Fiction

The Employees

The Employees

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  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2022-02-22 07:51:35
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Olga Ravn
  • ISBN：0811231356
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Summary

Funny and doom-drenched， The Employees chronicles the fate of the Six-Thousand Ship。 The human and humanoid crew members complain about their daily tasks in a series of staff reports and memos。 When the ship takes on a number of strange objects from the planet New Discovery， the crew becomes strangely and deeply attached to them， even as tensions boil toward mutiny， especially among the humanoids。
Olga Ravn’s prose is chilling， crackling， exhilarating， and foreboding。 The Employees probes into what makes us human， while delivering a hilariously stinging critique of life governed by the logic of productivity。

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Reviews

Shatterlings ，

This is hard to follow at the start but I enjoyed it once I got into the rhythm of it。 I listened to it and I think that possibly brought out the poetic nature of it。

Daan Koster ，

Yeah sure， blow my mind Olga， why not？

Inside My Library Mind ，

Actual rating: 2。5 stars i truly apologize to my friends who love this but me not liking this is a mix of me going into it expecting it to be something it wasn't （not the book's fault） and the book never really delivering anything particularly exciting or insightful or novel on a topic that has been done so much （kinda the book's fault but still somehow more mine） anyways， gutted i did not like it more。 interesting in form tho。 Actual rating: 2。5 stars i truly apologize to my friends who love this but me not liking this is a mix of me going into it expecting it to be something it wasn't （not the book's fault） and the book never really delivering anything particularly exciting or insightful or novel on a topic that has been done so much （kinda the book's fault but still somehow more mine） anyways， gutted i did not like it more。 interesting in form tho。 。。。more

Eric ，

Initially， I found it very disjointed and strange。 But it grew on me， and had a good ending。

Dave Capers ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I guess the elevator pitch for this novel is "The Office minus comedy plus Westworld in space "。 I enjoyed the experimental form of the book but it did stop me from getting becoming emotionally invested in any of the characters。 Though you could begin to piece together more complete pictures of a few of them by the end。Interestingly there's an implication at the end that this is an abridged report of the events on the ship and a longer one exists。 I wonder if there are plans to publish that as a I guess the elevator pitch for this novel is "The Office minus comedy plus Westworld in space "。 I enjoyed the experimental form of the book but it did stop me from getting becoming emotionally invested in any of the characters。 Though you could begin to piece together more complete pictures of a few of them by the end。Interestingly there's an implication at the end that this is an abridged report of the events on the ship and a longer one exists。 I wonder if there are plans to publish that as a separate work。 。。。more

Pyramids Ubiquitous ，

The Employees is a refreshing blend of poetry and novel， with an innovative structure that adds to the atmosphere and feeling of dread。 There is enough that is vague here that works the imagination and allows the reader to really be drawn into the mystery。 I don't think it's ever clear what the "objects" mentioned are， and I think that's probably the point; that the work is overall meaningless。 The human and humanoid testimonials are， to me， barely indistinguishable， which serves as an observati The Employees is a refreshing blend of poetry and novel， with an innovative structure that adds to the atmosphere and feeling of dread。 There is enough that is vague here that works the imagination and allows the reader to really be drawn into the mystery。 I don't think it's ever clear what the "objects" mentioned are， and I think that's probably the point; that the work is overall meaningless。 The human and humanoid testimonials are， to me， barely indistinguishable， which serves as an observation and a critique of the future （and our current trajectory as a species）。 。。。more

Nicole ，

Objectively well written。 Not something I would have picked up to read on my own， but something I am very excited to discuss with my book club。 I wish I was reading it in a literature class with a professor to ask the probing questions to help me digest it more。 I read it in one sitting， just under 2 hours， and it is absolutely a commentary on existence。 Did I enjoy reading it？ I don’t know。 Do I like that it’s probably the most thought provoking thing I’ve read in a while？ Yes。 Do I enjoy think Objectively well written。 Not something I would have picked up to read on my own， but something I am very excited to discuss with my book club。 I wish I was reading it in a literature class with a professor to ask the probing questions to help me digest it more。 I read it in one sitting， just under 2 hours， and it is absolutely a commentary on existence。 Did I enjoy reading it？ I don’t know。 Do I like that it’s probably the most thought provoking thing I’ve read in a while？ Yes。 Do I enjoy thinking about existence and whether is has any meaning？ Absolutely not please let me go back to reading my rom coms。 。。。more

Degenerate Chemist ，

"The Employees" is a pretty standard scifi read。 Space Mcguffins are found that disrupt social norms， your standard what does it mean to be human plot， and a conflict of humans v nonhuman crewmembers on the same ship。 It covers the questions of human worth defined by their productivity that are as old as the robot genre - see Karel Capek。The only thing that really stands out about this novella is its format。 This story is told in short interviews from the crew that have to be pieced together to "The Employees" is a pretty standard scifi read。 Space Mcguffins are found that disrupt social norms， your standard what does it mean to be human plot， and a conflict of humans v nonhuman crewmembers on the same ship。 It covers the questions of human worth defined by their productivity that are as old as the robot genre - see Karel Capek。The only thing that really stands out about this novella is its format。 This story is told in short interviews from the crew that have to be pieced together to see what is going on。 The interesting format doesn't really cover for dull characters and a cliche story。 At the very least， its short。 。。。more

Adellet ，

I picked this one up randomly at the library and had no idea what to expect。 It was an eerie， literary sci-fi that covered a lot of world building and philosophical musings in a short amount of prose。 I enjoyed it for its interesting take on androids and humanity。

Sandra Saade ，

3。5

Rick Brose ，

The Employees is told in a series of interview notes from the crew of a ship exploring a planet across the deep of space。 Because of that， the reader is never given a full picture of the events nor a completely linear timeline。 That being said， the interviews give enough information to grasp the big ideas and to explore the idea of work， coworkers， and their relationship with the rest of who we are as people。 It is an interesting way of exploring these themes， and the execution is successful。 Th The Employees is told in a series of interview notes from the crew of a ship exploring a planet across the deep of space。 Because of that， the reader is never given a full picture of the events nor a completely linear timeline。 That being said， the interviews give enough information to grasp the big ideas and to explore the idea of work， coworkers， and their relationship with the rest of who we are as people。 It is an interesting way of exploring these themes， and the execution is successful。 The alien objects add a layer of intrigue and mystery; a bizarreness that stretches the imagination。 It is a fun， strange ride that is unlike a lot of what I have read before。 。。。more

Kaph ，

Perfectly formed little high-concept space novella。 Not usually a metric I would include in a review， but the physical format of the paperback is incredibly pleasing both visually （super saturated orange） and in size and layout （A5ish with hold-your-place flaps） and I enjoy having it around。 A little A snack of a read and a definite recommendation for those who fall in the middle of the 'loves sci fi' and 'loves poetry' Venn diagram （I do not， 3 stars but no shade）。 Perfectly formed little high-concept space novella。 Not usually a metric I would include in a review， but the physical format of the paperback is incredibly pleasing both visually （super saturated orange） and in size and layout （A5ish with hold-your-place flaps） and I enjoy having it around。 A little A snack of a read and a definite recommendation for those who fall in the middle of the 'loves sci fi' and 'loves poetry' Venn diagram （I do not， 3 stars but no shade）。 。。。more

Naomi ，

Workplace entries reveal an interesting story。

Jenny （Reading Envy） ，

I really didn't read anything about this book before I started， so I went in expecting Kafka and ended up with scifi！ Humans and humanoids are employed on ship called the Six-Thousand， and they have also taken in some objects from a nearby planet。 The creators， unnamed， have attempted to give the humans what they perceive them as needing - connection， seratonin， comfort - but can someone/thing nonhuman ever fully understand humanity in that sense？ The entire very short novel is told in interview I really didn't read anything about this book before I started， so I went in expecting Kafka and ended up with scifi！ Humans and humanoids are employed on ship called the Six-Thousand， and they have also taken in some objects from a nearby planet。 The creators， unnamed， have attempted to give the humans what they perceive them as needing - connection， seratonin， comfort - but can someone/thing nonhuman ever fully understand humanity in that sense？ The entire very short novel is told in interview transcripts， most less than a page， so it is a short albeit bizarre reading experience。 Much is unfolded but I won't spoil it for the reader。This was on the long but not shortlist for the International Booker Prize; it was indeed on the shortlist for 2021。 It's the fourth from the shortlist that I've read， and I'm surprised by the preference for shorter works！ I read this in one setting while getting my oil changed。The translator， Martin Aitken， is known to me for his work with Hanne Ostavik and Karl Ove Knaussgard。。 。。。more

Myra ，

This is a experimental piece of fiction that will probably have quite a polarizing impact on its readers。 Its a sliver of writing that takes a dark， whimsical， philosophical view on what is it to be human， machine， our relationship with work， bureaucracy， how that impacts our lives and lines and spaces between all of that。 The writing is edgy， minimalistic， unexpected and strange。 Its devoid of a clear narrative structure， characters and repeating perspectives。 The only way I can describe it was This is a experimental piece of fiction that will probably have quite a polarizing impact on its readers。 Its a sliver of writing that takes a dark， whimsical， philosophical view on what is it to be human， machine， our relationship with work， bureaucracy， how that impacts our lives and lines and spaces between all of that。 The writing is edgy， minimalistic， unexpected and strange。 Its devoid of a clear narrative structure， characters and repeating perspectives。 The only way I can describe it was like walking into a grey， swirling mist that tickles your neck and makes you feel eerie and uncomfortable and makes its presence known without allowing you to grasp at anything physical。 When the book is over， feels like the sun has come out and you have traveled a undetermined amount of distance in a unknown direction but you know you have travelled。 This book is not for everyone。 Although simply written， it was difficult for me to follow at times and while i wont remember the writing， i will remember the general experience and feelings it evoked。 So I would say， role a dice。 See if this works for you。 。。。more

bilkis ，

wasn’t expecting this to be so good

Angella ，

3。5 stars。

Jesa ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Originally written as a part of an exhibit by Lea Guldditte named “Consumed Future Spewed Up as Present”， “The Employees: A workplace novel of the 22nd century” serves as documented testimonies to the lives— both human and humanoid— aboard the Six-Thousand Ship。 Developed and then nurtured like humans to be reared to its fullest operational （yet social; conformity， to seemingly be a part of the human collective） potential， the humanoids who had then become more human than android， began to consp Originally written as a part of an exhibit by Lea Guldditte named “Consumed Future Spewed Up as Present”， “The Employees: A workplace novel of the 22nd century” serves as documented testimonies to the lives— both human and humanoid— aboard the Six-Thousand Ship。 Developed and then nurtured like humans to be reared to its fullest operational （yet social; conformity， to seemingly be a part of the human collective） potential， the humanoids who had then become more human than android， began to conspire against the ship’s management。 The first attempt at rebooting the humanoids for slight memory losses have failed， and so the committee has decided to get rid of all bodies aboard the ship。 The humans were killed， while the humanoids， who know nothing about death aside from forgetting， were wiped clean of their memories。 Although， there were some humanoids who decided to live out their remaining hours outside the ship— on a valley。 Resigned to be cast-off as junk in a decaying planet， they wanted to trade an opportunity of eternal regeneration for the chance to carry their sparse memories of grass and water droplets on their palms and on their feet and their short lives aboard the ship to their graves。Guldditte’s exhibit encompasses different rooms， all of them containing various futuristic objects， and this sole documentation was the only affirmation of the lives lived out aboard the ship。 “How can we live with the knowledge that none of these days will be remembered by anyone， not even ourselves？ Might it be said， then， that these days on board the ship， among these human corpses， don’t exist？ Will this be a part of the history？” This was a question posed by one of the humanoids。 A viewer in the exhibit could easily take for granted these documentations。 Quite a sad sentiment to hold， to realize that in spite all these words， you probably would not reach anyone， not even as an echo。 。。。more

Steve ，

4。5

May ，

The employees" is a very short sci-fi book that consists of a series of interviews with the employees of a ship after a series of "objects" is brought on board。 I really liked how not much is explained but it doesn't matter anyway。 It's not about the plot， it's about the characters， about our relationship with work， about being human， about loneliness and feeling connected to something。 Of course none of those ideas are new to sci-fi but the author manages to write them in such a poetic and drea The employees" is a very short sci-fi book that consists of a series of interviews with the employees of a ship after a series of "objects" is brought on board。 I really liked how not much is explained but it doesn't matter anyway。 It's not about the plot， it's about the characters， about our relationship with work， about being human， about loneliness and feeling connected to something。 Of course none of those ideas are new to sci-fi but the author manages to write them in such a poetic and dreamlike way that makes this book so delightful to read （also， a big shout out to the translator's amazing work！） 。。。more

Charlie Kruse ，

oneiric and strange。 Hard to even call this a sci-fi novel， with how much of it has to do with the way we relate to objects， the difference between object and subject， and recognizing ourselves as objects to be。 marvelous！

Enna ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Beautifully eerie and cautionary tale on late capitalism， the politics of artificial intelligence， and what it means to be human。 The story unfolds in the form of an employee audit， which I found extremely witty and a wonderful way to write objectively about strange alien objects and class rebellion on the ship。

Katya ，

A strange and weirdly absorbing book of statements taken from the "employees" of the Six Thousand Ship， as they interact with mysterious objects discovered on a distant planet。 The stories of those who are human， and those who are humanoid， start to become indistinguishable as they explore the depths of their humanity and how authentic their experiences are。 They yearn for intimacy， explanation， the mundane and the extraordinary。 Perhaps a bit too abstract for my personal liking， but it was a fa A strange and weirdly absorbing book of statements taken from the "employees" of the Six Thousand Ship， as they interact with mysterious objects discovered on a distant planet。 The stories of those who are human， and those who are humanoid， start to become indistinguishable as they explore the depths of their humanity and how authentic their experiences are。 They yearn for intimacy， explanation， the mundane and the extraordinary。 Perhaps a bit too abstract for my personal liking， but it was a fascinating look into the survival of the individual， the creative and curious mind， in a culture of productivity and programmable efficiency （where any reflection or questioning seems like a deficiency）。 。。。more

Dead John Williams ，

When it comes to reading a book we all know that the characters， the backdrops， the atmosphere， are all created inside our heads。 We do all the work， the author just provides the raw materials。 Well here’s a clever， innovative， progression to that basic premise。 In The Employees， Olga Ravn presents us with a series of transcripts， a series of interviews with employees on a spaceship， some time in the future。 It soon becomes clear that not all of the employees are fully human。From the transcript， When it comes to reading a book we all know that the characters， the backdrops， the atmosphere， are all created inside our heads。 We do all the work， the author just provides the raw materials。 Well here’s a clever， innovative， progression to that basic premise。 In The Employees， Olga Ravn presents us with a series of transcripts， a series of interviews with employees on a spaceship， some time in the future。 It soon becomes clear that not all of the employees are fully human。From the transcript， it is not always clear if the employee is human or not， or even if that matters。 Some of the interviews are quite raw emotionally， some philosophical， some wistful。 This where it gets clever。 Over time the tone of these transcripts begins to change， they take on a darker tone。 Events are referred to that have had a negative or disturbing impact on both the human and non-human crew。 Whilst these events are never actually detailed， you begin， unconsciously， to flesh them out。So， at this point you are creating not only the characters and their environment， you are also creating the background events （that are only ever hinted at）， and you are in effect creating the the actual fabric of the story as well。 This is an amazing experience and at the end if someone asked you what it was about you could probably give a coherent account of events even if those events had never been actually described anywhere in this book。 。。。more

Jeremy Boyd ，

I’m going to continue my project of giving 5 stars to books I even remotely like because I hate the tedious ranking system of books but I do feel like so much more can be done with this fragmented novel style…

Ellie ，

1。5*My biggest problem with this book was the format。 The story is presented in a series of short statements， but this led to it feeling fragmented， tedious at times and ultimately unsatisfying。 I’m not sure if this is due to the translation， but I felt disconnected from the characters。 There are lots of moments where they are pondering life， the universe and everything - but it simply wasn’t interesting to read about because you don’t even know which character is speaking half the time。I was ho 1。5*My biggest problem with this book was the format。 The story is presented in a series of short statements， but this led to it feeling fragmented， tedious at times and ultimately unsatisfying。 I’m not sure if this is due to the translation， but I felt disconnected from the characters。 There are lots of moments where they are pondering life， the universe and everything - but it simply wasn’t interesting to read about because you don’t even know which character is speaking half the time。I was hoping for more exploration of the sci-fi themes in the book， but the over arching concept is never explored in full detail。 。。。more

Jessica Chretien ，

Could feel A。 Boyer running all thru this， sometimes almost verbatim tbh -- "No" & also a little bit of "Erotology" （& "The One & Only？"）， & also so Vandermeer-esque & a little （a lot？） Lispector。 Three of my absolute fav people！ & there was so much to love about this， esp the language & the strangeness & abstractness， & yet。。。。。 the ideas themselves felt too easy， to well trodden。 Tropes of refusal that felt too easy， maybe？ Less the imaginative that I love so much in AB， less obsession with la Could feel A。 Boyer running all thru this， sometimes almost verbatim tbh -- "No" & also a little bit of "Erotology" （& "The One & Only？"）， & also so Vandermeer-esque & a little （a lot？） Lispector。 Three of my absolute fav people！ & there was so much to love about this， esp the language & the strangeness & abstractness， & yet。。。。。 the ideas themselves felt too easy， to well trodden。 Tropes of refusal that felt too easy， maybe？ Less the imaginative that I love so much in AB， less obsession with language itself。。。 although！ I kept thinking about "How to Go From 。 。 。" & art & objects！！！ w h a t is this book doing with objects？？？ it feels like it could be so interesting but it also feels a little underdeveloped？ or maybe I need another re-read！ In the one where it talks about shopping to cope， it uses "items" instead of "objects" & I found this interesting？ Items as more purposeful， objects as。。。。。 just。。。。。 existing？ Who knows！ Ah， maybe I just need some more time， we shall s e e。 。。。more

Joy ，

The Employees worked for me on so many levels。 Although the employees are speaking to a labor committee， the logs feel like dreamy confessions or distorted entries in a diary。 They offer a glimpse of life aboard the Six Thousand Ship。 Humans and humanoids alike brim with feelings of longing and nostalgia （for earth， for others， for simplicities such as seeing a blade of grass）。 The logs also give us a peek of the bizarre labor thats takes place on the ship （I especially enjoyed descriptions of t The Employees worked for me on so many levels。 Although the employees are speaking to a labor committee， the logs feel like dreamy confessions or distorted entries in a diary。 They offer a glimpse of life aboard the Six Thousand Ship。 Humans and humanoids alike brim with feelings of longing and nostalgia （for earth， for others， for simplicities such as seeing a blade of grass）。 The logs also give us a peek of the bizarre labor thats takes place on the ship （I especially enjoyed descriptions of tending to the “biodraperies”）。 Throughout， the employees grapple with what it means to be human; what it means to be alive while floating around in the cosmic。 All the while， a set of enigmatic objects aboard the ship have affective impacts on the crew， especially on a sensory level。 This book is wildly creative and imaginative， but is minimal in that it leaves a lot for the reader to ruminate on。 Only a few books have been so stunning that they permeate my thoughts for days after reading them。 This is one of them。 There are wonderful themes on labor/productivity， humanity， the personal nature of isolation， our relationship with materials， and the universal sense of longing。 So much was accomplished in such a slim text。 。。。more

Maria ，

Pure poetry。 Metaphors and similes that string together to create this eerily beautiful harmony。 I loved this book for exploring deep philosophical themes in such a direct and horrific manner。

Hannah Thaggard ，

I LOVE robots and humans thriving and then dying

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Employees

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Employees&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Employees&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0