mirandyli 's review for:

I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman

3.5

dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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This was a dystopian yet serene story.

There is a lot of gender essentialism in this book, which was written in the 1990s. It also leaves a lot of questions unanswered, the main one being why the women were imprisoned in the first place.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Body shaming, Cancer, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Classism