Name: The Membranes - a Novel
Rating: 4.119047619047619 (21 reviews)
ISBN: 9780231195713

Ta-wei Chi

First published in Taiwan in 1995, The Membranes is a classic of queer speculative fiction in Chinese. Chi Ta-wei weaves dystopian tropes--heirloom animals, radiation-proof combat drones, sinister surveillance technologies--into a sensitive portrait of one young woman's quest for self-understanding.

The Membranes - a Novel

rarely enjoy class obligated books but this one was so uncomfortably enjoyable👍 read it in class with the lecturers voice in the background 10/10 core memory 

sophie yang 

"Momo was like a canary locked inside a beautiful cage."

[lets out a scream] oh my god. what was this book? i wasn't prepared to be so devastated. 

 is a disturbing but worth enough read revolving around reality, gender, sexuality, perceptions, senses and experiences. Too many questions in a tiny book of 136 pages.

My first thoughts were that this book must be newly published considering the contents but imagine my shock when it was written in 1995? My respect for the author has increased tremendously.

I imagine peeling off a peach as I processed by each chapter, discovering new and new things until I reached the ending which of course, shook me to my core. Written in a light way and yet it forces you to question everything around you. I love my books like that.

NO. I refuse to believe in the ending. What do you mean none of this was real? Oh, Momo, poor Momo. And her Mother. I can't ever forgive the author for this. This was so unexpected and I couldn't have foreshadowed that in my worst imaginable dreams. How do I get over it now?

sani

"Momo was like a canary locked inside a beautiful cage."

[lets out a scream] oh my god. what was this book? i wasn't prepared to be so devastated. The Membranes is a disturbing but worth enough read revolving around reality, gender, sexuality, perceptions, senses and experiences. Too many questions in a tiny book of 136 pages.

My first thoughts were that this book must be newly published considering the contents but imagine my shock when it was written in 1995? My respect for the author has increased tremendously.

I imagine peeling off a peach as I processed by each chapter, discovering new and new things until I reached the ending which of course, shook me to my core. Written in a light way and yet it forces you to question everything around you. I love my books like that.

SPOILERS‼️

NO. I refuse to believe in the ending. What do you mean none of this was real? Oh, Momo, poor Momo. And her Mother. I can't ever forgive the author for this. This was so unexpected and I couldn't have foreshadowed that in my worst imaginable dreams. How do I get over it now?

I thought this book was interesting but emotionally, just "fine" for the first 75%...and then the shift happened and I couldn't stop crying. Chi Ta-wei's portrayal of a strained mother-daughter relationship among his vision of the 21st and 22nd centuries—much of which was prescient then at the time of publication and familiar now—is masterful, along with his writing of privatization, the military-industrial complex, gender, sexuality, and technology.

alice

enticing concept with an even more insane plot twist

amelo

ta-wei chi was able to create (or, in a way, foretell) such a sophisticated tale of postmodern loneliness, isolation, exploitation and decadence. now, a painstakingly familiar world where you live your secluded life, occasionally breaking free from a birdcage to a digital haven. every experience is custom made for you to gobble, just pick and choose, or try on someone else's shoes. and don't forget to pay the price with your precious data when leaving. but don't stress too much and relax, poor children crafting your treasured haven portals will pay a much higher price for you. 

but even in a world like this, mothers can love their daughters very dearly

lily lily 

ta-wei chi was able to create (or, in a way, foretell) such a sophisticated tale of postmodern loneliness, isolation, exploitation and decadence. now, a painstakingly familiar world where you live your secluded life, occasionally breaking free from a birdcage to a digital haven. every experience is custom made for you to gobble, just pick and choose, or try on someone else's shoes. and don't forget to pay the price with your precious data when leaving. but don't stress too much and relax, poor children crafting your treasured haven portals will pay a much higher price for you. 

but even in a world like this, mothers can love their daughters very dearly

The Membranes - a Novel

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