September 3, 2024 – Brussels
As we are paying Brussels a visit I thought I'd read a Belgian author. I seem to be developing a taste for dystopian sci fi, with an interest in non-male protagonists.
This was honestly very grim. But surprisingly readable and entertaining. 40 women live in a bunker, unsure of how they got there or where it is, policed by silent male guards with intimidating whips. The youngest of them is our narrator. When the bunker suddenly opens, the story moves to the surface with still more questions than answers.
It's never clear exactly what has happened in this world, although my interpretation is that it's a world after nuclear apocalypse. I liked that it was never explained. I prefer the questions to the answers.
The interesting part of this is really the reflections of our narrator as she explores what it means to be alive. Whether there is any meaning to "being a woman" outside of the socialised roles of women from society. She essentially never goes through puberty entirely, so she never menstruates, and never has any sexual relations with anyone. She is independent, defiant, curious, resilient, intelligent and brave. She has no memory of life before the bunker, but she never feels "like a woman" based on the accounts of her bunker cell mates. It poses questions about the inherent nature of womanhood, if there is any at all.
It also reminded me of the fact that even though there are a lot of Tasks to do in life, they are also basically what life is, so you may as well enjoy them or find some way to make them fulfilling. Learning how to live is most of what living is.