

I Who Have Never Known Men
4.2
(755 ratings)208 pages1995Penguin Random HouseISBN 9781784877200
sadScience FictionFeminismDeathsuicidehopelessFictionmysteriousA mix drivenStrong Character DevelopmentLoveable CharactersNot Diverse CharactersmysterioussadCharacter drivenWeak Character DevelopmentUnloveable CharactersNot Diverse CharactersCharacter drivenWeak Character DevelopmentUnloveable CharactersNot Diverse CharactersStrong Character DevelopmentNot Diverse CharacterssadCharacter driven
emotionaldarkemotionalreflectivemediumdarkreflectivefastchallengingdarkslowreflectivemediumAdventurousdarkemotionalfastchallengingdarkemotionallightheartedreflectivetensemedium
About this book
As the burn of electric light merges day into night and numberless years pass, a young girl—the fortieth prisoner—sits alone and outcast in the corner. Soon she will show herself to be the key to the others' escape and survival in the strange world that awaits them above ground.
Jacqueline Harpman was born in Etterbeek, Belgium, in 1929, and fled to Casablanca with her family during WWII. Informed by her background as a psychoanalyst and her youth in exile, I Who Have Never Known Men is a haunting, heartbreaking post-apocalyptic novel of female friendship and intimacy, and the lengths people will go to maintain their humanity in the face of devastation. Back in print for the first time since 1997, Harpman’s modern classic is an important addition to the growing canon of feminist speculative literature.
Publication Details
- Publisher
- Penguin Random House
- Published
- 1995
- Pages
- 208
- ISBN
- 9781784877200
Community Reviews
capope★★★★★3/19/2026
<div>I’m not someone who struggles to give out five stars to a book I enjoy. In my mind, five stars can mean a lot of different things. For this book, it means ‘Wow’ and ‘I can’t wait to read this again.’ The afterword says this is a book that doesn’t reveal its secrets, even upon rereading, but I feel like I have to try. I know for a fact I didn’t catch every meaningful detail or phrase, so I look forward to the next time I pick it up off my shelf.</div>
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