Book Review : Kindred
Kindred
By Octavia E. Butler
Kindred is a book written in 1970s and yet it feels like a novel written recently. The text is easy to read and follow, the story is swift when it needs to be but occasionally slow.
It was a really compelling and intriguing book for me as someone who does not dwell in the states. Yes I have seen many accounts of slavery in US in cinema and TV shows. Going in blindly in this book was a really good decision. Because I was not expecting the time travel sci-fi aspect of the book. It was a well used trope. Although yes you could consider this as a sci-fi novel, but the "Science" part of the time travel is not discussed at all. What Octavia Butler has done is to concentrate on the heavier drama aspect of the story.
The little changes that are highlighted in the story in Dana and Kevin as they spend some time in the past is wonderfully written. The "audience" like nature of Dana's character-she herself notes this in the story that she is there just to witness history being unfolded in front of her- makes it super engrossing and helps us understand this strange new wild world we have stepped in with Dana.
The characters of Alice and Rufus are really interesting and well thought out. I really felt scared for and by Rufus throughout the book which is an incredible achievement. The pace of the book could be problematic to many readers. Occasionally it slows down and the constantly shifting narrative interrupts the pace a lot. But it quickly picks up again which works out for me. It might not for others.
Minor spoilers ahead, click to reveal
The toxic relationship between Dana and Rufus is predictable in some sense, but really well written. There is just one way out and you know eventually that will happen, yet you as a reader dread that moment of showdown. As a reader you begin to like this despicable character that Rufus is, the first person narrative with Dana ofcourse is here to misguide you. I really liked the character of Alice, she served like an antithesis to Dana's character. Major part of the story evolves with Alice and Dana being of similar age which makes the interactions even better.I am quite surprised on how quickly I managed to finish this even though it dealt with such heavy and mature themes. That is a testament to the quality of writing from Octavia Butler. As a scifi fan, i would love to know more of her work.