I Who Have Never Known Men – Jeanette Hain and Lara Sielmann on a feminist classic turned BookTok hit
In 1995, psychoanalyst and writer Jacqueline Harpman (1929–2012) wrote a brutal dystopian novel about 40 women held in an underground prison. They have lost all sense of time and have only a vague idea of their old lives. The six taciturn uniformed guards neither talk to them nor touch them. One day, an alarm sounds, the guards disappear and the door is open! The women enter a world they no longer recognize and in which they must help each other find a framework for communal life. In 2025, I Who Have Never Known Men became a BookTok sensation in the US – the rediscovery of the year. “Evocative and thrilling, it’s a dystopian modern classic” (Dua Lipa). Jeanette Hain reads brilliantly from the text and literary educator Lara Sielmann talks about the background, the life of the author and the phenomenon that is BookTok.
Contributors
Jeanette Hain
German actress Jeanette Hain was born in Munich in 1969. She studied… This text was shortened for this overview. Follow the more-link to read the full text.
Lara Sielmann
Lara Sielmann is a cultural journalist, literary critic, and curator.… This text was shortened for this overview. Follow the more-link to read the full text.
Books
Event data
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Date:
Monday
09. March 2026
19:30 -
Pre Pre sale price (fees excluded) ab 22 €
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Schauspiel Köln im DEPOT 1
Schanzenstraße 6-20
Köln-MülheimPlease follow the checkroom instructions.
Bitte Garderobenhinweise beachten.
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Accessibility
- Induction loop Available
- Wheelchair friendly + toilets Available
- Assistance dogs welcome Available
