Welcome to March at Book Social where we have a new Book of the Month – I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman.
A French translation
Jacqueline Harpman was a Belgian writer born in 1929. Being half Jewish her family fled to Casablanca during World War Two. Upon returning she trained to be a Doctor however tuberculosis swiftly put stop to that, although she did qualify as a psychoanalyst in the 80s. Her first novel was published (in French) in 1958 to critical acclaim. I Who Have Never Known Men was Harpman’s first novel to be translated into English and was originally titled ‘The Mistress of Silence’. It was published in 1995 and is described as a ‘haunting and heartbreaking tale of female friendship and intimacy’.
I Who Have Never Known Men – the blurb
‘For a very long time, the days went by, each just like the day before, then I began to think, and everything changed’
Deep underground, thirty-nine women live imprisoned in a cage. Watched over by guards, the women have no memory of how they got there, no notion of time, and only vague recollection of their lives before.
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.
Join Us…
We will be sharing our Big Review of I Who Have Never Known Men on 27 March. A series of Book Club questions will also be around for you to answer on 26th. Don’t wait until then though, we would love to know your marks out of ten as soon as you have read it. So grab your copy and read along with us.