Mem, Bethany C. Morrow
Mem, Bethany C. Morrow
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Mem
A Novel

Author: Bethany C. Morrow

Narrator: Soneela Nankani

Unabridged: 5 hr 3 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 05/22/2018

Synopsis

Mem is a rare novel, a small book carrying very big ideas, the kind of story that stays with you long after you’ve finished reading it.Set in the glittering art deco world of a century ago, Mem makes one slight alteration to history: a scientist in Montreal discovers a method allowing people to have their memories extracted from their minds, whole and complete. The Mems exist as mirror-images of their source―zombie-like creatures destined to experience that singular memory over and over, until they expire in the cavernous Vault where they are kept.And then there is Dolores Extract #1, the first Mem capable of creating her own memories. An ageless beauty shrouded in mystery, she is allowed to live on her own, and create her own existence, until one day she is summoned back to the Vault. What happens next is a gorgeously rendered, heart-breaking novel in the vein of Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go.Debut novelist Bethany Morrow has created an allegory for our own time, exploring profound questions of ownership and how they relate to identity, memory, and history, all in the shadows of Montreal’s now forgotten slave trade.

About Bethany C. Morrow

A California native, Bethany C. Morrow spent six years living in Montreal, Quebec. Her speculative literary fiction uses a focus on character and language to engage with, comment on, and investigate worlds not unlike our own. Mem is her debut novel. She currently resides in upstate New York.

About Soneela Nankani

Soneela Nankani is an award-winning narrator with over three hundred titles in many different genres including Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance, Sci-Fi, and Nonfiction. She has garnered sixteen Earphones Awards, nominations for Audie and SOVAS awards, and was recently awarded AudioFile magazine’s Golden Voice Lifetime Achievement Honor. Her audiobooks have been featured in Best Audiobooks lists by AudioFile magazine and the Washington Post, among others. In her spare time, she loves to read (yes, really), learn languages, try new recipes, and travel. She lives in the DC area with her husband and two mischievous daughters.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Elle

You are never going to read another novella like this, and that is okay. With an incredibly weird conceptand a fantastic exploration of character, this novella makes for such an interesting read. In a world where memories - primarily traumatic memories - can be extracted and turned into their own......more

Goodreads review by Emily

I absolutely adored the first half of this book and was excited when reading it. It felt like everything I wanted from this genre was there Unfortunately I was pretty disappointed by the second half.. for me it just don’t meet it’s full potential, leaving me kind of confused. I wasn’t sure if I had......more

Goodreads review by Thomas

A solid novella about a world in which people can extract their memories and turn them into people. These people, called Mems, get locked away in the secluded Vault to relive that singular experience until they wither and pass away. This story follows Dolores Extract #1, the first Mem who can create......more

Quotes

“Soneela Nankani narrates this combination of science fiction and alternate history with a deft and subtle touch that reinforces the story’s blurred reality…Nankani cultivates a tone of detachment and longing that perfectly suits the character and story. Her portrayal of Elsie is wry and thoughtful, while the people and Mems who surround her have voices and accents that are distinct even when filtered through that distancing lens.” AudioFile

“With her dizzying concept, richly imagined narrator, ornate setting, and first-rate storytelling, Morrow offers an epiphany for readers of speculative fiction with echoes of ideas explored in films like Blade Runner and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. The defiant story of an impossible enigma who only yearns to be a real girl.” Kirkus Reviews

“An extraordinary and utterly compelling novel that deftly explores questions of memory, identity, and humanity.” Kelly Link, author of Get in Trouble

“This gorgeously written novel is one of the most enthralling and original debuts I’ve read in years.” Laura van den Berg, author of Find Me

“Mem is a thrilling and addictive read. Part mystery, part query into the nature of ownership…and what happens when women defy societal conventions by breaking every rule.” Claire Vaye Watkins, author of Gold Fame Citrus

Awards

  • Washington Post Pick
  • Chicago Review of Books Pick
  • Bustle Pick
  • BuzzFeed Books Pick
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