💡 A feminist utopia: Published in 1915, Herland by American novelist Charlotte Perkins Gilman — author of acclaimed short story The Yellow Wallpaper — is an oft-forgotten classic that asks (and explores) quite the interesting question: What if women lived in a world in which men simply went extinct? Deemed a lost feminist utopia upon its rediscovery and republication in 1979, Gilman’s novel was the subject of much controversy from an author who did not mind it.

Van Jennings is a student of sociology, and he’s out to get answers. Jennings has heard rumors of a society populated entirely by women. For Jennings and his two friends, Terry and Jeff, this seems a preposterous concept — one that, if even possible, would mean these women are living in a state of destitution and uncivilization. After all, how could they survive without men? Choosing to entertain the rumors, the trio takes a trip through uncharted territory, only to be faced with an impossible reality.

“Why, this is a civilized country! There must be men.” Upon their arrival, they encounter three young women and follow them to a village, one that they find impeccably well-kept and technologically advanced, so much so that they are shocked such civilization was built without the aid of men. As it turns out, women in Herland miraculously evolved to reproduce via parthenogenesis after the death of their society’s men several centuries prior.

Without men and patriarchal systems, they didn’t just survive… they thrived. The trio’s arrival, however, threatens to disrupt all that the women have built. As the novel progresses, Gilman dissects social norms, gender expectations, motherhood, sisterhood, and just what role men actually have to play in society — if any.

Herland is a masterpiece that was incredibly ahead of its time. Gilman explores a slew of social taboos that were largely unthinkable to discuss in the early 20th century, inviting readers to question the relationship between men and women, and offering a compelling page-turner written from the perspective of a man who has come to realize his own inferiority. If you’re looking for a quick read that will entertain you, educate you, and maybe challenge your beliefs, you need not look further.

WHERE TO READ IT- Herland is in the public domain, and you can find the ebook on Project Gutenberg. You can also listen to the audiobook on Storytel.

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