Usually I have to LOVE reading the book to the point I can't put it down to give five stars, but in this case, the book was not only well written, but it had some very important messaging and was executed in a very creative fashion.

In Kindred, a modern day African American woman is transported back to the time when slavery was prevalent, well before the Civil War. She encounters one of her ancestors, who happens to be a slave owning white man, and the main crux of the story is her interactions with him. I'm really simplifying the plot here, but Butler does a wonderful job of taking more of a historical fiction novel and adding layers of suspense making it a very compelling read.

She definitely does NOT shy away from the very hard things that happened to slaves, and you really feel the slaves' pain at their lack of freedom and very challenging day to day lives. I've read first hand accounts of slavery before, but I think this work of fiction touches on many of the same themes in a way that is just as gripping.

The story builds to a dramatic ending, but not a "pretty wrapped up tight with a bow" finale.

All in all, this is a very satisfying read that truly helps one to understand and empathize with the African American experience in this country.

One more thing worth mentioning is that this book seems to be classified as "young adult". And it does read that way in the sense that it is an easy read. But the plot and emotional depth as well as the graphic subject matter made me feel as though it was certainly more than engaging for adult readers as well. ( )

“Do you honestly believe you traveled back over a century in time and crossed three thousand miles of space to see your dead ancestors?”
I moved uncomfortably. “Yes,” I whispered.

And that's what Dana did. Traveled from 1976 to 1815. From the L.A. area to Baltimore area. To a slave plantation. A black woman. She goes back and forth, trying to figure out why, and for what purpose. And having to live the nightmare of being a slave in 1815. A terrifying and mesmerizing story that really grabs your attention. I'm glad I read it before I watched the series! ( )

Intense, fascinating, well-crafted.
Wow. I have been meaning to read Octavia Butler for a long time and knowing that, my husband brought home Kindred.
What an amazing novel. Time travel puts into the sci-fi genre but the exquisitely researched history says it's historical fiction. It's so well-written, with memorable, real characters, that it could be called literature. And it's a first person American slave narrative.
Don't let any of those labels scare you away from reading this book. For all of its seriousness, it's an absorbing story. ( )

This was a hard, hard read. And worth it. ( )

I'd go 4.5 but rounded up because it was better than 4. The story was so well done. The author was no where in the book - only Dana telling her own tale. I look forward to reading this again and telling everyone else that they should read it if they haven't. ( )