Gather the Daughters by Jennie Melamed

Set on an island that we quickly come to understand to be isolated from the rest of the world, Gather the Daughters is a frightening account of the extent of the rigidity and potential radicalism of a cult.

Governed by the Wanderers, who control essentially everything, from how much knowledge people can have to breeding, everybody in this stringent society has their role. As is often the case in such radical societies, the women have it the hardest. From when the girls are young, they are trained to become wives, to bear children and once that is completed, there is no longer any need for their existence.

But before long, some of the girls, the Daughters, begin to question everything and we start to see how easy it can be for these structures to unravel, with lessening control that is so important to the leaders.

This debut novel brings a different and fresh perspective on human behaviour, relationships, selfishness and betrayal. It is a highly recommended read and will leave you thinking about it for days afterwards.

Themes:

Patriarchy
Oppression
Fear
Guilt
Rules
Incest
Community
Revolution

Favourite quote from the book:

“She can’t see the point of the repetitiveness of it all, people living to create more people and then dying when they’re useless, to make room for even more new people. She’s not sure why they keep making new people to replace themselves, except—of course—that the ancestors said to.”

About the author:

A novelist with a rare background, Jennie Melamed is a psychiatric nurse practitioner who works with traumatized children. Gather the Daughters is her first fiction and was shortlisted for the Arthur C Clarke Award. Melamed lives in Seattle with her husband and three dogs.

Where to buy:

Amazon Paperback
Amazon Kindle

LittleWordNerd Rating: 4/5