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MEM Hardcover – May 22, 2018
Bethany C. Morrow (Author) Find all the books, read about the author, and more. See search results for this author |
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A Best Book of the Month at The Washington Post, Bustle, and Chicago Review of Books
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.
- Print length192 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherThe Unnamed Press
- Publication dateMay 22, 2018
- Dimensions5.5 x 1 x 8.1 inches
- ISBN-101944700552
- ISBN-13978-1944700553
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Editorial Reviews
Review
"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
Review
“The moment I opened Bethany C. Morrow’s thrilling and unsettling MEM, I could not stop turning the pages. Dolores Extract #1―a "Mem"―defies the rules of her world in a harrowing quest for autonomy and understanding. Her journey generates a deeply powerful inquiry into memory, trauma, ownership, and freedom―into the very essence of what it means to be human. 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
"In the world of Bethany C. Morrow's imaginative and gloriously written first novel, MEM, a memory might have a life of her own. This novel imagines an alternate past where memories can be extracted and turned to flesh, a premise that unfolds with intrigue and wisdom from this writer's fertile imagination. Don't miss this exciting debut that will change the way you think about memories." ―Tananarive Due, American Book Award and British Fantasy Award winner
“MEM is a mind bending exploration of what it means to be human. In this tight, gripping novel doctors have the ability to extract people's traumatic memories. These memories become people, sort of... Or maybe not. And what happens to the people who abuse the procedure? How do our memories shape our lives? MEM is a great read, especially for those interested in the ethics and strange reality of how new technologies impact the human condition.” -Chris Morrow, Northshire Bookstore (Manchester Center, VT) “Staged in an alternate possibility of the last century, MEM is the story of what could happen if we found a way to remove our bad memories and store them in a surrogate. Of course these surrogates would be kept in a vault and only brought out for special occasions, maybe to impress your friends at a cocktail party. But what if one of them – let’s call her Dolores Extract #1 – did not conform to the “rules” of the process. What if instead of only having one memory to live out over and over and over again, like a bad dream, waiting to waste away to nothing and then die, she was discovered to be able to make her own new memories. What then? Well, she might be removed from the vault and allowed to live a life, of sorts, under the watchful eye of the program’s staff. This is a searing tale of consequences. Of unexpected results to a science some might think has gone off the rails. But it’s also an insightful look into what makes us who we are and what happens when we can dispose of parts of ourselves we no longer want around to haunt us. I guarantee this is a book that will dig its way into your own memories and may well keep you up at night with thoughts you just can’t turn off. What a page-turner!” -Linda Bond, Auntie’s Bookstore (Spokane, WA)
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Product details
- Publisher : The Unnamed Press (May 22, 2018)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 192 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1944700552
- ISBN-13 : 978-1944700553
- Item Weight : 12 ounces
- Dimensions : 5.5 x 1 x 8.1 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #1,220,602 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Bethany C Morrow is an author of speculative literary fiction, and a recovering expatriate. A California native, she has lived in Bangor (Wales, UK), Montreal (Quebec, Canada), and now resides just over the border in the US northeast.
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Reviewed in the United States on June 6, 2019
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Set in the art deco world of upper class 1920s Montreal, Mem follows Dolores Extract #1, a traumatic memory extracted from a fragile society girl who, unlike all the other extracted memories in the steampunkesque Vault, can create her own memories. While the other mems relive their originating memories over and over again, Dolores Extract #1 is permitted to leave the Vault and live on her own as a person in her own apartment. What makes her different is a mystery. Her legal status as the property of Dolores forms the backbone of the conflict in the novel.
The novel is a delightful, frothy read. I may have expected too much from it, but with this premise, I was expecting something more thought-provoking and insightful. Instead the book provides a tidy ending with a resolution to why she’s different from the other mems (I found the reason itself, which I won’t spoil here, very satisfying) and then a tidy resolution to all the other plot issues which I found just too pat and rushed, without the emotional resonance of the rest of the book.
A historical speculative fiction novel set in Montreal in the early 1900s. Dolores Extract #1 is a Mem who's been created by the memory of 19 year old girl named Dolores. At once they realize that Dolore Extract #1 is unique in comparison to other mems.
There are times when the line between what she is remembering from her past is blurred with the present, which can makes things bit confusing. I feel this was used by the author to mimic the stream of consciousness that so often allows our past memories to be woven into our present experience. So as confusing as it sometimes is, it was done with regard to showing the realness of our main character.
This is a story about what it means to be human, and how our memories create this resonance of emotion that cannot just be wiped away by forgetting.
It was so short though, and while it was fittingly short, I wish for just a bit more as this book has left me with a craving
I LOVED THIS BOOK. I loved everything about it and flew through the book until I fell asleep last night, thought about it all day and just finished and want to shout from the rooftops how much I enjoyed this experience.
Mem is amazing. It's set in the 1920's Montreal (something I know literally nothing about) and I love that the main character has dark skin which is referenced but not the focus - such a refreshing change from the habit where characters of colour are often clearly described as such with light skin being the default. The main character is a Mem, the end result of a traumatic memory removed from a "source" who is capable of independent thought and action, against all knowledge of the developing technology.
I loved reading about Elsie's perspective and growth and learning about the peripheral characters as the book evolved. At no point could I guess what was happening next and I still want more. I notice that other reviewers commented that the language was contrived but I felt like it was careful and each word was there for a reason. I imagine that when I re-read this book I will notice a lot more that I missed in my eagerness to find out how the story would progress.
This was such a pleasant surprise, I will recommend this book to everyone (and it's motivated my first amazon book review).

Reviewed in the United States on June 6, 2019

Top reviews from other countries

Fantastic writing from a brilliant new author, I can't wait t see what she comes out with next!