A masterpiece.

made me think and I had a good time reading but... there are also just a few very strange things and metaphors in the book where I didn't really know where it was supposed to go? I dont know. Four stars are deserved though. I liked the themes of isolation, the human spirit and being born into situations others wouldnt know how to handle. But I also feel like a man could take this book to argue that women have no reason to continue living without men? It might just be me tho, esspecially since that's not at all the message of the book.

Ich hätte vieles erwartet, aber nicht diese Geschichte, die auf so subtile Weise die Menschheit selbst infrage stellt. Die zeitliche Entrücktheit, die Ungewissheit darüber, wann und wo die Handlung eigentlich spielt, verleihen dem Buch eine ganz eigene Atmosphäre. Eine ungewöhnliche, beinahe surreale Lektüre, die sich von vielem abhebt, was man sonst liest und über die ich sicherlich noch länger nachdenken werde.

A story about loneliness and death but still immortal hope and the strength of a woman who has never known men.

Interesting read, would recommend—although not without some reservations. It was a fascinating, unsettling, and at times gruesome read that left me with a lot to think about, but also with many unanswered questions. I am usually not a fan of partially open endings, and this book certainly tested that preference. I Who Have Never Known Men explores what it means to be human and how much of our identity is shaped by the experiences we have—or perhaps by the experiences we never get to have. I particularly enjoyed the protagonist's reflections on womanhood, beauty, love, relationships, and existence. The feminist aspects of the novel also stood out to me. The protagonist's relationship with womanhood is particularly interesting because of her unusual experiences, and I found her reflections on menstruation, beauty, and traditions between women especially intriguing. At the same time, this is not an easy read. Some parts are quite gruesome, and the novel often leaves the reader without much comfort or reassurance. As someone who generally does not enjoy open endings, I also struggled with how much of the story ultimately remains unexplained. While I understand that the lack of answers may be intentional and perhaps even central to the book's themes, I was left wishing for just a little more resolution. Admittedly, I sometimes find open endings in dystopian novels a bit lazy on the author's part, and I could not entirely shake that feeling here. Overall, I found I Who Have Never Known Men to be a thought-provoking read. It is strange and philosophical, but it also requires a certain tolerance for ambiguity. I would recommend it, particularly to readers who enjoy feminist and philosophical literature, but I am not entirely convinced by every aspect of it.