This article discusses the novel Parable of the Sower (1993) by the African American futuristic writer Octavia Estelle Butler. Its analysis focuses on two main aspects of the novel: the Earthseed religion, which the main character Olamina creates in response to an eco-apocalypse, and the hyperempathy syndrome, which allows her to share pain and pleasure with living beings, including animals. These aspects are further assessed mainly from ecocritical and ecofeminist perspectives: Olamina’s perception of both living and inanimate nature are examined, as well as the the degree of sustainability of Olamina’s solution to the crisis proposed in her diary.