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For fans of American War and Cloud Atlas, a hauntingly beautiful and prescient debut novel set in a future where a renamed China is the sole global superpower and citizens can record and transfer memories between minds.
When I was a boy, my mother used to tell me stories of a world before memories could be shared between strangers . . .
In a far-off future ruled by the Qin Empire, every citizen is fitted with a Mindbank, an intracranial device capable of recording and transmitting memories between minds. This technology gives birth to Memory Capitalism, where anyone with means can relive the life experiences of others. It also unleashes opportunities for manipulation: memories can be edited, marketed, and even corrupted for personal gain.
After the sudden passing of his mother, an unnamed narrator inherits a collection of banned memories from her Mindbank so dangerous that even possessing them places his freedom in jeopardy. Traversing genres, empires, and millennia, these stories shine light on seemingly ordinary people at critical moments of resistance amid Qin’s ascent. Determined to release his mother's memories before they are destroyed forever, the narrator will risk everything—even if the cost is his own life.
Powerful and provocative, These Memories Do Not Belong to Us masterfully explores how governments and media manipulate history to control the collective imagination. It forces us to see beyond the sheen of convenient truths and to unearth real stories of sacrifice and love that, despite all odds, refuse to be eradicated.
