A series of books released in the 1990s eerily foresaw devastating wildfires sweeping Los Angeles.
Lines from author Octavia Butler’s Parable duology books have reemerged following the apocalyptic blazes which have ravaged southern Californian neighbourhoods since Tuesday.
The science fiction author passed away in 2006, but not before writing a book series which would become all too real for those living in the 2020s.
Beginning with Parable of the Sower, the stories focus on the life of a young woman in 2024, living in a California devastated by climate-changed-fueled fires.
Ms Butler said before her death: ‘This was not a book about prophecy. This was a cautionary tale, although people have told me it was a prophecy.
‘All I have to say to that is: I certainly hope not.’
So far, 100,000 people forced to evacuate their homes – up from 30,000 yesterday, while 16,000 acres of land have been destroyed, along with at least 1,000 buildings.
In a twist of fate, Ms Butler grew up near Altadena, one of the regions of Los Angeles which has been decimated by the recent blazes – and where some of her book is set.
An apocalyptic image emerged from Altadena of farmers leading their horses away from the flames on a main road – prompting one X user to point out the eery similarities between the blazes in California and Ms Butler.
‘(This is) literally Parable of the Sower, written by Altadena legend Octavia Butler in 1993 about Altadena in 2025. Unreal,’ they observed.
Metro dug into some of the lines in Ms Butler’s books which have seemingly predicted the events going on today.
The first book in the Parable of the Sower series is set to place in 2024, when the main character, Laura, is just a teenager.
She lives in Los Angeles in a gated community. Looting is rampant, food and water are scarce and much of California is burned from climate change-fuelled fires.
Ms Butler also makes references to native plants of California – the lack thereof has currently been cited as a potential reason for the rapid spread of fires in recent days through Los Angeles.
One user on X wrote: ’I’ve watched video after video of invasive plants exploding like fireworks in what was once a resilient, fire-adapted landscape…’
The main character and her father briefly touch on how many people have forgotten how to live off of native plants.
They reference a book about how ‘Indians used’ California plants, with her father adding: ‘You wouldn’t have that acorn bread you like so much without that book.’
‘What did people eat before?’ Laura asked.
‘Bread made of wheat and other grains – corn, rye, oats… things like that.’
‘Too expensive!’ she remarked.
Oak trees are a native species to California – but have been threatened by drought, development and invasive plants. In 2021, more than 1,000 blue oak trees died during a drought.
Though Ms Butler wrote her book series beginning in 1993, the sequel in 1998 had even more eerie predictions.
The second instalment of the series is set in 2032, where a new president – Texan Andrew Steele Jarret – actually promised to ‘Make America Great Again’.
Make America Great Again is a phrase now synonymous with Donald Trump, who adapted it for his presidential campaigns.
In Parable of the Talents, Ms Butler writes: ‘As for the beatings, the tarring and feathering, and the destruction of “heathen houses of devil-worship,” he has a simple answer: “Join us! Our doors are open to every nationality, every race!
‘Leave your sinful past behind, and become one of us. Help us to make America great again.”‘
She adds: ‘Jarret’s supporters are more than a little seduced by Jarret’s talk of making America great again. He seems to be unhappy with certain other countries.
‘We could wind up in a war. Nothing like a war to rally people around flag, country, and great leader.’
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