Reviews - I Who Have Never Known Men

40.9k reviews for:

I Who Have Never Known Men

Jacqueline Harpman

4.24 AVERAGE

moomin892's review against another edition

4.5

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

anabel_unker's review against another edition

4.25

mysterious reflective slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

becca_624's review against another edition

3.5

challenging dark mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

catnbooks's review against another edition

3.5

adventurous challenging dark medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

A work of art. An unusual work of art, but art just the same. I wouldn’t read this if you’re going through a depression lol

raunaq's review against another edition

3.75

dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

toxcecety's review against another edition

4.75

emotional reflective medium-paced

fatoodles's review against another edition

4.75

emotional mysterious reflective fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

I still haven't full absorbed this novel....

I Who Have Never Known Men tells the story of our unnamed narrator. She and 39 other women reside in an underground bunker. They are kept prisoner and do not know why they are there or how they got there. Our narrator known as "The Child" by the other women stands out as she was the only child and she alone has no memories of a life before the imprisonment. One day something happens that causes a change in their circumstances.

The novel forces the reader to think about what it means to be a person. How do our shared experiences shape how we interact with the world, and also what is left of we take all of that away. Why do we live?
I'm gonna be thinking about this story for a long while, especially in regards to the afterward where we learn the authors family was a risk of being sent to the camps during world war two. We aren't actually that far removed from those circumstances in the novel. This novel answers few questions but gives you many. I enjoyed reading it and it was quite gripping and thought provoking.