Octavia Butler's 1993 novel, "Parable of the Sower" describes a fictional suburb of Los Angeles as "a struggling walled suburb... besieged by severe drought; class wars; violent, fire-setting scavengers; and a long-embattled population seized by political apathy.” In its 1998 sequel, "Parable of the Talents," a candidate runs using the slogan "Make America Great Again." Butler, who died in 2006, wasn't clairvoyant and pooh-poohed that idea. She was a student of history. Here's @TeenVogue's story about the prescience of her writings and those of Marxist historian Mike Davis.

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The LA Fires Aren't a Surprise If You Study History and Climate Change. So Now What?

This Teen Vogue Take connects the work of the late sci-fi writer Octavia E. Butler to the Los Angeles fires that have so far burned through 35,000 acres.

^{Lex McMenamin (Teen Vogue)}