The narrator's dignity in such a grey universe is simply exceptional, a wonderfully written and intriguing tale. The premise is so basic, its starkness so extraordinary, it provides the perfect environment for musing on the meaning of existence, and what we do and don't leave behind. 4.5 ( )

Forty women are kept in an underground cage for years, guarded by uniformed men. They are not allowed to touch or harm themselves and simply survive while their basic needs are taken care of. We don't know what they are doing there and not much is happening until one day there is a mysterious event and women manage to free themselves. The narrator is the youngest one among them, the only one who has no memories of the world before the entrapment.

When it comes to bleak dystopia, it is a genre that I am always attracted to, but usually leaves me frustrated. In that respect, this book was at the same level of uneasiness it caused me during reading as Oryx and Crake, but the concept in this one is muddled and there is less to hold onto.

I went into this knowing not to expect much of a plot or world-building. It wasn't really a spoiler as this is a novel of ideas. But, I felt a little bit let down. This ended up not being a feminist novel. The title was somewhat misleading in that respect even if it is factual.

On a more general level, it was only partially satisfying as a novel about what it means to be human. The main character remains strangely emotionally detached from the rest of the group, even though she seems to like one of the women who was a sort of mentor to her. It is impossible not to draw parallels with some traumatizing historical events and expect that such a level of trauma would inspire a much stronger emotional connection. But, I don't think the point of this novel is to be "realistic", it is just too abstract for that to matter. But for that level of abstraction, I personally expect a better concept than what we get from this novel.

It was difficult to believe it was written by a girl raised in a cage who could barely read and write, esp. since the prose is so good. But, overall this is an interesting novel that leaves you frustrated and with a lot to think about. It just isn't as polished as I wanted it to be. ( )

3.5/5 stars

I feel so bad for not loving this as much as I though I would. This is a really interesting book that I fully expected to be a 5 star read given that on paper, it contains everything that I generally love in a book despite it being set in a dystopian time period. For a piece of speculative fiction, I don't feel like I necessarily took any new insights away from the story. I favor reading longer books because it takes a lot for me to be invested in characters, so maybe this being just over 200 pages inhibited the way I was able to feel connected to the story. I've seen so many people say that this is a book that will stick with them for a long time, but ultimately I found it quite forgettable. ( )

The narrator is the youngest of a group of 40 women who were kidnapped/selected to live in a bunker underground watched over by male guards who do not talk to them or each other, using the lash of a whip near them to communicate displeasure or breaking of the rules. Being the youngest she is the only one who has no recognition of a past life, normality or rationality, understanding only the absurd.

Philosophical, not really dystopian, although it has been described as such. Published in French in 1995.

A colleague brought it to my attention, she was about to start it herself. A new to me, Belgian author, I think only one other of her works in English. ( )

Quaranta dones estan engabiades i privades d'intimitat en un soterrani, sota la vigilància d'un grup d'homes armats amb fuets. Entre elles hi ha una nena, sense nom, que no te records Les dones tampoc recorden com han arribat allà i tampoc gaire com era la seva vida anterior. Un dia, després del so d'una sirena misteriosa, les dones aconsegueixen sortir a l'exterior, a un món despoblat i desconegut on hauran de reinventar-se i d'enfrontar-se a un nou repte, sobreviure i buscar si hi ha més gent i saber on són ( )