hence the need for gleanings to regulate the population. Whoa.

Our non-fiction pick: @zosiamamet curated a delightful book of essays around the power of food, including recipes and a vast array of names you’ll certainly know.

December: KINDRED

Decided to wrap the year with Octavia Butler’s classic. She braided the slave narrative with time travel and fantasy, resulting in a completely unique and gut-wrenching look at the antebellum south.

6 books

The Inky Phoenix\ \ Kathryn Budig\ \ • Dec 1 2022

Our December Inky Phoenix pick is here: KINDRED by Octavia E. Butler!\ \ Butler will always be a force: one of the first Black female writers to publish science fiction, her work challenges gender stereotypes while tackling white privilege and racism. Whether this is your first time reading KINDRED or your second go-round, I’m so excited to discuss Octavia with y’all!\ \ Available through our partner @bluebicyclebooks (link in bio). Use code FREECOOKIES to get 10% off any of our Inky titles!

Our December Inky Phoenix pick is here: KINDRED by Octavia E. Butler!

Butler will always be a force: one of the first Black female writers to publish science fiction, her work challenges gender stereotypes while tackling white privilege and racism. Whether this is your first time reading KINDRED or your second go-round, I’m so excited to discuss Octavia with y’all!

Available through our partner @bluebicyclebooks (link in bio). Use code FREECOOKIES to get 10% off any of our Inky titles!

1 book

Posts about this book from across Bindery

The Inky Phoenix\ \ Kathryn Budig\ \ • Jun 5

Happy Pride from The Inky Phoenix! 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

Some of our favorite LGBTQ+ books and authors

16 books

Left Unread Books\ \ Michael LaBorn\ \ • Apr 30

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Black stories always pack a punch. And here are some of the ones that have hit me hardest in the last few years.

5 books

Celestial\ \ Steph\ \ • Mar 27

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💭 does time travel lure you in or freak you out?

let’s talk about book recs with ~ 🕰️⏳ timey wimey 🕰️⌛️~ madness.

📚 books mentioned: - Japanese Gothic by Kylie Lee Baker - Kindred by Octavia E. Butler - This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

👗💄: - dress is from Anthropologie, rented from Nuuly - eyeshadow is The Spring Symphony Palette from Dandy Lion Cosmetics - eyeshadow shimmer is Aphrodite from Ourbella Cosmetics - mascara is Cloud Mascara from Sweed Beauty - lip combo is Lippie Pencil (Twisted) from Colourpop and The Ultra-Hydrating Liquid Lipstick (Raspberry) from Basma Beauty - (also if you have a question about my makeup or something i’m wearing, most of it is curated in my shopmy!)

thank you to Hanover Square Press / HTP Hive and Saga Press for the gifted copies!

#horrorbooks #scifibooks #timetravelbooks #nycinfluencer #bookstagram @hanoversquarepress @htp_hive @htpbooks @beaconpress @sagapressbooks @anthropologie @dandylionsco @ourbella.us @basmabeautyofficial

horror books • science fiction books • sci fi book recs • time travel books • books that travel through time • books with time nonsense • books with ghosts • time flashbacks and dual narratives • horror book recommendations • diverse books • Beacon Press

3 books

chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Mar 5

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february reading wrap up!

Did you have any 5 star reads in February? #booktok #readingwrapup #fantasybooktok #romancebooktok #bookreviews

13 books

chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Jan 25

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February is almost upon us! If you’re participating in the Read Disabled 2026 challenge, you may be planning what to read for February’s prompts, so I wanted to tell you a bit about the books I’m planning to read, and recommend some other books I’ve loved that fit next month’s prompts! \ \ February Main Prompt: A Book by a Black Author \ \ What I’m Reading: King of the Neuro Verse by Idris Goodwin (ADHD representation, lived experience)\ \ February is Black History Month here in the U.S., and I wanted to honor that with this month’s prompt. For much of American History, Black voices and their role in our country’s history was silenced. The aim of Black History Month is to uplift those previously suppressed stories and the impact that the Black community has had on America, as well as continue to strive for racial equality and justice.\ \ Because Black History Month celebrates Black History, specifically, I originally wanted to prioritize a historical fiction book by a Black author for this prompt. However, because I am choosing to read only books by disabled authors for this challenge, I was unable to find a book that fit those prompts.* I will be prioritizing books about Black history in my reading outside of this challenge, and decided to instead choose a book about Black disabled joy with King of the Neuro Verse by Idris Goodwin. This is a YA coming-of-age novel in verse following Pernell as he finds his self-expression and first love while working to catch up on his classwork during summer school. \ *There are not no books by Black disabled authors that are historical fiction! In my searching I found Sorrowland (set in the 20th century ft. low vision rep) and An Unkindness of Ghosts (technically this is futuristic scifi, but the society that the MC lives in is based on the Antebellum South ft. lived experience autism rep) by Rivers Solomon, however these books are also horror novels, which is a genre that I personally cannot read. Alternately, Octavia E. Butler’s works all heavily metaphorize disability in their themes and worldbuilding according to modern disability scholars, which makes them eligible for this prompt as well–I just chose to go with a literal representation of disability in my choice for this prompt. I intend to also read Kindred in February, just not specifically for this challenge.\ \ My Recommendations:\ \ Pet by Akwaeke Emezi (non-verbal representation)\ \ I do not know how to pitch this book, but bear with me–it feels high concept literary-fantasy to me, while still being accessible to read, as it is a YA novel written with teens in mind. Our main character Lucille lives in a utopian world in which monsters no longer exist, but when her blood seems to accidentally summon Pet, a winged and horned creature, she is forced to reconsider what she has always been told. Pet says that he is here to hunt a monster, and Lucille must learn what monstrosity really is, and save the world from the monsters that no one else will admit exist.\ \ My Rating: 3.75 stars (circa 2024)\ \ Act Your Age, Eve Brown by Talia Hibbert (autism representation, lived experience)\ \ If you have not read Get a Life, Chloe Brown, start there–but since our book club already read books 1 and 2 in this series, I thought I’d skip straight to book 3 for this recommendation. Eve Brown is the youngest of the Brown sisters, and she’s also kind of a hot mess. Desperate to prove herself, Eve interviews for a job at a bed and breakfast…and then proceeds to run over the owner with her car. Now Jacob is in a cast and Eve has taken the job and committed herself to taking care of him as he heals. Though Eve and Jacob could not be more different on the surface, the more time they spend together, the more the animosity between them grows into something else.\ \ My Rating: 5 stars (circa 2022)\ \ Icarus by K. Ancrum (EDS representation, lived experience)\ \ Another YA book that reads like literary fiction, though this one pitches itself as a contemporary romance. Our titular character Icarus is a thief who steals priceless artefacts and replaces them with his father’s forgeries. When Icarus is caught by the son of the man he is stealing from, he expects to be turned in, but Helios has been under house arrest by his father, and he gives Icarus something far more dangerous in exchange for freedom: friendship that grows into something more, something that could damn them both.\ \ My Rating: 3.75 stars (circa 2024)\ \ February Bonus Prompt: A Romance Novel \ \ What I’m Reading: A Love Song for Ricki Wilde by Tia Williams (unsure of representation)\ \ February is, of course, also the month that features Valentine’s day, and as such a romance prompt is all but required. The book for this prompt does need to be capital-R Romance, aka genre romance–and not just romantic fiction. Paranormal, historical, and even (arguably) fantasy romance all count, so long as the romance storyline is the A-plot and the book ends in a Happily Ever After (or a Happily For Now).\ \ I decided to go with A Love Song for Ricki Wilde for this one because I adored Seven Days in June and finally snagged myself a copy of this one back in November. It’s also set in February, which makes this the perfect time to read it. I’ve seen this one on disability recommendation posts with a mixture of vague disability categories assigned to it (“mental health”, “invisible illness”, “chronic pain”), but have been unable to ascertain specifics. If it turns out there isn’t disability representation I’ll end up using the Chronically Romantic book club’s February pick ( Dukes and Dekes by Torie Jean) but I’m trying to push myself to read additional books alongside the book club selections to push myself to read even more books by disabled authors.\ \ I know very little about this book except that it follows our main character Ricki as she moves to Harlem to chase her dream of opening a flower shop, and on one February evening meets a mysterious man who turns her life upside down. There is a magical realism bent to this one as well, and I believe it involves time travel/blurring between the present day and the Harlem Renaissance.\ \ My Recommendations:\ \ Two Wrongs Make a Right by Chloe Liese (anxiety and autism representation, both lived experience)\ \ Chloe Liese is a master of disability representation, and Two Wrongs Make a Right is no exception. This is a Much Ado About Nothing retelling following Jamie and Bea, who could not be more wrong for each other, as they join forces to concoct a plan for revenge on their meddling, matchmaking friends: They’re going to fake date, and then they’re going to fake a disastrous break-up. But the longer they pretend, the less they feel like they’re faking, and they can’t help but wonder if their friends were so off the mark with their matchmaking.\ \ My Rating: 4.75 stars (circa 2022)\ \ You Don’t Have a Shot by Racquel Marie (anxiety, lived experience)\ \ Vale’s life revolves around soccer, but when she starts a fight with her long-time rival Leticia, everything she’s been working towards becomes suddenly out of reach. Her only hope for redemption? Winning the tournament at her summer soccer camp. But when she arrives, she learns she will be co-captaining the team with none other than Leticia herself.\ \ My Rating: 4.75 stars (circa 2023)\ \ Finding Gene Kelly by Torie Jean (endometriosis representation, lived experience)\ \ If I have the opportunity to recommend Torie’s books, I will be doing so. She writes what is, truly, some of the best chronic illness representation I have ever read. When Evie needs a fake date to bring home to keep her overbearing mother at bay, she last person she wants it to be is Liam Kelly, her childhood friend turned nemesis, but when he unexpectedly turns up in Paris, it appears he’s her only hope. But in order to make this farce convincing, Liam insists on practice dates that ignite long-suppressed sparks in Evie.\ \ My Rating: 5 stars (circa 2022)\ \ Both Prompts: A Romance Book by a Black Author \ \ I know for some people, reading two books per month for a reading challenge can be too much of a stretch, but if you’re interested in being a completionist: here are books that count for both prompts simultaneously!\ \ Reggie and Delilah’s Year of Falling by Elise Bryant (migraine representation, lived experience and dyslexia representation)\ \ This YA contemporary romance follows Reggie and Delilah when they first meet on New Year’s Eve, and then continue to connect through chance meetings on subsequent holidays (Valentine’s, St. Patrick’s Day, etc)--as if the universe itself is pushing them together. I loved this book, and I don’t want to say more for risk of spoiling things, but it’s one of my favorite YA contemporaries.\ \ My Rating: 4.75 stars (circa 2023)\ \ Before I Let Go by Kennedy Ryan (depression representation, lived experience)\ \ This is one of the (if not the) best books I have ever read in my entire life. It will tear your heart out of your chest, crush it into a million pieces, and stitch it back together in a way that makes you believe in love like never before. After the devastating loss of a stillbirth, Yasmin and Josiah’s marriage fell apart. Now, they are finding a new rhythm, coparenting their children and learning to find joy again. But they are drawn to each other, even know, and as they heal they begin to reconnect–but doing so reopens old wounds, and they must find out if it is too late for them to find forever.\ \ My Rating: 5 stars (circa 2024)\ \ Outdrawn by Deanna Grey (anxiety representation, lived experience, and carpal tunnel representation)\ \ Noah has finally gotten her foot in the door to achieving her dream–her viral web comic scored her a job at a legendary comic company. There’s nowhere for her to go but up, if not for the fact that Sage is standing in her way. Sage and Noah have been rivals since art school, and now they’re assigned to work as a team on a career-defining comic release. The more they butt heads and are forced to spend time in close proximity, the more sparks begin to fly.\ \ My Rating: 4.5 stars (circa 2024)\ \ What will you read? \ \ I love how much people show up for the Read Disabled challenge every year, and I love seeing what everyone reads--if you've decided what you're reading for either prompt, leave a comment! \ \ And if you have Storygraph but haven't officially joined the challenge yet, you can do so HERE.\ \ While reading books by disabled authors is not required for this challenge, it is encouraged, and all of the authors featured here are disabled, though they may not have the specific disabilities represented.\ \ Thank you all so much for participating--I hope you enjoy your February reads!\ \ Join for free or login

February READ DISABLED Prompts and Recommendations!

16 books

Celestial\ \ Steph\ \ • Aug 16 2025

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what’s your favorite sci fi sub genre? science fiction books for lifeeee!!

📚 books mentioned: - The Past is Red by Catherynne M. Valente - Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah - An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon - The Stardust Grail by Yume Kitasei - This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone - The Unmapping by Denise S. Robbins - Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir - Kindred by Octavia Butler - The Black God’s Drums by P. Djèlí Clark - The Seep by Chana Porter - Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki - The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson - The Paradox Hotel by Rob Hart - Sunrise: Radiant Stories by Erika Kobayashi

thank you to Pantheon, Flatiron, Bindery, and Astra House for the gifted copies!

#scifibooks #sciencefictionbooks #scifibookrecs #sciencefictionbookrecs #bestsciencefiction #FlatironPartner #binderybooks #celestial #starrysteph #nycinfluencer #diversebookstagram #nycbookstagram #bookstagram #nycbookstagram @tordotcompub @pantheonbooks @akashicbooks @flatiron_books @sagapressbooks @bindery_books @torbooks @beaconpress @titanbooks @delreybooks @ballantinebooks @astrahousebooks

13 books

Celestial\ \ Steph\ \ • Jun 28 2025

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speak up against book banning!

and remember to read, support, and uplift books by marginalized authors today and every day.

📚 books mentioned: - Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas - Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo - Kindred by Octavia E. Butler

#bannedbooks #readbannedbooks #diversebooks #fantasybooks #historicalfictionbooks #sciencefictionbooks #scifibooks #starrysteph #nycinfluencer #bookstagran @swoonreads @fiercereads @duttonbooks @doubledaybooks @penguinrandomhouse

3 books

Wanderland Reads\ \ Sayer\ \ • Jun 9 2025

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Queer Book Haul from Imaginarium

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Reads with Rachel\ \ Rachel\ \ • May 1 2025

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AUTHORS FAVORITE BANNED BOOKS

CONTRIBUTORS: Liselle Sambury Website: https://lisellesambury.ca/ Youtube: @LiselleSambury Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lisellesambury/?hl=en Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lisellesambury?lang=en

Neka Marie Website: https://nekamarie.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nekamarieauthor/?hl=en Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@neekstok?lang=en Youtube: @Neeks

D.N. Bryn Website: https://www.dnbryn.com/books/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dn\_bryn/?hl=en Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@dnbrynauthor?lang=en

Dartanyan Johnson Website: https://bio.site/3djohnson?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaaSIu71\_U-1bbgPGtY0Yprmjolj\_oltOo35WBYPfqQgQ2n5k71zJ-j1p5Y\_aem\_9oaGTxOon0u5GnaVXNqbjw Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/author3djohnson/?hl=en Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@author3djohnson

Nora Lester Murad Website: www.noralestermurad.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nora\_lester\_murad/ Twitter: https://x.com/NoraInPalestine

Akana Phenix Website: https://akanaphenix.com/ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/akanaphenix.bsky.social Twitter: https://x.com/AkanaPhenix Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/akanabooks/

Kelly Coon Website: https://www.kellycoon.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kellycoon106/

A.B. Daniels-Annachi Website: https://www.abdanielsannachi.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/darkmythauthor/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@darkmythauthor

Jamie D'Amato Website: https://www.jamiedamato.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jimjomjamie/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jimjomjamie

Hazel McBride Website: https://hazelmcbride035.wixsite.com/hazelmcbride Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hazelmcbrideauthor/ Youtube: @HazelMcBrideAuthor Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@hazelmcbrideauthor?lang=en

A.J. Vrana Website: https://direct.me/ajvrana?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaZHztKKRzhdZFX0DU894f7JdPxmYCl3hxjDv6a6lWfymWo12L3iaMnwwu4\_aem\_6kYFxYG4FPgNtsDRdjxMmA Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/a.j.vrana/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ajvrana

Taylor Grothe Website: https://bio.site/taylorlgrothe/?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaapDhXoixA99WVA1fKlFcXqa9KIJbtg12QWxlgnRGnBSBuaHrTgDLQBHV8\_aem\_Tg8BGhbspphykwK6YvrNyg Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/taylorlgrothe/

Lacey N Dunham Website: https://www.laceyndunham.com/?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaa6oZnAie4vhQGXFB3Y6ZfwPWhbnFYiiqeocxuPVvB-b7XVJJCqqXr-zV4\_aem\_zSYRmLa9In19-k9H6H53ag Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lndhop/ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/bookbent.bsky.social

Sylvester Barzey Website: https://bio.site/Sylvesterbarzey?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaZ\_Czxny\_nOugRqDQRjgYSjcfrw2Q0xhIDejRJo06VAiACCeCf-TC9fGU8\_aem\_B5tJdcmBActjwfTXfouEyA Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sylvesterbarzey/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@UCcM3LecMpKhJYQGZVxN2q5A

Leann Schwartz Website: https://leanneschwartz.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/schwartzwords/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@UC0s1SWfQ\_i8t9BZPgKxsYGQ

Steph Cherrywell Website: https://stephcherrywell.com/ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/stephcherrywell.com Twitter: https://x.com/scherrywell

Katherine Grant Website: https://katherinegrantromance.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katherine\_grant\_romance/?hl=en

Rebecca Coffindaffer Website: https://beccacoffindaffer.com/link-stack/?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaZg3ArfOF\_idto2Bk0SPDtQjZejvgPlIVh-WgBscldlkYZFf-LObJmyTfI\_aem\_04Lj8SfNbt6co5kL0D8FYg Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beccacoffindaffer/?hl=en Threads: https://www.threads.net/@UC4TQrZHEp0O5t28Q0XRLn8w

William Alexander Website: https://www.willalex.net/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/goblinishbooks/

Authors Against Book Bans Website: https://www.authorsagainstbookbans.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorsagainstbookbans?igsh=eW4xemdpM293aXg=

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21 books

Beverly Books\ \ Kristian\ \ • Apr 10 2025

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I LOVE this trend! The vibes I’m bringing to the function.

I LOVE this trend!

The vibes I’m bringing to the function.

3 books

Beverly Books\ \ Kristian\ \ • Mar 26 2025

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Audiobooks you need for Black History Month

Looking for books to listen to during #blackhistorymonth (or the other 11 months?) Here’s a range of genres from many talented authors that are so worth reading. All of these books are fantastic. Escape into other worlds or brush up on history—there’s something for everyone! Check out each author’s backlist and you’re set. :)

All audiobooks I received through @librofm Audible got nothing on them!

18 books

The Inky Phoenix\ \ Kathryn Budig\ \ • Feb 3 2025

Celebrate Black History Month

with our amazing Inky Phoenix authors!

10 books

Boneyard Picnic\ \ Natalie Meagan\ \ • Jan 27 2025

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EARLY ACCESS | My (tentative) 2025 TBR

It's that time! Time for me to make a tentative list of books I hope to read in 2025 and share them with you in hopes for accountability. Let's go!

9 books

Kist Reads\ \ Kist\ \ • Dec 27 2024

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The Best 10 Fiction Genre Books I Read in 2024 (I read 71!)

Of the 71 books from a variety of fiction genres (literary fiction, fantasy, science fiction, manga contemporary romance etc etc), these are my Top 10 books of 2024!

10 books

Left Unread Books\ \ Michael LaBorn\ \ • Dec 19 2024

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Octavia Butler saw Elon Musk coming, and we need to talk about it!

Let's talk about company towns and how the great Ms Octavia Butler was an oracle for our (being Black people) ancestors.

9 books

Left Unread Books\ \ Michael LaBorn\ \ • Nov 30 2024

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The Secret Power of Literature... and spoiler alert, it's not escapism.

Escapism is lovely, but that is not what reading does for me. So I thought I would share a little bit about one of the biggest things I get out of reading.

***Trigger warnings: grief, slavery, trauma, parentlessness, broken family, racism***

20 books

Left Unread Books\ \ Michael LaBorn\ \ • Nov 9 2024

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[Book bans are on the rise. And if there is one thing we can count on, it is that a Trump presidency will only make America's problems worse. Everything we know about Project 2025 and their plans for education, race and gender studies, and the continued suppression of any progressive thinking, we can pretty comfortably guess that book banning is going to be on the rise.\ \ And this isn't shocking. Literature/art always plays a part in a people's liberation. Always.\ \ Obviously our hope is that our worst fears won't be realized. But in the now, we need to buckle up under the assumption that they will be. So here are some of the books I think you should get onto your shelf now. I have a list of fiction books that will help you to wrestle with the world as we know it and to dream about what it can be, and a list of non-fiction that will give you practical and actionable ideas about how to prepare to fight for a better world.\ \ FICTION\ \ Parable of the Sower: When global climate change and economic crises lead to social chaos in the early 2020s, California becomes full of dangers, from pervasive water shortage to masses of vagabonds who will do anything to live to see another day. Fifteen-year-old Lauren Olamina lives inside a gated community with her preacher father, family, and neighbors, sheltered from the surrounding anarchy. In a society where any vulnerability is a risk, she suffers from hyperempathy, a debilitating sensitivity to others' emotions. Precocious and clear-eyed, Lauren must make her voice heard in order to protect her loved ones from the imminent disasters her small community stubbornly ignores. But what begins as a fight for survival soon leads to something much more: the birth of a new faith . . . and a startling vision of human destiny.\ **Parable of the Talents: **In 2032, Lauren Olamina has survived the destruction of her home and family, and realized her vision of a peaceful community in northern California based on her newly founded faith, Earthseed. The fledgling community provides refuge for outcasts facing persecution after the election of an ultra-conservative president who vows to "make America great again." In an increasingly divided and dangerous nation, Lauren's subversive colony--a minority religious faction led by a young black woman--becomes a target for President Jarret's reign of terror and oppression. Years later, Asha Vere reads the journals of a mother she never knew, Lauren Olamina. As she searches for answers about her own past, she also struggles to reconcile with the legacy of a mother caught between her duty to her chosen family and her calling to lead humankind into a better future.\ **Kindred: **Dana’s torment begins when she suddenly vanishes on her 26th birthday from California, 1976, and is dragged through time to antebellum Maryland to rescue a boy named Rufus, heir to a slaveowner’s plantation. She soon realizes the purpose of her summons to the past: protect Rufus to ensure his assault of her Black ancestor so that she may one day be born. As she endures the traumas of slavery and the soul-crushing normalization of savagery, Dana fights to keep her autonomy and return to the present.\ \ Tender is the Flesh: His wife has left him, his father is sinking into dementia, and Marcos tries not to think too hard about how he makes a living. After all, it happened so quickly. First, it was reported that an infectious virus has made all animal meat poisonous to humans. Then governments initiated the “Transition.” Now, eating human meat—“special meat”—is legal. Marcos tries to stick to numbers, consignments, processing. Then one day he’s given a gift: a live specimen of the finest quality. Though he’s aware that any form of personal contact is forbidden on pain of death, little by little he starts to treat her like a human being. And soon, he becomes tortured by what has been lost—and what might still be saved.\ **Fledgling: **Octavia E. Butler's final novel is the story of an apparently young, amnesiac girl whose alarmingly unhuman needs and abilities lead her to a startling conclusion: She is in fact a genetically modified, 53-year-old vampire. Forced to discover what she can about her stolen former life, she must at the same time learn who wanted—and still wants—to destroy her and those she cares for, and how she can save herself.\ \ Broken Earth Trilogy: A season of endings has begun. It starts with the great red rift across the heart of the world's sole continent, spewing ash that blots out the sun. It starts with death, with a murdered son and a missing daughter. It starts with betrayal, and long dormant wounds rising up to fester. This is the Stillness, a land long familiar with catastrophe, where the power of the earth is wielded as a weapon. And where there is no mercy.\ \ NON-FICTION\ \ Let This Radicalize You: Longtime organizers and movement educators Mariame Kaba and Kelly Hayes examine some of the political lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the convergence of mass protest and mass formations of mutual aid, and consider what this confluence of power can teach us about a future that will require mass acts of care, rescue and defense, in the face of both state violence and environmental disaster.\ **We Grow the World Together: **In We Grow the World Together, abolitionists and organizers Maya Schenwar and Kim Wilson bring together a remarkable collection of voices revealing the complex tapestry of ways people are living abolition in their daily lives through parenting and caregiving. Ranging from personal narratives to policy-focused analysis to activist chronicles, these writers highlight how abolition is essential to any kind of parenting justice.\ **Defund: **A collection of illuminating interviews with leading abolitionist organizers and thinkers, reflecting on the uprisings of summer 2020, the rise of #defund, and the work ahead of bridging the divide between reform and abolition.\ \ Unbuild Walls: Unbuild Walls dives into US immigration policy and its relationship to mass incarceration, from the last forty years up to the present, showing how the prison-industrial complex and immigration enforcement are intertwined systems of repression. Incorporating historical and legal analyses, Shah’s personal experience as an organizer, as well as stories of people, campaigns, organizations, and localities that have resisted detention and deportation, Shah assesses the movement’s strategies, challenges, successes, and shortcomings. Featuring a foreword by Amna A. Akbar, Unbuild Walls is an expansive and radical intervention, bridging the gaps between movements for immigrant rights, racial justice, and prison abolition.\ **Freedom is a Constant Struggle: **Reflecting on the importance of black feminism, intersectionality, and prison abolitionism, Davis discusses the legacies of previous liberation struggles, from the Black Freedom Movement to the South African anti-Apartheid movement. She highlights connections and analyzes today’s struggles against state terror, from Ferguson to Palestine.\ **The Will to Change: **Everyone needs to love and be loved—including men. But to know love, men must be able to look at the ways in which patriarchal culture keeps them from understanding themselves. In The Will to Change, bell hooks provides a compassionate guide for men of all ages and identities to understand how to be in touch with their feelings, and how to express versus repress the emotions that are a fundamental part of who we are.\ \ Hope in the Dark: Hope in the Dark was written to counter the despair of radicals at a moment when they were focused on their losses and had turned their back to the victories behind them and the unimaginable changes soon to come. In it, she makes a radical case for hope as a commitment to act in a world whose future remains uncertain and unknowable.\ \ They Were her Property: Bridging women's history, the history of the South, and African American history, this book makes a bold argument about the role of white women in American slavery. Historian Stephanie E. Jones-Rogers draws on a variety of sources to show that slave‑owning women were sophisticated economic actors who directly engaged in and benefited from the South's slave market. Because women typically inherited more slaves than land, enslaved people were often their primary source of wealth. Not only did white women often refuse to cede ownership of their slaves to their husbands, they employed management techniques that were as effective and brutal as those used by slave‑owning men. White women actively participated in the slave market, profited from it, and used it for economic and social empowerment. By examining the economically entangled lives of enslaved people and slave‑owning women, Jones-Rogers presents a narrative that forces us to rethink the economics and social conventions of slaveholding America.\ \ Hood Feminism: Today's feminist movement has a glaring blind spot, and paradoxically, it is women. Mainstream feminists rarely talk about meeting basic needs as a feminist issue, argues Mikki Kendall, but food insecurity, access to quality education, safe neighborhoods, a living wage, and medical care are all feminist issues. All too often, however, the focus is not on basic survival for the many, but on increasing privilege for the few. That feminists refuse to prioritize these issues has only exacerbated the age-old problem of both internecine discord and women who rebuff at carrying the title. Moreover, prominent white feminists broadly suffer from their own myopia with regard to how things like race, class, sexual orientation, and ability intersect with gender. How can we stand in solidarity as a movement, Kendall asks, when there is the distinct likelihood that some women are oppressing others?\ \

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If you are already a part of our community, consider upgrading to at least the $5 so that you can take part in the publishing process of more Black and brown books. As you know, our paid subscribers help to fund our publishing efforts and take a more active role in bringing those books to life.\ \ ](https://leftunreadbooks.binderybooks.com/item/iXHFzCEOnmLlJUjqzusK/)

Books you should buy while you still can

We are all concerned that with a second Trump presidency, we are going to be facing a massive rise in book bans. So I have put together a list of books that I think everyone should read in light of the fights ahead of us. Check them out and grab whatever you think will benefit you!

16 books

The Inky Phoenix\ \ Kathryn Budig\ \ • Nov 5 2024

Today’s the Day! 🗳️

For the love of books …

21 books

Left Unread Books\ \ Michael LaBorn\ \ • Oct 26 2024

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Book Review: Fledgling

Fledgling is one of the most uncomfortable books I have ever read. But it was written by Octavia Butler, what did I expect? However, in true Octavia fashion, it also challenged my worldview and made me really wrestle with the fabric of our society. And here are my thoughts. My very long-winded and detailed thoughts, lol! Enjoy! Click the link down below to read my full review!

13 books

Left Unread Books\ \ Michael LaBorn\ \ • Oct 24 2024

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The five most disturbing books I read this year!

I don't know about you, but I have a habit of falling in love with the most disturbing books. And even more troubling... I have made a habit of making sure everyone in my life has read them! So here are the five most disturbing books I read in 2024.

7 books

Boundless Press\ \ Jananie\ \ • Jul 13 2024

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Mid-Year Book Freakout Tag & Thoughts on 2024 Reading

6 books

Left Unread Books\ \ Michael LaBorn\ \ • Mar 28 2024

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Good morning, everyone!\ \ As you all know, our book club is reading Kindred By Octavia Butler this month, and wow, what a ride! This book is... it's a lot. And I cannot wait to discuss all of your thoughts!\ \ Bookclub will be meeting via Zoom this Saturday (the 30th) at 3:00 PM CST.\ \ Because this is our first month, I am opening the Zoom call to all of my paid members, so that you can get to know each other (and me), and so that you can all get a feel for what bookclub looks like! Next month, it will go back to just the Thirty Readers and LaBorniac tiers!\ \ Here is a link to join: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81250571771?pwd=bd06upQ7hTX4bT0AbOc6UFsBCUZwPb.1\ \ Even if you haven't finished the book, feel free to come hang out (be prepared for spoilers though lol). And make sure you bring yourself a snack and a drink!\ \ Can't wait to see you!\ \ Happy reading!!!!!\ \ Upgrade for $5 or login

Zoom link for Saturday!

Here is the link to our Zoom call on Saturday!

1 book

Left Unread Books\ \ Michael LaBorn\ \ • Mar 18 2024

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Good morning!\ \ It is great seeing so many new faces joining every day! I appreciate all of you so much for being here and supporting my content and my dreams!\ \ I wanted to let all of you know that my monthly bookclub will be meeting on March 30th (a saturday) at 3pm CST and I would love to see all of you there. If you want to join us and are not already in one of the tiers that have access, please upgrade and come hang out with us on Zoom at the end of the month.\ \ We are currently reading _Kindred _by Octavia Butler and it's gonna be a good time!\ \ Hopefully I'll see you there!

March Book Club!

An invitation to join our bookclub!

1 book

Left Unread Books\ \ Michael LaBorn\ \ • Mar 18 2024

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If you are seeing this post, it is because you have access to one of the tiers who are in my monthly bookclub. This month, as you know, we are reading Kindred by Octavia Butler. And I will be hosting a Zoom call for us to talk about the book at the end of this month!\ \ When: March 30th, 3:00 PM CST\ \ Where: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81945571304?pwd=QoeGKN75haLS8CbUdJTMYmi7b9BhZ8.1\ \ Whether you have time to finish the book or not, you are welcome to come vibe with me! Can't wait to talk with you all!\ \ Let me know in the comments if you'll be there!\ \ Upgrade for $12 or login

Book Club: March 30th

Information on our March Bookclub meeting!

1 book

Left Unread Books\ \ Michael LaBorn\ \ • Feb 29 2024

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March Bookclub!!!

2 books

Celestial\ \ Steph\ \ • Feb 22 2024

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one star reviews of books i loved!

which one convinced you the most? 😇 part six of one star goodreads reviews of books i enjoyed!

9 books

Left Unread Books\ \ Michael LaBorn\ \ • Feb 17 2024

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Kindred is life!

Learning to settle for other books has been such a struggle 😭😭😭 #booktok #blackbooktok #readwithmichael #writewithmichael #readingispolitical #writingispolitical #bipocauthors #kindred #octaviabutler

1 book

Left Unread Books\ \ Michael LaBorn\ \ • Feb 7 2024

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Reading from the outside looking in

@Michael LaBorn #booktok #blackbooktok #readwithmichael #writewithmichael #writingispolitical #writingispolitical #readingispolitical #bipocauthors #blackauthors #indiebooks

1 book

Left Unread Books\ \ Michael LaBorn\ \ • Feb 5 2024

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You shouldn't feel white guilt while reading Black books

Replying to @Erin M It’s fine to put a book down because its hard to read. Very valid. But while reading, work to always center the point of the story, instead of the role you would play in the story. #booktok #blackbooktok #readwithmichael #writewithmichael #readingispolitical #writingispolitical #bipocauthors #blackauthors #indiebooks #kindred #octaviabutler

1 book

Left Unread Books\ \ Michael LaBorn\ \ • Dec 18 2023

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Black and brown dystopian recommendations

#BookTok #blackbooktok #bipocauthors #readwithmichael #writewithmichael #octaviabutler #brokenearth #marrowthieves

8 books