From the award-winning author of Parable of the Sower:After
the near-extinction of humanity, a new kind of alien-human hybrid must
come to terms with their identity -- before their powers destroy what is
left of humankind.
Since a nuclear war decimated the
human population, the remaining humans began to rebuild their future by
interbreeding with an alien race -- the Oankali -- who saved them from
near-certain extinction. The Oankalis' greatest skill lies in the
species' ability to constantly adapt and evolve, a process that is
guided by their third sex, the
ooloi, who are able to read and mutate genetic code.
Now, for the first time in the humans' relationship with the Oankali, a human mother has given birth to an ooloi child:
Jodahs. Throughout his childhood, Jodahs seemed to be a male
human-alien hybrid. But when he reaches adolescence, Jodahs develops the
ooloi abilities to shapeshift, manipulate DNA, cure and create
disease, and more. Frightened and isolated, Jodahs must either come to
terms with this new identity, learn to control new powers, and unite
what's left of humankind -- or become the biggest threat to their
survival.
"A revolutionary voice in her lifetime, Butler has only become more
popular and influential . . . A generation of younger writers cite her
as an influence, from Jemisin and Tochi Onyebuchi to Marlon James and
Nnedi Okarafor . . .She is now praised as a visionary who anticipated
many of the issues in the news today, from the coronavirus to climate
change to the election of President Donald Trump."—Associated Press