Conversation so far:
What happened to Octavia E. Butler in 1984?
In 1984, Octavia E. Butler released the last book of the Patternmaster series, Clay's Ark.
Was Speech Sounds by Octavia E. Butler successful?
Speech Sounds received the 1984 Hugo Award for Best Short Story.
What was Speech Sounds by Octavia E. Butler about?
A post-apocalyptic Los Angeles where a pandemic has caused most humans to lose their ability to read, speak, or write.

Question: what did critics say about the story?
Self-contained rewrite: What did critics say about Speech Sounds by Octavia E. Butler?