Rating: 
Summary: Butler has been better...
Review: "Bloodchild" seems to be decent effort, but too much was lacking and too much was added. The biographical prose was interesting, but...it somehow made the stories seem disconnected from each other. All well and good, we don't really need to know what motivates each story. Leave something to the imagination. The title story was too long, and it seemed to be very hard to get into; five years after I first purchased the short-story collection I STILL HAVE NOT read to the end of Bloodchild. And I have read everything Ms. Butler ever wrote, including "Survivor." The story about the alcoholic I "just didn't get," and the others were okay, but all in all, this book averages out as being not very engrossing. I applaud Octavia Butler for giving us short stories, but I wish they could have been more interesting.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent book of short stories and a novella.
Review: A unique and brilliant collection of short stories. Dark and haunting, you'll find that the stories and characters and
feelings stay with you for days. Each story is so perfectly
etched that each time I completed one, I needed to time to
digest it - think about it before moving on. The author
has a singular vision - I'm looking forward to reading one of her novels...
robert kadar
Rating:
Summary: excellent
Review: Butler is one of the very few who can really imagine another life form and how it would relate and interrelate with humans. Her "bloodchild" really is so intriguing you have to read it over and over. As a physician I find the story about the double Xs so intriguing that I have been looking for it for years, since I read it in Omni magazine. A collection you will dip into again and again, the only problem is that you want many more. The story about the bus is incredible.
Rating:
Summary: Butler is one of the best!
Review: Butler never fails to entertain. This collection is a joy from start to finish. My favorite short stories were Bloodchild and Speech Sounds. Butler makes you believe her stories by placing very real people in very strange situations. I also enjoyed her essays. They gave me a better understanding of the artist.
Rating:
Summary: A small book with a big impact.
Review: Contains 5 short stories, each a gem. Both the title story "Blood Child",
and "Speech Sounds" deservedly won Hugos. A 3rd "The Evening, the Morning,
and the Sun" is equally moving and thought-provoking. Two shorter stories,
"Near of Kin" and "Crossover" are closer to main-stream fiction, and give
us still another look into Butler's heart and mind.
There are also two essays on writing, which are wonderful for any beginning
writer, but also provide still another window into Butler's soul, since she
is above all else a Writer with a capial W.
Octavia Butler is slowly creating the most distinguished body of science
fiction of anyone of her generation. Though she's been honored with the
Hugo twice, her work is still under-appreciated because it deals with issues
more complex than science fiction readers are yet comfortable with, especially
male science fiction readers. But, speaking as a male S/F reader, I recommend
her to all.
Rating:
Summary: A top-rate but tiny collection
Review: In the introduction to this small collection, Octavia Butler tells us why it is so short: she doesn't like writing short stories and her ideas are too big for the short story format. I understand completely. The five short stories she does share (two of which are not science fiction in nature) are excellent and demonstrate the high level and intense emotional content we expect from Butler. Two of these, "Bloodchild" and "Speech Sounds" I read in sci fi magazines years ago and they are what made me search for more of her work. The two essays also included are good insights to Butler's philosophy and experiences as a writer. She may not be a "short story writer" but I am glad that she has shared these five pieces with us.
Rating:
Summary: A top-rate but tiny collection
Review: In the introduction to this small collection, Octavia Butler tells us why it is so short: she doesn't like writing short stories and her ideas are too big for the short story format. I understand completely. The five short stories she does share (two of which are not science fiction in nature) are excellent and demonstrate the high level and intense emotional content we expect from Butler. Two of these, "Bloodchild" and "Speech Sounds" I read in sci fi magazines years ago and they are what made me search for more of her work. The two essays also included are good insights to Butler's philosophy and experiences as a writer. She may not be a "short story writer" but I am glad that she has shared these five pieces with us.
Rating:
Summary: One of the Freshest Voices in [Science] Fiction
Review: Octavia Butler is one of the most talented, creative contemporary writers. "Bloodchild" is a collection of eight short stories, which essentially span from futuristic dystopias, to parasitic alien races, to strange diseases. While in theory these concepts may be dated and arguably cliche, she writes so fluidly and in such a skilled manner that, litearlly, every word she pens is unique and original. Butler is still a relatively new voice in the world of writing. Rightly or wrongly, she is catogorised at science fiction, a genre which tends to tie up the loose literary ends of writers who don't exactly fit into any definite species. While at their barest what she writes about is science fiction, she inundates her writing with an artistically humane quality: Moreso than just writing about the ooh's and aah's of science, she writes about the complexities and values of humanity. Her writing is evenly paced, without being drawn out - she does not feed into flashy or gimmicky story lines, but rather baits the reader with beautiful (though not overly wordy) descriptions and portrayals of characters. "Bloodchild," the opening story, tells of a young adult who is to undergo a "rite of passage," so to speak. In this story, an alien race is symbiotically related to humans: They provide comfort, warmth, and assistance. In exchange, humans house the eggs of these creatures, undergoing a horrendously painful "hatching" prcoess that does not kill them, but leaves them with horrific memories of pain. Butler tells this short story with first person narrative, imparting a sense of emotion and realism that could never be experienced outside of her authorship. Despite her stylistic flow, Butler still manages to keep what she writes interesting. She tackles each story, however seemingly tired the concept may be, with a refreshing tone. She is able to deftly craft a story with as few brush strokes as possible, but still leave a dazzling landscape. Bloodchild is definitely one of the most marvelous, beautiful workds of fiction that I have read in recent times. It is science fiction without ever being scientific, fiction without ever being imagined. Butler is talanted and creative, and undoubtedly one of the best contemporary writers I have encountered.
Rating:
Summary: One of the Freshest Voices in [Science] Fiction
Review: Octavia Butler is one of the most talented, creative contemporary writers. "Bloodchild" is a collection of eight short stories, which essentially span from futuristic dystopias, to parasitic alien races, to strange diseases. While in theory these concepts may be dated and arguably cliche, she writes so fluidly and in such a skilled manner that, litearlly, every word she pens is unique and original. Butler is still a relatively new voice in the world of writing. Rightly or wrongly, she is catogorised at science fiction, a genre which tends to tie up the loose literary ends of writers who don't exactly fit into any definite species. While at their barest what she writes about is science fiction, she inundates her writing with an artistically humane quality: Moreso than just writing about the ooh's and aah's of science, she writes about the complexities and values of humanity. Her writing is evenly paced, without being drawn out - she does not feed into flashy or gimmicky story lines, but rather baits the reader with beautiful (though not overly wordy) descriptions and portrayals of characters. "Bloodchild," the opening story, tells of a young adult who is to undergo a "rite of passage," so to speak. In this story, an alien race is symbiotically related to humans: They provide comfort, warmth, and assistance. In exchange, humans house the eggs of these creatures, undergoing a horrendously painful "hatching" prcoess that does not kill them, but leaves them with horrific memories of pain. Butler tells this short story with first person narrative, imparting a sense of emotion and realism that could never be experienced outside of her authorship. Despite her stylistic flow, Butler still manages to keep what she writes interesting. She tackles each story, however seemingly tired the concept may be, with a refreshing tone. She is able to deftly craft a story with as few brush strokes as possible, but still leave a dazzling landscape. Bloodchild is definitely one of the most marvelous, beautiful workds of fiction that I have read in recent times. It is science fiction without ever being scientific, fiction without ever being imagined. Butler is talanted and creative, and undoubtedly one of the best contemporary writers I have encountered.
Rating:
Summary: A great Short Story Collection
Review: Octavia Butler is probably the most under rated science fiction writer. In this short story collection consisting of 5 short stories and two essays, Butler offers some solid reading. Each story is followed by a thoughtful afterword that provides analysis on her ideas. The two essays are on the craft of writing. The one essay titled 'Positive Obsession' is a small window into Butler's childhood, and the difficulties she had getting published. It clearly conveys the fears she had of never getting published. With the help of her mother she managed to persist in a most impressive way. My favorite story was 'Speech Sounds' involving a woman in a post-apocalyptic America. The world is ravaged with a new disease that takes away speech for some survivors, and reading & writing skills for others. After losing her three children and husband a woman years later rediscovers love. What happens afterwards is devastating, yet she manages to move on and find a reason for living. 'Bloodchild' is the most popular of these stories, since it won both the Hugo and Nebula awards. This story involves an alien species that learns to co-exist with humans by using men to carry their newborn. Another strong effort is 'The Evening and the Morning and the Night'. This is a very emotionally involving story. A young woman has lost both of her parents to a disease that she herself harbors. This hereditary illness doesn't reveal itself until middle age. Having to live with knowing that she will self-mutilate as she ages is almost too much for her to handle. Fortunately for her she meets someone who is also a carrier, and together they decide to visit his mom in a hospital. The only downside to this collection is that I could not help wishing there were more stories to read, but what is there is of high enough quality to compensate.
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