I Who Have Never Known Men cover art

I Who Have Never Known Men

 Preview
Try Premium Plus free
1 credit a month to buy any audiobook in our entire collection.
Access to thousands of additional audiobooks and Originals from the Plus Catalogue.
Member-only deals & discounts.
Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

I Who Have Never Known Men

By: Jacqueline Harpman, Ros Schwartz
Narrated by: Sarah Lambie
Try Premium Plus free

$16.45 per month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $21.99

Buy Now for $21.99

About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

Discover the haunting, heartbreaking post-apocalyptic tale of female friendship and intimacy set in a deserted world.

Deep underground, 39 women are kept in isolation in a cage. Aboveground, a world awaits. Has it been abandoned? Devastated by a virus?

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. But, as the burn of electric light merges day into night and numberless years pass, a young girl - the 40th 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 aboveground. The woman who will never know men.

©2019 Jacqueline Harpman (P)2021 Penguin Audio Dystopian Fiction Post-Apocalyptic Science Fiction Women's Fiction
All stars
Most relevant  
This is a book that makes you think about your own humanity. Loved it. I haven’t stopped thinking about it since I finished and it has become a new favourite.

Thought-provoking and introspective

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I went in blind. This story is a masterpiece of literature. I will be recommending to all.

Un-put-downable

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Lovely, One of the best audiobooks I’ve heard. The voice of the reader is amazing. Thank you

One of the best audiobooks I’ve heard

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This book had so many good reviews but I guess I just didn't get it. Was very gloomy to listen to.

This was a sad read

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Amazing 🤩 amazing 🤩 amazing . Thought provoking and inspiring. Moved my soul. This book ought to be turned into a movie 🎥

Most significant book of all time

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A clunky philosophical reflection. I am unsure on this one. Probably wouldn’t recommend. Think there were more interesting things she had never known about than men…

Many unanswered questions….

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This book made me think deeply about life, what it means to be alive and the concept of time. It caused me to query my perception of time, community, purpose, and life overall. It felt melancholic and bleak, but provided a way of reflecting on our current life and reassessing how we live and why

Introspective and curious

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
i have never read or listened to anything like this book. it is so so sad and yet so beautiful. and when you think about it nothing actually happens, but you get so excited about the small victories and discoveries the narrater makes. 5/5

The sadness

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Loved the enormous tenacity and determination of the women who escaped the captivity and the leadership of the “child” Not finally knowing where, why and how these human beings had come into this captivity leaves the reader hanging out for more details.

The suspense of the disappearance of all the male guards.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Genre defying, thought provoking, gripping and melancholy. I loved it. I hope it finds a wider audience.

Stunning

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews
In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.