Reviews

I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman

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jennifercrowe's review

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dark mysterious reflective slow-paced

4.25

arielsbookcorner's review against another edition

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2.0

I mostly hated it but the afterword helped my perspective on it and the ending was ok. This was just not for me. I don’t do well with ambiguity and this book is entirely too ambiguous. I am angry about not getting what I wanted and I understand why I didn’t get what I wanted but alas I am still angry about it!

sculpthead's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

Philosophical

janne03's review

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adventurous inspiring mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

kaitlyncookies's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

I think this is one of those books I will keep thinking about as time goes by. It was so haunting and I haven't really read anything like it. In a way it is a simple story that leaves you with big things to consider. I felt a similar disorientation as the novel Piranesi by Susanna Clark, and similar level of empathy to the main character.

Also, I loved the audiobook, the narrator embodied the main character so so well. It was basically like listening to a memoir. I can see why some people may have an issue with the ending, but I think it was a fair way to end the novel.

In some ways it's the ultimate way to make you empathize with the main character because you both don't get any answers.

bookishcritiques's review

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3.0

I who have never known men is a novel by Jaqueline Harpman. Originally written in French and translated into English, the novel set in a dystopian timeline follows a group of 40 women who are trapped inside a cage armed by guards since the protagonist has been a young child. One day, as a mysterious siren echoes across the cage, all the guards abandon the women, leaving them to escape with the help of the youngest woman locked inside the cage.

What originally brought me to purchase harpman’s novel was the unique storyline and plot that she was able to create. I found myself reading page after page, curious about what was going to happen next and what answers could be given for the women to be locked up. Ultimately, this was the downfall for this book. I can appreciate the fact that this is a literary fiction novel but for myself personally, when I read a book, i would prefer to get answers about the plotline. I wanted my questions answered. unfortunately, this didn’t happen. I know that literary fiction has deeper meanings and usually I’m able to pick up on it. For this book, it wasn’t the case. While i did enjoy the content of the novel, it merely warranted a 3 stars for me.