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The Employees: A workplace novel of the 22nd century
The Employees: A workplace novel of the 22nd century | Olga Ravn
27 posts | 34 read | 39 to read
Shortlisted for the International Booker prize, The Employees reshuffles a sci-fi voyage into a riotously original existential nightmare Funny and doom-drenched, The Employees chronicles the fate of the Six-Thousand Ship. The human and humanoid crew members complain about their daily tasks in a series of staff reports and memos. When the ship takes on a number of strange objects from the planet New Discovery, the crew becomes strangely and deeply attached to them, even as tensions boil toward mutiny, especially among the humanoids. Olga Ravns prose is chilling, crackling, exhilarating, and foreboding. The Employees probes into what makes us human, while delivering a hilariously stinging critique of life governed by the logic of productivity.
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review
Suet624
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Pickpick

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.

BarbaraBB This one has stuck with me 2y
Suet624 @BarbaraBB I feel like I‘m the only one who had issues with this one. I found it so sad. 2y
BarbaraBB It is. But so much is said with so few words 2y
Reggie I get it, Sue. I read the Fireman by Joe Hill twice. The first time it depresses the hell out of me and I was in a funk for days. The 2nd time, I had to read it for a horror book club and I laughed so hard at some of it. And I just had to chalk it up to my frame of mind. I thought some of this book was actually frightening, but at times lovely. And I loved the use of sensory language. 2y
Suet624 @Reggie thanks Reggie. I also read it as a digital read instead of print and that can actually throw me off. I‘m pretty sensitive about the future these days so you‘re probably right that if I tried it another time I‘d appreciate it more. 2y
52 likes5 comments
review
CyaneFillion
Pickpick

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.

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Megabooks
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Pickpick

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!

sarahbarnes Great review!! I loved this one, too. So creative. 2y
squirrelbrain Such a great cover! 2y
BarbaraBB So true! Some things never change. And that cover is 👌🏽 2y
See All 10 Comments
Cinfhen Sounds hilarious!! 2y
Cinfhen Stacked 😘 2y
Megabooks @sarahbarnes yes, so creative! Thanks! 2y
Megabooks @squirrelbrain @BarbaraBB it is a fantastic cover! I waited for it to come out in paperback here just to get it. Thanks for getting me to pick it up, B! 2y
Megabooks @Cinfhen it really is funny and unique! 2y
BarbaraBB And it fits our current need of books with a different perspective right?! 2y
Megabooks @BarbaraBB yes!! 🙌🏻🙌🏻 2y
95 likes6 stack adds10 comments
review
Lesliereadsalot
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Mehso-so

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.

review
Reggie
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Pickpick

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!

BarbaraBB Yeah, I loved this one too! 2y
batsy Love this review! I thought it was brilliant, as well. 2y
Kenyazero This sounds like such a cool way to tell a story! 2y
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Ruthiella I also really enjoyed this book. I loved how the author gave the reader space to draw their own conclusions and fill the gaps. 2y
Reggie @BarbaraBB @batsy @Kenyazero @Ruthiella I just really loved her use of words that made the senses pop. Each of these statements could have been a postcard, a poem, some of them were scented, some of them were short horror stories waiting to blow up, some of them were just of longing. It was great. 2y
Rissreads How have I not heard of this book before? Stacked! Also your Christmas card finally arrived today, thank you! X 2y
Reggie @Rissreads yayy! I‘m glad it showed up. Also, this book is worth the hype. 2y
Centique I read this too and was too gobsmacked to write a coherent review. 😂 Well done you! I got your card a couple of days ago. It was so lovely 💕 I always get excited as soon as I see your writing on the envelope - “it‘s from Reggie” I yell to everyone within hearing! 😍 2y
vivastory I couldn't agree more. This was one of my favorites of last year! 2y
Reggie @vivastory the one I like where the human remembers the pink cloud from his homeland and he sees it replicated by one of the humanoid because maybe that Dr./Creator installed it in the humanoid. There was just some great stuff in here. 2y
69 likes3 stack adds10 comments
review
bnp
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Pickpick

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.

17 likes1 stack add
review
Chelsea.Poole
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Pickpick

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.

Chelsea.Poole I‘m extra excited (and feel slightly like it‘s cheating) because it was on @TheKidUpstairs ‘s #auldlangspine list. BUT, I was already reading it and more than 70% done when the lists were delivered. @monalyisha NOT cheating! I promise! 😉 just goes to your epic matchmaking skills! But this book is a real thinker! 2y
monalyisha Ha! Don‘t worry; I‘m not monitoring! I think several people started early last year. I‘m not here to dole out judgment. 😉 I love that you were already reading, it, though — especially when it‘s not one that I‘ve seen many folks review thus far! (edited) 2y
See All 17 Comments
RebelReader Look how much employment changed since the pandemic! 2y
sarahbarnes Great review! I really loved this one, too! 2y
batsy Yes, so smart! And strange and haunting. 2y
squirrelbrain Great review! I hadn‘t really fancied this one, but now I might….! 2y
Ruthiella I also really liked this title. So familiar and yet not. And I liked all the gaps left it the story, allowing the reader to fill them with their own imagination. 2y
Chelsea.Poole @ruthiella yes!! This book demands so much from the reader. @squirrelbrain At first I was confused, and not so sure it was going to work for me. However, the pauses between chapters/interviews allowed for reflection and to really imagine what might be going on. 2y
Megabooks Excellent review! This is on my list once I can get a print copy. 2y
Chelsea.Poole @rebelreader oh definitely! I didn't even make that connection to this until you just mentioned it. There's so much to discuss with this one. 2y
Chelsea.Poole @sarahbarnes @batsy yes! Strange and haunting for sure! I must admit, many of these entries I read twice just to get it to sink in a little more. 2y
Chelsea.Poole @megabooks “speculative“ is 110% the descriptor for this one. I read the ebook and it worked well for me, as I read it in snippets on my phone over a week or so. 2y
Hooked_on_books I liked this one, but it took me forever to figure out what the heck was going on! 2y
Chelsea.Poole @Hooked_on_books same!! And I‘m still not exactly sure…lol 2y
Readerann Ah, if only I were a faster reader and/or had more time. So many of the longlist books sound good. 😩 2y
Chelsea.Poole @Readerann oh, I know what you mean! This one is super short, so I managed to squeeze it in during lunch breaks, etc. 2y
78 likes1 stack add17 comments
blurb
Oryx
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One last treat before Christmas...

bnp I've been wanting to read this one. My library owns it, but I'm trying to read down my library stack first. 2y
squirrelbrain Ooh, let me know your thoughts - this is on the #tob longlist. 2y
57 likes1 stack add2 comments
blurb
TheKidUpstairs
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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!

BarbaraBB I enjoyed this one so much too. Such an intriguing book! 2y
62 likes4 stack adds1 comment
review
Hooked_on_books
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Pickpick

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.

BarbaraBB Totally agree! Too bad it didn‘t make the shortlist. 2y
50 likes1 stack add1 comment
quote
charl08

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.

BarbaraBB I just finished this one. Still thinking about it! 2y
charl08 @BarbaraBB appropriately, in a world of its own... 2y
39 likes1 stack add2 comments
quote
charl08
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Key word 22nd here. Unusual book!

blurb
BarbaraBB
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#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.

TrishB Good week 👍🏻 2y
54 likes1 comment
review
BarbaraBB
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Pickpick

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.

sarahbarnes Yes! I really liked this one, too! So bizarre and good. 2y
batsy I thought it was pretty brilliant, too. 2y
Ruthiella I liked this book too. The blank spaces worked for me. They gave me lots of room to make up my own connections. 2y
See All 8 Comments
nathandrake1997 I loved this book ❤️ 2y
Megabooks Stacked!!!!! 2y
BarbaraBB @Megabooks you should. Look at those recommendations above! ❤️❤️ (edited) 2y
BarbaraBB @nathandrake1997 I reread your review and your comments @batsy and I knew I was in for something special. 2y
BarbaraBB @sarahbarnes @Ruthiella I feel fortunate to be in such be in such awesome company ❤️❤️ 2y
68 likes6 stack adds8 comments
review
stretchkev
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Bailedbailed

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

review
ChaoticMissAdventures
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Pickpick

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.

quote
ChaoticMissAdventures
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"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

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Thanks for playing! 2y
21 likes1 comment
quote
ChaoticMissAdventures
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"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.

blurb
ChaoticMissAdventures
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I have some library work to do.

LeslieO Yes you do! Love the wine glass and I also loved The Sparrow. 🙂 2y
ChaoticMissAdventures @LeslieO I hear such good things about that one! 2y
17 likes2 comments
review
catiewithac
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Pickpick

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?

wisherwishinguponastar That sounds so cool! I was caught by the cover and how awesome it looks on top of your puzzle, but that sounds really interesting! 2y
53 likes2 stack adds1 comment
review
sarahbarnes
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Pickpick

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.

BarbaraBB I have wanted to read this ever since too! 3y
vivastory Great review and this is a great cover 3y
28 likes2 stack adds2 comments
review
rachelsbrittain
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Pickpick

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.

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rachelsbrittain
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Auntie life: exhausting but wonderful 😍

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rachelsbrittain
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My reads on this snowy day

ChaoticMissAdventures I have Sarah Gaileys too that I need to start! She did a promo on Twitter yesterday that got me very excited for it! 3y
50 likes1 comment
blurb
TheBookStacker
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Starting this tiny weird book tonight.

all_4_kb Sounds intriguing .. lol 3y
33 likes1 stack add1 comment