Kindred

When I first picked up this novel for class, I really didn't know what to think. Often, the texts we are made to read can be boring or uninteresting, especially since we are made to read them in the first place, as opposed to reading them at our own pace. This novel, I was happy to be assigned, since it manages to work in history, and science fiction in a way that I would not have expected.

Butler is a writer who manages to use this novel to go beyond the surface ideas of slavery. Yes, the idea that slavery is bad is presented here, as it should be, but she uses characters to present the complicated relationship that slaves, and slave owners had with each other, in a frighteningly realistic portrayal of what life was like in a slave state, especially a relatively northern state. Butler displays how one can justify and see slavery as the norm for a society, especially when the civil war is over 30 years away. These characters are all complex and are constantly changing your expectations about what they are trying to do. They all have complex relationships with one another, especially Rufus and Dana. This is something that I liked, especially when compared to other time-traveling books such as Outlander and The Time-Traveler's Wife. This text is superior to the two because of the fact that the element of time travel with a spouse is explored in this text, and there is very little romance in this novel, both of which feel appropriate for this novel.

I think that this is a novel that should be read, especially if you do not know a lot about slavery. If you want another, more contemporary viewpoint on this topic, I'd pick this book up. I give it a five out of five.