Fabulous Reads: Dystopian sci-fi novel will leave you reeling

The Men, Sandra Newman, Jonathan Ball Publishers, ISBN: 9781783789016

IF you love the dystopian genre or sci-fi, I think this is a book that you would enjoy – despite the social commentary aspect.

The reader finds themselves in a world where all men (individuals born biologically male, with a Y chromosome) have vanished overnight.

Despite the title, the book is about women – specifically, five women, all of whom are of different ages, races, marital statuses, etc, – and their experiences. Then one night, months after the women have grappled with their emotions as well as the challenges of their new reality, videos featuring the men start to surface. The videos start out eerie and unsurprisingly get darker and horrifying beyond belief. Are these videos fake, and if not, where or when have the men gone? Can the men be brought back, and if so, should they? These are the questions that now torment the women.

While the book’s pace is very slow, the author kept my interest by jumping between the unique perspectives and experiences of the five women.

My only complaint would be that I was expecting the lives of the five women to be more intertwined. They do all meet up, but there was no fantastical link(s), which I personally always appreciate. They always tend to uncover emotionally charged epiphanies. Some of the characters, besides their diverse opinions on men, might as well not have been part of the story.

As a woman, I’ve often imagined what the world would be like without sexism, but never have I ever imagined a world without men. Not all men are evil and not all women are pure, and I think, this is one of the points this book tried to make. It delves into the good and bad side of both sexes. With sexism gone, other forms of discriminations and prejudices – and of course violence – remain. There is a conversation between two of the women that eludes to how power can corrupt even those with the purest of intentions.

This is not a misandrist, preachy or feminist book. Nor, do I believe that it is transphobic, as the chatter around the book suggests. Is it controversial? Sure. Provocative? Absolutely. But, I believe that’s what it was meant to be. It is both intriguing and compelling. It’s not a book I would choose to read over and over again, but it certainly makes one think. The ending, in particular, has garnered some controversy from readers, and I am still not sure how I feel about it. However, every now and again, I find myself mulling it over and trying to decide if it actually was the perfect ending. Mariclair Smit – 3/5 stars.

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