Octavia Butler, MacArthur Genius, multiple Hugo and Nebula award winner, wrote a lot. Considered one of the greatest American authors, her books are read and re-read. One of her most famous, Kindred, has received a modern makeover as a graphic novel published by Harry N. Abrams.

Adapted by writer Damian Duffy and artist John Jennings, the Kindred graphic novel, like the book, follows the story of Dana, a black writer living in California in 1976 with her husband, who finds herself spontaneously sent back in time to a Maryland plantation during slavery. There she saves the life of her ancestor, the white heir to the plantation, and becomes part of its slave community.

Photo: Harry N. Abrams

Butler’s novel was lauded for its nuanced take on antebellum life and for what we would today call intersectionality. The graphic novel fully addresses these same issues, and sadly, they feel as timely now as they did when Butler wrote the original novel in 1979.

Photo: Harry N. Abrams

Featuring Jennings’ signature loose line work and emphasis on dynamic value, the graphic novel makes Dana’s struggles and sacrifices hauntingly real with a lyrical grotesque quality that matches Butler’s prose style perfectly. The graphic novel is the perfect way to re-experience — or experience for the first time — Butler’s rich and engaging story.

Photo: Harry N. Abrams

Damien Duffy

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