Momo is thirty and for the first time in two decades she’s supposed to meet her mother, which she hasn’t seen since she suffered from a childhood illness. In the meantime, she grew up to be a famous and successful woman, completely devoted to her job – such a passion is important in a world in which people fleeing the climate catastrophe of late 21st century moved to live in depressing cities at the bottom of the ocean. But when Momo starts to uncover her true identity, it turns out that nothing is as it seems.
The Membranes is a very unique story which startles from the very beginning. Momo’s perfect life quickly turns out to be nothing but an illusion, and her journey to the depths of her own memory in search of answers about her childhood, her memories, and the complicated interpersonal relations bares the dark and dystopian aspects of the depicted reality. It’s an intense book for those who are not afraid of difficult themes, such as identity, self-awareness and the perception of the surrounding world, perfect for the fans of Matrix, Inception, or “The Memory Police” (published by Tajfuny asPodziemie pamięci.)
Taiwanese author Chi Ta-wei is known for the queer themes in his writing, which are present here, although they does not play the main role and are not presentred in a very direct manner. The issues of gender, identification with one’s body and broadly understood sexuality, appear throughout the book – written in 1995, it still has a lot to say about these topics, from a truly unique perspective.
You cannot skip the accompanying essay by Ari Larissa Heinrich, which presents her interesting take on The Membranes as well as introduces the author and the broader context of his work.
