On Wednesday, September 3, the Albertine Book Club will discuss the novel I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman, translated by Ros Schwartz, and published by Transit Books.

Imagine a girl—raised in an underground cage, watched over by silent guards, surrounded by women who have no memory of how they got there. She has never seen the sky, never touched a tree, never heard music. Then—without warning—she and her cellmates are released.

I Who Have Never Known Men is not dystopian in the usual sense. It’s starker, stranger, and far more unsettling. Jacqueline Harpman crafts a story that feels like myth, parable, and psychological study all at once. The prose is spare and luminous; the questions it raises are anything but. What is memory, when no one else remembers? What is freedom, when there’s nothing left to run to?

Albertine members will receive an invitation by email.

Moderated by the Albertine staff, the Albertine book club is open to Albertine members only. Members are free to speak in English or in French, but a strong command of the French language is recommended to attend. For more information on how to become an Albertine member click here.