The Library’s annual Seattle Reads program usually culminates with several days of events featuring the selected author and book.
This year, our citywide book club is celebrating the 2024 selection, Octavia Butler’s “Parable of the Sower,” with more than two months of performances, panels and discussions that will be held in collaboration with community organizations from late April through June.
“Because Octavia Butler was a writer with both deep local roots and global influence, we had a unique opportunity to explore her work with community partners across the city,” said Stesha Brandon, Literature & Humanities program manager for The Seattle Public Library. “We invite everyone to discuss, learn, discover and celebrate ‘Parable of the Sower’ – there is something for everyone, including a birthday party for Octavia on June 22.”
The author, who passed away in 2006 in Lake Forest Park, would have been 77 this year. The selection of ‘Parable of the Sower,’ which begins in the year 2024, is the first time that Seattle Reads has chosen a work of science fiction and the first time that the Library has chosen an author after their passing. It is also only the second time an author with Seattle-area ties has been selected.
Seattle Reads 2024 is presented in partnership with the African-American Writers’ Alliance, ARTE NOIR, Clarion West, Elliott Bay Book Company, Langston Seattle, loving room: diaspora books + salon, Sistah Scifi, Third Place Books and Wa Na Wari. Below are program highlights, which take place in a variety of locations around Seattle.
Performances, panels, parties
“DREAM TEMPLE (for Octavia).” Through May 22. King Street Station. Artists Mia Imani Harrison and Mayola Tikaka used the writings of Octavia Butler to create a gathering space for Black folx to be heard and to hear each other at King Street Station. Presented by the Office of Arts and Culture, DREAM TEMPLE aims to counteract the exhaustion and stress carried intergenerationally by creating a portal of healing and imagining.
Seattle Reads Launch Party and Panel Discussion. From 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, May 1. Central Library, Level 1, Microsoft Auditorium. Join The Seattle Public Library Foundation in kicking off Seattle Reads with a panel discussion about why “Parable of the Sower” still resonates in 2024 and a preview of community-led programs to come. Panelists include Jazmyn Scott, executive director of ARTE NOIR; Brooke Bosley, design researcher in education technology; and Kristina Clark, owner and curator of LOVING ROOM: diaspora books + salon. Registration is required.
“The Uterine Files.” From May 25 to June 2. Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute. Written by Jourdan Amani Keith and directed by Sadiqa Iman, this Afrofuturist trilogy follows three Black women through living, learning, and a remembering the war against their wombs. Tickets required; there are paid and a limited number of free community tickets available.
Queering the Future: LGBTQ+ Authors on Octavia Butler’s Impact. From 7 p. m. to 8 p.m., Wednesday, June 5. Elliott Bay Book Company. Writers and artists Anastacia Renee, Nisi Shawl, and Amber Flame discuss Butler’s influence on their writing in this event co-presented by Clarion West and moderated by Amy Hirayama. Registration is not required.
The Genius Conference. From 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Friday-Saturday, June 7-8. Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center. This two-day arts and science showcase will provide free, accessible edutainment to all, centering strategic partnerships with underserved communities. You can find creative arts workshops, performances, multicultural catering and continuing education opportunities for youth and adults, as well as workshops by writers Donte Felder, Reagan Jackson, and Jourdan Imani Keith that are connected to “Parable of the Sower.” Because literacy is life! Presented by the African-American Writers’ Alliance in partnership with LANGSTON Seattle. Tickets required; there are paid and a limited number of free community tickets available.
Optimism in Afrofuturism. From 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Tuesday, June 11. Wa Na Wari. Join us for a conversation with Dr. Bettina Judd, Professor Brittney Frantece and writer and editor Nisi Shawl, moderated by Brooke Bosley, as well as a “semi-archival” showcase of relevant books from the Library’s African American Collection, curated by Douglass-Truth librarian Taylor Brooks. Masks are strongly encouraged for this event. Registration is required.
Birthday Celebration for Octavia. From 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Saturday, June 22. Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute. Join us for a celebration of Octavia Butler and her legacy, featuring music, food and an interdisciplinary program. Performers will include Gabriel Teodros, Spectrum Dance with Donald Byrd, and more. Registration is requested. Presented in partnership with LANGSTON Seattle, with support from Seattle’s Office of Arts and Culture and the Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute.
earthSEED: Growing Change. From 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., Sunday, June 23. Sunday, June 23. Midtown Square Plaza – 2301 E. Union St. Join us to celebrate the land and its bounty. Enjoy a small Black/Brown farmers market and take part in multiple multi-generational activities throughout the afternoon. Registration is requested through ARTE NOIR. Presented in partnership with ARTE NOIR.
Prentis Hemphill discusses “What it Takes to Heal: How Transforming Ourselves Can Change the World.” From 6 p.m. to 7:15 p.m., Thursday, June 27. Central Library, Level 1 Microsoft Auditorium. Embodiment facilitator Prentis Hemphill will discuss their new book, which explores a new way to heal on both a personal and collective level, with bestselling Seattle author Ijeoma Oluo, author, most recently, of “Be A Revolution.” Presented in partnership with LANGSTON Seattle. Registration is required.
Author events and books discussions
Reading Our Futures: A Black Futurist Book Club. From 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., Monday, April 22. Loving Room: diaspora books + salon. 1400 20th Avenue, Seattle. This monthly Afrofuturist, African futurist, African jujuist, Black speculative fiction, sci-fi and fantasy book club holds a discussion of “Parable of the Sower,” facilitated by Brooke Bosley. Registration is required.
Sistah Scifi’s “Wine Down Wednesdays.” p. m. From June 26 to July 31. Isis Asare of Sistah Scifi curates this series of online events featuring Black speculative fiction writers.
Branch Book Group Discussions of “Parable of the Sower.” Moderated book group discussions about “Parable of the Sower” will take place at the Douglass-Truth Branch (Thursday, May 2), the Northgate Branch (Tuesday, May 7), the Broadview Branch (Wednesday, May 22) and the Rainier Beach Branch (June 6). There is also a Low Vision Book Group at the Central Library (Tuesday, May 14) and an El Club Latino Book Discussion in Spanish (Sunday, June 16) at the Central Library. Registration is not required.
Other Seattle Reads programs are in the works, including a “Wild Seed” Word Art Workshop with Carol Rashawnna Williams. Check back at the Seattle Reads calendar for more events and programs.
Brooke Bosley, Ph.D., a design researcher who is facilitator for some of the events, highlighted the continued influence of ‘Parable of the Sower.’ “Throughout the programming with the Library, I hope participants are able to see how people have used Butler’s work to inspire art, literature, community organizing, and even develop political policies. That’s the beauty of this book — the diversity of work it has inspired. Octavia reminds us it’s not too late to change our futures.”
Melany Bell, chair of the African American Writers Alliance said “The African American Writers’ Alliance is excited to celebrate Octavia Butler and ‘Parable of the Sower’ through programs including an open mic and the Genius Conference in service of our ‘why’ – to cultivate deep literacy and deep empathy, the most noted marker of good mental health.”
Where to find copies of ‘Parable of the Sower’
Published in 1993, Octavia Butler’s classic science fiction novel “Parable of the Sower” starts in the year 2024, a time when global climate change and economic crises lead to social chaos.
Print, e-book and e-audiobook versions are available in the Library’s catalog. Limited copies are also available for informal borrowing (meaning patrons don’t need to check out the copies).
Seattle Reads is made possible by The Seattle Public Library Foundation and The Wallace Foundation. Additional support provided by media sponsor The Seattle Times.
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