The Others by Sarah Blau
Translated from the Hebrew by Daniella Zamir
Published by Pushkin Press, 2021
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
The Others blends the intrigue of a thriller with pertinent social commentary. The book opens with the news that one of Israel’s most prominent feminist scholars has been murdered. Even more distressing, her body was displayed in a horrifying tableau clearly designed to send a message: tied to a chair, a baby doll glued to her hands, the word mother scrawled across her forehead. Sheila, a former college friend of the victim, understands right away: someone takes serious issue with their long-ago pact to remain childless. But that means she and her other old friends could be next in line – or the ones responsible.
Blau does a great job of crafting an anti-heroine. From the off, it’s clear that Sheila is not only holding back information, she is also a highly flawed person, capable of intense jealousy, vanity, and even cruelty. This serves to make her narration somewhat unreliable, forcing the reader to remain on their toes as to where the guilt truly lies.
Employing such unlikable characters is also a clever way of highlighting the complex nature of feminism. The central group’s desire to defy the rigidity of ascribed gender roles – to gain autonomy over their own lives and bodies despite pressure and derision – is an admirable cause that is easy to get behind. But this ferocity of spirit does not make them exempt from treating each other to the kind of catty, underhand behaviour that feels indicative of everything feminism should stand against. In short, we contain multitudes, and women are each other’s worst enemies as often as they are their greatest allies in their fight for equality.
The novel is chiefly concerned with women seeking the freedom to make – and change – their own minds, the pressure to become a mother, and the fine line between friendship, love, and hate. The setting of contemporary Israel allows the author to weave in commentary on the likes of religion, politics, and gender, but that’s not to say the story ever feels dry. On the contrary, the book moves along at a canter, well-placed reveals keeping you hooked and making this a compelling read despite – and because of – the big themes it tackles.
That said, things can get a little heavy-handed at times. On occasion, the book also deliberately leans into genre tropes, but rather than tackle them from an unexpected or original angle, a character simply declares, “This is like something out of a bad crime book!” – a device I find a little grating. But that was never enough to hinder my enjoyment of the time I spent with this genuine page-turner. It’s rare you find a book that would just as likely spark debate in a serious gender studies class as it would a casual book club, but this just might.
Callum McLaughlin 
Creepy cover.
It certainly is!
Omg I cannot STAND the “This is like something out of a bad crime book!” thing, but otherwise this sounds fantastic!
RIGHT??? It just feels so lazy. Like, if you can identify a weak spot in your book, might I suggest editing it rather than just pointing it out? Other than that this is very good though!
A thriller translated from Hebrew! You do know how to pick them – sounds great! 😁
Haha, I like to take a deep dive into WITmonth! 😂
When authors acknowledge that they’re using bad book tropes and yet do nothing to develop that…that’s a pet peeve I didn’t know I had! The combination of feminist exploration and thriller does sound interesting though.
It’s one of those things that really irks me, haha. I wish more editors would catch onto it! Aside from that, I thought she blended thriller and feminist elements really well.
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