Book summary

The second installment in the Xenogenesis trilogy takes place 30 years after the previous volume, DAWN. The alien Oankali have cleansed the Earth from the devastation wrought by nuclear war, and have biologically altered the surviving humans so that they can only have children by interbreeding with the Oankali. Those who resist remain childless. A village of such resisters takes in the kidnapped Akin, the half-human, half-Oankali son of Lilith Iyapo (DAWN’S protagonist). Although only a toddler, Akin is extraordinarily intelligent, perceptive, and very verbal. While longing for his true family, he nevertheless develops an immense compassion for the childless resisters, and determines to help them find a more fulfilling life.

Media reviews

"This is vintage Butler...Excellent fodder for her followers and a perfect introduction to her work for the unfamiliar, Butler sets the imagination free, blending the real and the possible."