A beautiful, short, and hopeful essay for the future of humanity. Gorgeous art and formatting that is extremely colorful on the opposite pages.

This is a visually beautiful edition of a wonderful essay by Butler on what it means to try to predict the future. It is a very short, but hopeful essay.

This collection of essays was a short sprinkle of wisdom from our queen, Octavia Butler, and I had a great time reading it. The artwork was enjoyable and aesthetically pleasing. A true gem for any Butler fan!

Beautifully said! A Few Rules for Predicting the Future, by Octavia E. Butler, is an insightful view and response to many things happening in today's society. Yet, she wrote this many years ago. The text was short, but insightful in a way that will provoke thought. The illustrations are a delight in themselves. These "little books" will make nice gifts. Thanks, NetGalley and the publisher, for providing me with the ARC ebook that I read and reviewed. All opinions are my own.

I wish this book was even longer as the words written were very thought provoking and something I will go back to. How do we prevent history repeating itself?

I really love this essay, and it's so wonderful to see it given new life in this re-publishing. There's no such thing as too much of Octavia Butler's work out in the world.

This is more of a coffee table book, with art included throughout. If you're looking to pick this up, I'd highly recommend a physical copy over a kindle version. The latter just won't do the art justice, and I think the point of this book is to make a really beautiful, tangible book to have on your shelf. I think my only note is that i'd want MORE art and less of the solid colored pages, but it may be a different experience reading the physical book. It would be a perfect gift for Octavia Butler fans or sci-fi lovers who seem to have just about everything. I have a feeling I'll probably end up buying myself a physical copy of this when it comes out in April.

Rounding up from 4.5. Thanks for the ARC, Netgalley!

Really well done pairing of a Butler essay about spec-fic and possibility with some really well done graphic design. Gorgeous read.

"Our tomorrow is the child of our today."

Everything in this is beautiful. The writing, the ideas, the artwork. All of it.

Octavia Butler's writing continues to be so relevant. In this short essay, she examines how we shape our future through our understanding of our past and the consequences of our current choices.

If you are a fan of Octavia Butler, read this. If you like of science fiction, read this. If you are human, read this.

Insightful and hopeful, this lovely presentation of Butler's essay is perfect for gifting a bit of wisdom or for keeping by your bedside to reference when you need some pragmatic hope about what is and what could be.

This is really an essay with artwork that seems like it would be best read as a physical book. The thoughts in the essay are intriguing and the illustrations went with the text well.

4.5

This is a beautifully repackaged version of an essay Octavia E. Butler wrote for Essence magazine in 2000. In it she talks about her inspiration for her work, which is incredible and this is a reminder to me that I need to continue reading her oeuvre. I won’t say more than that because it is quite short, it I highly recommend picking up this essay if you have any interest in reading from Butler. This edition in particular has some beautiful art done by Manzel Bowman and would be a perfect gift. I can’t wait until it’s released so I can pick up a copy!

Originally published in Essence magazine in 2000, Butler's wisdom shines through this essay. She discusses the inspiration behind her groundbreaking science fiction novels and advocates for a thoughtful examination of the past and our personal responsibility in shaping our future.

Structured into four key rules, the essay encourages readers to draw lessons from the past, understand the consequences of their actions, be mindful of their perspectives, and embrace the element of surprise. Butler astutely discusses warning signs of fascism, the impact of fear and wishful thinking, and the unpredictable nature of the future, offering realistic yet hopeful suggestions for steering humanity towards a positive trajectory.

This essay also include gorgeous Afrofuturist artwork by Manzel Bowman. The essay not only celebrates Octavia E. Butler's legacy as a visionary author but also serves as an inspiring gift for students, recent graduates, and anyone navigating life's milestones. This work explores the importance of self-reflection and making predictions as a useful tool to draw upon past knowledge to manifest a better future. Ultimately, this work is a testament to Butler's enduring influence on literature and her invaluable contributions to the Afrofuturist movement. Thank you to the publisher for the opportunity to read!

I’m a huge fan of Octavia Butler, and this illustrated essay did not disappoint! This adaptation of her original essay with beautiful artwork is a lovely contribution to the Butler canon.

"No, I said. I mean there's no single answer that will solve all our future problems. There's no magic bullet. Instead there are thousands of answers - at least. You can be one of them if you choose to be."
This is a republished essay by Octavia Butler in which she reflects on her work, history and future of society. Within the essay text there is some absolutely gorgeous artwork. I believe this essay is twenty or so years old but very relevant to the world we live in today. It speaks to the timelessness of Octavia Butler's work. This will be a beautiful book to showcase not just for Octavia Butler's impactful words but because of its visually appealing images.

Interesting read, beautiful imagery. As usual Ms. Butler illuminated the future directing us to look to the past. History repeats itself, so how do you predict the future?

I was provided an advanced copy of this book by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Octavia E. Butler's "A Few Rules for Predicting the Future: An Essay" is a succinct yet profound exploration of the complexities involved in anticipating what lies ahead. In this thought-provoking essay, Butler imparts wisdom and shares insights on the intricacies of predicting the future, drawing on her keen understanding of human nature and societal dynamics. The brevity of the essay does not diminish its impact; instead, it serves as a concentrated dose of Butler's brilliance, leaving readers with valuable reflections on the art and challenges of forecasting the future.

3.5 rounded up.
This is a lovely coffee table book for fans of Octavia E Butler. It's an essay spread over 50ish pages with paragraphs on each page and art between sections. I'm sure it will be very pretty in person, however I do wish it had more art throughout, just to lean more into it being an art book since it's just one essay spread out. The essay stands alone and is great and worth the read, I just finished a reread of the Parable duology which is mentioned throughout the essay so it was lovely to read this after. But I just wish there was more art to go with it to really make it stand out as a coffee table book, especially because the art is beautiful and very reflective of Octavia Butler's work. All that being said, I will eventually buy it to go with my Octavia Butler collection, but if you're not a huge fan I'd say grab a copy from the library to read her timely and always relevant essay.

Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley for the advanced reader copy for review.

Octavia E. Butler can absolutely do no wrong. I often sit and feel sad that she died so early, before she could have written more genius works for us to read. This will be a great graduation gift.

There wasn’t much to it. Nothing you couldn’t read in one of the articles mentioned in the essay. But it does give an interesting view of the world on how we think it’ll be vs how it’ll turn out.

Short story that just left me wanting more. I wished it were longer so I could have more of her writing. Many of the themes from the original 2000 publishing are still relevant today, as is the message. Always leading with hope, we do not give up.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy.