Welcome to Litsy!

This is like nothing I‘ve read before. 40 women are guarded day & night in an underground bunker. What follows is an exploration of what makes us human, the power of community vs. loneliness & a quiet meditation on morality. The story is told from the youngest of the women, who is coming-of-age when the novel begins. Her voice is disconnected from the pain of the loss the other women feel as she has no memories of a time before the bunker.

This one was pretty gripping - bizarre and dystopian. I have tons of questions that I will not ever have the answers to, but somehow that's okay. It's a cinematic story that leaves lots of room for thought and introspection on what it means to be a woman navigating the world.

From a technical standpoint, this was an interesting read as there are no breaks or chapters. It's one continuous narrative, which lends a unique voice to the narrator.

In no particular order, post 2 of my #Top25of2025 reads this year.

IRL #bookclub holiday party and Nov/Dec meeting. Adore this small, but mighty, group we‘ve built! We usually choose one fiction and one nonfiction each month; members can choose one, read both, or none. We aren‘t strict.

Nov Fiction: I Who Have Never Known Men
Dec Fiction: The Book Club Hotel
Nov/Dec NF: Finding My Way

Due to the chaos of year‘s end, we combined for one nonfiction this time. We loved all of the above! ♥️ A rarity. 😂😂

The nameless narrator of this slender novel has no memory of life before she was imprisoned with 39 women, under the constant silent watch of armed men. She has only her mind, her ferocious curiosity and intelligence to fuel her. There are clues as to what disaster befell the world, but no definite answers, and ultimately the book seems to be asking: does life still have meaning without companionship or witnesses? Unlike anything else I've read.

A wholly original story that is written exceptionally well.

I am glad it was short, even at only 165 pages it took me over a week to read, this is one of those books that I admire for the craft but didn't particularly like, and I found myself having to push through the last 60 pages. I am probably an outlier here. I think this would be a great book in a class, there are so many writing and storytelling topics here.
Glad I read it...once.

Next up - Belgium

I know I am late to the party on this one.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ #bookclub

I avoided this one when the buzz started but all of the Litsy reviews wore me down and I am glad they did. Such a wonderfully unusual book that sort of makes space in your brain and won‘t let you stop thinking about jr. A girl raised in a bunker with 39 other women. Why are they there? What was her life before? How does this impact every aspect of her being? You don‘t get all the answers you want but you do get a lot to mull over.

4+/5 ⭐️
Faccio fatica a descrivere le emozioni che mi ha lasciato questo libro
Ho trovato però una bellissima riflessione su cosa ci renda umani e come le relazioni ci rendano ciò che siamo

Our narrator is known to the 40 women she lives with in a gated, guarded bunker as the child. The other women remember their past lives but not how they got there. When I wasn‘t reading this I was thinking about it. I loved the writing; simple, straightforward, matter of fact. The story is told with such unflinching yet gentle respect of the realities our narrator faces. It was a beautiful read that left me feeling, thinking, wanting more.

While only 177 pages, I almost ditched this book around page 50, especially once I learned that the big question of the book is never really answered. Yet, much like our tireless narrator, I pushed onwards. Things picked up once the first big plot twist arrived, and thus my interest was piqued.
A philosophical sci-fi tale on what it is to be human, where there are more questions than answers.
It's a bleak tale, but one worth reading.

Hello #SheSaid!

A bit of a different format this month, so just stop by as you finish reading and let me know what you thought of the book and reading it with only 1 discussion this time in the comments.

I read this for a book club, and I was just not in the mood for a bleak, ambiguous, stream-of-consciousness dystopian novel right now. I think I need something more cheerful, like Stephen King.

This is a must read. It is so interesting.

#SheSaid @Riveted_Reader_Melissa

#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

Wow, so well done! It is bleak, mysterious, emotional, and compelling. It's feels relevant yet timeless. This novel is little, but it packs a punch on every page. It will haunt me. #Shesaid @Riveted_Reader_Melissa

Wow. Just... Wow. This book was dark, unsettling, and dystopian. But it was also fascinating, philosophical, and deeply human. This is among the best speculative fiction I have ever read.

Interesting.

I‘ve been meaning to get to this book for ages. 40 women locked in a bunker for years, not abused, just living their lives, day after day, guards bringing them food. How did they get there? What happens to their minds? How are they living like this? It‘s narrated by the youngest among them, the one who‘s thinking the clearest. I couldn‘t put it down.

repost for @Riveted_Reader_Melissa:

Next up for #SheSaid

Our next pick is fiction this month. And there are no chapters or parts. So read when you can, enjoy the spring or fall depending on where you are. And I will see you all at the end of the month to discuss this book.

Put in your library holds & interlibrary loans…. Make sure you request in translation for your area.

Next up for #SheSaid

Our next pick is fiction this month. And there are no chapters or parts. So read when you can, enjoy the spring or fall depending on where you are. And I will see you all at the end of the month to discuss this book.

Put in your library holds & interlibrary loans…. Make sure you request in translation for your area.

It‘s definitely dystopian, no closure, depressing, not even sure I liked the main character, yet somehow, I loved it.

Started today at work.

My sister recommended this to me, and I really liked it. It‘s a translated dystopian story about a girl who grew up in an underground prison with 39 women. They have no idea why they are imprisoned. One day they hear sirens and the guards run off while the door is open, and they venture out into the world.

It‘s a short book but spans the MC‘s entire life. Strange and haunting.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Haunting, intense, loneliness, love, survival, self reflection.

What does it mean to be human. Powerful read! I wish more people were aware of this book.

I just started this one, and I can honestly say I have no idea where I am. 🤣 Apparently, it is underground somewhere.
#whereareyoumonday @Cupcake12

A group of 40 women is kept in a cage together underground, how they got there is unknown. After years, one day there‘s a sound, the door to cage is left open and they can leave.

I‘m not sure what this book was trying to say, but it does look at loneliness and belonging, and surviving.

Very philosophical genre fiction. Normally I don't go for the more literary or thought experiment sci fan but this was very good and I didn't actually mind that there are no real plot answers.

Unique and hauntingly intense. I am ruined. Filled with both hope and despair. I know it‘s early, but this is probably going to be my best book of the year. It‘s definitely on my ‘you should read this‘ list.

Birthday #bookhaul I had a great day full of love and cake. So much cake. And some new books.

Such a terrifying, unsettling book. The lack of details only makes it more so - we only know what the narrator does, which is not a lot given that she has lived her life in captivity. The whole book is like a nightmare, as the back cover aptly points out. Nevertheless, I was riveted and like the narrator, looking for answers and meaning until the end.

It's not yet midnight here so i can still say HAPPY #BOOKSPIN DAY to all who celebrate! I think my March draws are an interesting combo and I'm most excited for my DoubleSpin which is the tagged. My BookSpin this month is a little chunkier than the rest of my list because it's actually a two for one volume.

I deeply appreciate this book written by a Jewish author whose family survived nazi Germany. It is a ditopic philosophical novel. I did not enjoy the reading experience. 2.5 🌟

Miraculously just finished this one with an hour to spare, and it‘s so far out of my comfort zone I don‘t know what to say except I liked it?? I stayed up past my bedtime a few nights just to get a few more pages in and I haven‘t done that in ages.

I didn't understand this book

#SheSaid. One of our book choices for later this year is currently on sale on Kindle in the US for $3.99 of you prefer buying to library.

I think this needs to come with many warnings: kidnapping/incarceration in a bunker,suicide,murder. I wanted to bail towards the end but decided not to. It‘s a claustrophobic, heartrending story ¬ for everyone. It reminded me a bit of The Wall by Haushofer because of its focus on women,solitude & there‘s this element of “fantasy” which is the wrong word, speculation perhaps “what if” without answering questions of why,how or even when or where?

Diving into this one tonight 🤓

The details aren‘t clear, neither is the setting, and readers are left to wonder along with the characters (who are all women, stuck in a cage.) The main character is substantially younger than the other women, who all remember a time before they were imprisoned. One day, they are mysteriously freed and venture out to find others. Simple yet I was hooked. I‘m left with more questions than answers which is what I imagine the point of it all.

Thanks for the giveaway opportunity @wanderinglynn Hope your birthday is filled with delight 🎂

The tagged book has lots of great reviews and is one I‘m looking forward to reading.

#49bdaygiveaway

I Who Have Never Known Men is not a book on female rage. Neither does it ask for women‘s rights to the exclusion of men‘s.

The book asks for one thing - the opportunity to love - irrespective of gender.

The women in this book don‘t hate or fear the men - rather they fondly remember their pasts where men and women explored love and life together.

I did like the book. But, I found the obscurity of time to be jarring in placing the narrative.

A haunting, affecting book that will stick with me. The main character is a nameless woman who is kept in an underground bunker with 39 other women. Unlike the others, she was brought here as a young child and has no memories of the world outside this one room. They live a completely restricted, controlled life. It amounts to a treatise on what it means to be human and free. A consuming novel and such a singular and unusual reading experience.

Wow that book is something. A bucket of cold water into the face, but in a bracing and energizing way. Was absolutely hypnotised by the writing and protagonist. It is not fun, but it asks some really interesting questions.

This is more litfic than genre SF, and some of the worldbuilding feels fudged. But that is not the point of the book. Also the ending leaves you dangling. Intentionally and I loved it, but I know some ppl hate that.

A striking, beautifully written book that leaves you with more questions than answers but said a lot about what it is to be human. 5⭐️

Saw @TrishB & @BarbaraBB posts, so read over 2 days. Talk about a character study on what it means to be human.

The part where the women keep finding the same results over & over, but with variations on how things look, whoa! Some of those scenes felt very Lord of the Flies to me, but others definitely not. Gave me perspective on how broadly humans react to same situation.

Would have loved to know more plot details, but those aren‘t the point.

Thought I‘d be reading either a #NFN pick or cozy fantasy next. After that devastating election, though, the tagged book showed up in the mail and I decided to go all in on the dystopian outlook. No idea where this book is going, but I‘m here for the ride.

This quote really hit me, especially when I think of all the people who voted for Trump, and all the people who sat this election out. Being human rests on very little indeed😢