JP Rowling reveals some chapter titles for book 6.

(I went to the website but so far nothing is happening there. Perhaps the clue is no longer up!)

Okay, keys finally loose but impossible to click on!

I'm trying to figure out how Octavia Butler's books all connect to each other. I just started Mind of My Mind and it seems to be in the same universe as Wild Seed, which I also just picked up recently but haven't read yet. Are the stories connected at all, and is there one I should read before the other? What other books are set in this universe? I know that Dawn, Adulthood Rites, and Imago make up the Lilith's Brood trilogy, and the two Parable books are connected, and AFAIK Kindred and Bloodchild stand on their own. Which ones am I forgetting? Do any of the series intersect with the other series at all?

Signed, Just A Little Obsessive About Her Reading Habits

What you know as Lilith's Brood I think of as Xenogenesis (I got to it before they were published together). Then there's the Patternist universe:

• Patternmaster
• Mind of My Mind
• Survivor
• Wild Seed
• Clay's Ark

Bloodchild, the anthology, may have a story that touches on some of her other work -- I don't recall. Kindred is entirely alone.

Also, the Parables books are a third universe (IIRC) -- Parable of the Sower, Parable of the Talents. I sort of expect a 3rd in that series, because everybody seems to have a thing for trilogies and more. Is it because "duology" is an awkward word? Don't know.

What you know as Lilith's Brood I think of as Xenogenesis (I got to it before they were published together).

Oh, that's right, I've seen them referred to by that name as well. Thanks. Do you think it's OK to read the Patternist books out of order, or should I put down Mind of My Mind until I've read Patternmaster?

The Patternist books are very loosely connected (I edited my post to take out "series" and put in "collection" for that very reason). I wouldn't worry about order.

The other books are more sequential, but you should be fine.

Excellent, thank you.

My best bud loves Octavia Butler with a white-hot intensity. I keep trying to find the love, because I really respect Best Bud's reading tastes, and so far I'm missing it. The characters just don't grab me. I've tried Wild Seed and Imago so far. Maybe I've just been starting with the wrong books.

On a non-Butler train of thought, I'm thinking of doing some research into cross dressing. If anyone has any non-fiction or really realistic fiction books to recommend on the topic, I'd love to hear about them. I've read Stone Butch Blues, and I've gotten some good recommendations on lj, but I'd love to hear more suggestions.

Calli, are you interested in transgender issues as well, or are you just focusing on the dressup aspect?