Welcome to Litsy!

Sneaking in one last read to end 2025, and holy shit, is it a banger. Inspired by artwork from Lea Gulditte Hestelund and by conversations with the artist, this novella is ostensibly a sci-fi story about a crew on board a ship millions of miles from earth. Of course, it's really about so much more - humanity and technology; the nature of art; memory and nostalgia; the passage of time and mortality; and the insidious nature of corporations. 👇👇👇

This was an interesting and quick read. The book is set on a ship that has travelled to a distant planet. The crew is a mix of human and humanoid and the boom is told in brief interviews with various employees. We soon come to understand that strange objects have been brought on to the ship triggering emotions in both the humans and the humanoids, and raises issues of independence, cognition and emotion. Interesting and thoughtful.

YES. More of this PLEASE. By which I do not mean that this book needed to be anything more than it was, I just want more works like it. I knew that I loved sci-fi stories that drift about in that space of humans/humanoid/android/clone/cyborg examining identity, the nature of life and existence, of being, and one's right to do so; that I love stories where the horror has the idea of employment, being a worker, a cog, as a central theme, 1/?

Would just like to point out the cover indicated in the digital listing in my library catalogue vs the version that showed up on the hold shelf. They did us both dirty Olga, glad you got another cover. [I think there's a third one with black gunk in a water cooler, might be more on theme, but it's a little basic for my taste.]

This was such a cool, little book. Employees (both human and humanoid) working on a spaceship are interviewed. The interviewer asks questions about productivity, the items the ship carries, and relations between humans and humanoids. At times we don‘t know whether an human or humanoid is speaking. Sort of an “us verses them” story, told in sound bites. This allowed the story to unfold slowly and in random pieces. Slow, but catastrophic.

Umm..well..gee. It‘s certainly a unique way of envisioning the future. I don‘t know how to even describe the book. Humans & humanoids on a spaceship, reporting events to an interviewer. I found it so depressing, never found any humor that some folks referenced. It felt too current to be sci-fi, especially the callousness of how work/employers destroy both humans & humanoid. A lot to think about from a very short book. A pick for the concept.

A short but incredibly good read. I literally cannot say anything without spoiling the themes, but I was genuinely moved by the end of it. It has some fun and intriguing concepts as well. Highly recommend.

If you‘ve ever worked at a corporation, you‘ll see that some things never change, even when you‘re in a spaceship with robots 100 years from now. Ravin cleverly uses a SciFi premise to share all-too-relatable complains filed from the human and non-human members of the crew. Smart and funny. Love this cover, too!

This odd little book is only 125 pages, most of them just a few sentences. We‘ve got humans and humanoids giving interviews on their spaceship. Hard to tell the difference between them! And not that interesting.

This. Book. Was. Wild. One of the most poetic sci-fi novels I‘ve ever read. An interviewer is aboard the Six Thousand Ship taking statements from humans and humanoids that work there. There are artifacts housed on the ship from a nearby planet that may or may not be influencing the workers. This book just gives you the edge pieces of the story but because of the poetic language allows you to build the whole picture for yourself. A brilliant pick!

This one was propulsive - read it in two sittings. Biting commentary on relationship of employees and corporations. Also confusing - I think I'd benefit from a reread of this novel that is structured as interviews with the human and humanoid employees on a spaceship.

First novel I read from the shortlist for the Ursula LeGuin prize.

What will life be like in the next century? We can only speculate about the condition of our planet and what humankind will do as a result. Ravin wrote a novel in the form of “interviews” with employees aboard the Six Thousand Ship to give readers a glimpse of what could be. There‘s humanoids vs humans, a new planet with unsettling “objects” and a deep longing for earth, but still petty workplace squabbles. Smart! #tob23 long list.

One last treat before Christmas...

Started this one yesterday, will likely finish it today. I'm slightly obsessed with it. If you like sci-fi novellas that are big on the questions, short on the answers, this is a book for you!

Aboard a spaceship, a series of interviews are conducted between the titular employees (who are human & android) and an unknown, yet increasingly menacing, figure representing outside interests. Meanwhile there are mysterious objects in a couple of the rooms that could be causing hallucinations, or more, in the crew. A lyrical satire of corporate life in the stars that often felt completely relevant to the humdrum earthbound. One of the most 👇

What an interesting little book! I went in blind and went from “what on earth is going on here?!?” to “hmmmmm” to “oh wow.” I like that she gives just enough in this book to tell you what‘s happening but trusts the reader to do the rest. And there‘s so many possibilities at the end. This one is really good.

Sometimes the humanoids are very quiet. They've started sitting at the same tables together in the canteen. They sit in a row and take in their nourishment. It's as if without a word being said between them they've some how agreed to be silent. Only a fool should believe that silence is consent. Their keeping quiet seems more like a conspiracy than a willingness to serve. Yes, that's correct, I'm nervous about it.

Key word 22nd here. Unusual book!

#BookReport 39/22

I had a great reading week. Three of these books were really excellent. The Rabbit Hutch and Africa is not a Country the favorites, followed closely by The Employees.

The 22th century. A group of people and very human-like humanoids is sent into space. They are employees on a unknown mission.
We get to know them a bit and learn what‘s happening on board by their recorded statements. Or we think we do. Nothing is clear, the book is much more about questions than answers.
Big questions, regarding themes like humanity, affection, and transience.

It‘s a tough little book and it packs a punch. I‘m very impressed.

This one was too experimental for me to get a handle on.

I am saying pick because it is bold, and there are some gorgeous and interesting sentences in here.
But I have to say I don't think I understand most of what happened.
Quick #womenintranslation read.

"we're drawn by each other's unhappiness, it pulls us down towards each other, as if we were caught in a funnel, and at the bottom of the funnel we sit and whisper"

#alphabetgame #letterE #womenintranslation
@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

"I know you say I am not a prisoner here, but the objects have told me otherwise."

#womenintranslation
Not exactly sure what is going on in the book but many of the sentences make a punch.

I have some library work to do.

The poet Olga Ravn was inspired by sculptures to write a novel about the destruction of a futuristic workforce. The crew of the Six Thousand Ship share the story of their demise in a series of HR interview recordings. As the conflicts between human and humanoid workers escalate, readers are left with an unsolvable mystery. What does it mean to be alive? To be human? What is the purpose of life?

An eerie, mysterious and mildly disturbing story told through a series of interviews of the inhabitants of a space ship, this book had been on my list since last year‘s international Booker. Very clever and entertaining.

A strange, somewhat esoteric, but well-written novella about the Six Thousand Ship and its human and humanoid crew, told through a series of memos, interviews, and complaints. It becomes increasingly clear that things are not right on the ship, between the mesmerizing effect of some objects that have been brought on board and the tensions between human and humanoid crew. Confusing at first but hints about what's happening are slowly revealed.

Auntie life: exhausting but wonderful 😍

My reads on this snowy day

Starting this tiny weird book tonight.