Have You Eaten?

by Sarah Gailey

The complete serialized novella from Hugo Award-winning author Sarah Gailey, in which a fractured group of undesirables work together to nurture and nourish each other while navigating a dangerous world that would just as soon see them dead. Still—inch by inch, meal by meal—they build their own future. Have you eaten?

Genres: Fiction, Queer, LGBT, Short Stories, Science Fiction, Dystopia, Speculative Fiction

105 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 30, 2024

Reviews

[Alina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have You Eaten? by Sarah Gailey - 3.5+/5★

This was quite interesting, with more substance to it that some others in this collection, maybe also because it's much longer (it's actually four stories into one, 4 parts to be more exact to the naming in the book, some 100+ pages vs 20-30 pages for the other stories in general). I enjoyed reading it, I found the characters interesting, but the ending was too open for my taste (what happened to Daneka, where was she, how did the palmsets work, etc). Also, I would have liked to see more of the life in Rosemary Patch.

The short story is found in Some of the Best from Reactor: 2024 Edition and can also be read on REACTOR

[S.A Reidman · Rating 3 out of 5]

At this point, Speculative Fiction Writers are literally playing a game of musical chairs with a finite number of possible futures. This one is way too close to what life will look like for this community in about 10 years.

I don't know, between Upright Women Wanted and Have you Eaten? the former is definitely more hopeful but I like to imagine that This book leads to that book's premise.

So, here we are sleepwalking into the exact circumstances that'll lead to people like Fen, Morrow, Quan and Harper (and Daneka) being on the run because they just want to live in their own comfortable skin and orientation.

it's equal parts chilling, worrying and a wake up call seeing the future written out like this.

[Nicole (bookwyrm) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a story with fascinating framing: each section is opened with a recipe from the before-times, then after the plot part of the story the section closes with another recipe that better fits with what is available in the after-times. It's both a clever way to tie everything together and to show how things have changed, without actually going into what has changed.

(Semi-spoilery note on the world-changing event without actually being a spoiler: details are never given, but there is something that happened in the USA which involved tanks, and the aftermath seems to make being trans or non-binary even more difficult and deadly than it is now. I'm not sure what other changes there were, because our protagonists are in the queer community and trying to live under the radar.)

Even though it seems like this should be a depressing novella, it's not. It's hopeful and full of great found-family vibes, and very heartwarming... just like a big comforting meal shared with friends.

[Jodi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sarah Gailey lese ich immer wieder gerne, da sie sehr kreative Einfälle hat. Obwohl es heisst "die komplette Serie", was nach viel klingt, sind es doch nur etwas mehr als 100 Seiten zu lesen. Ich hätte sehr gerne mehr davon gehabt, auch wenn ich ständig das Gefühl hatte, diese Geschichten seien Teil eines grösseren Universums, das mir bisher noch unbekannt sei.

Vor allem aufgrund der aktuellen politischen Tendenzen fand ich die Grundidee einer Gruppe queerer Leute, die sich im Untergrund durchschlagen müssen, sehr faszinieren. Aber eben auch sehr beängstigend.

Wie der Titel schon sagt, ist das Essen hier sehr wichtig. Stets finden wir uns in einer Küche oder Kochnische wieder, alle Kapitel beginnen und enden mit Rezepten. Das Essen und Kochen hilft unseren Hauptfiguren dabei, sich selbst und Lösungen für ihre Probleme zu finden. Essen verbindet über alle möglichen Distanzen hinweg.

Eine spezielle Geschichte, passend zu Sarah Gailey, die von mir aus gerne noch weitergeführt werden dürfte.

[jess · Rating 5 out of 5]

post-collapse punk road trip framed by recipes

Loved it. SG brings the characters to life and they carried me along with them. Immersive world even though it’s a novella.

[Kam Yung Soh · Rating 3 out of 5]

A story set at a time where civilization has partially collapsed, and a group of people living together are surviving the best they can. Then, one of their members vanish, only to make contact some time later, leading to members of the group to go out to try to find her.

Unfortunately, I feel I am missing the context and background of the characters in the story, giving me the feeling that I've wandered into the middle of the story, not the beginning. Apart from the inclusion of recipes in the story, I did not get much out of it.

[Annette · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book, Sarah Gailey’s work is so original and authentic. I loved the recipes and the accurate descriptions of areas I am familiar with.

[Radwa · Rating 4 out of 5]

a short novella by an author who really knows how to write characters I care for.

in a post-apocalyptic world, we follow a group of teen to young adults squatters on the move, and each mini chapter revolves around them making a recipe, while also showcasing their relationships and struggles as they start travelling looking for one of their own who has gone missing.

liked the writing, adding the recipes was an extra nice touch, so you could actually do these recipes, and the world felt real and expansive enough by the end of the novella, also the developing relationships were heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time

[emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

The 52 Book Club Challenge : Found family trope

Oh, this was so delightful. Food is history, both personal and cultural, and framing this story around meals (with the added seasoning, if you will, of tracking how the recipes have to change due to the changes in the world since "before") makes the reader see both the micro and macro of the world Gailey has created. This story is like eating spicy food-- it's nourishing, but it hurts a little, but in the end you're warm and satisfied. I loved it.

Read it for free here: https://reactormag.com/have-you-eaten...

[Becky · Rating 2 out of 5]

Have You Eaten? is a strange little novel that follows the lives of a disjointed group of survivors in a world that's turned against them. Using old recipes to band together, they navigate a strange land where societal rules have collapsed, and when friends go missing, the reasoning may be deadly.

Sadly, I just don't feel this book painted a complete enough picture for me to truly understand what was happening. The world shows potential, but it is underdeveloped. The characters are interesting, but I found it hard to connect with them. Several aspects of the group's daily life also suggested a deeper story and a fragmented life in this new world, but unfortunately, the book never revealed these to the reader. The ending is far too open for me, and after hoping for a conclusion the entire way through, I was disappointed that there's really not one to be found.

I like Sarah Gailey's writing style and enjoy the mystery surrounding the narrative, but this one was a bit of a headscratcher for me. Despite finishing the novel, I feel like I'm sitting on the outside of an inside joke. I just don't understand what was happening here, which is a shame.

[Shu Wei Chin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A unique dystopian story set in a world where being queer is criminalised. We follow a bunch of queer young adults just trying to take care of each other as best as they could and survive. Fen specifically does this best by cooking for her found family. I loved the inclusion of real recipes in the book, it is such a cozy little touch to the brutal setting (I am keeping that pumpkin gnocchi recipe forever!).

I would've loved for the story to be longer, but I also found the way it ended rather sweet.

[Julia K · Rating 3 out of 5]

queer punk found family post-apocalyptic survivalist cooking novella

i liked the characters and the art and the recipes- i learned what solyanka is and it inspired me to make gnocchi myself! reminded me of margaret killjoy’s work. but the plot/worldbuilding could have used a bit more development early on i spent most of the book very confused & feeling like i was missing something but idk it was short and cool very sarah gailey

[Yuuto · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.8

This is such a neat story, I wish it were a bit longer so we could see the next step to the group’s journey. But it’s kind of a found family story, it’s about cooking a meal with/for the ones you love, all in the middle of what I’m guessing is a kind of dystopian setting? It just left me hungry for a bit more.

[Jadey (the Bookish) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love sci-fi/dystopia where you don't know the full context at the start and you have to piece it together as you go.

I was really immersed in this. And I loved the use of the recipes. The only thing stopping me from rating it 5 stars is its abrupt ending. I read this online, but I actually checked an e-book to make sure there wasn't any other chapters left that I'd missed.

[Miguel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Food and Family

A great read that puts together found family and a food connection. It grips you and forces you to read it in one sitting. Recommend! I also want to make all the food!

[Chaotic Space · Rating 5 out of 5]

This short but sweet story set in, that I think is, post apocalypse world.

Story set through food theme and cooking together. I love tha way it is written and a little bit sad that it ended.

Perfect slice-of-life found-family story

[Katie Bruell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a sweet story. Just be prepared to be plopped into the middle because there's lots more that is obviously happening before and after these stories. It didn't lessen the fun of reading them, though.

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautifully tender story about aftermath and how we take care of each other.

[Venneh · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was originally released in installments on Reactor, and I really am a sucker for just about all of this honestly - recipe cards with in story cues and illustrations, community care via anarchist coop, and the threat of it all coming down because of corporations and police. I really liked this, and am hoping we either get more like it (installments accompanied by illustrations), or more of the world, either/or!

[Chloe]

WHEW
I want to try the recipes in this

[Sarah Jean · Rating 4 out of 5]

A distopian novella about a band of friends surviving together and the recipes they make along the way.

[Roisin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cosy queer apocalypse story with recipes at each part start.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

very gay very post-apocalyptic very well done

[Per · Rating 3 out of 5]

https://reactormag.com/have-you-eaten...

[T Sundstrom · Rating 4 out of 5]

like half a sneeze. good build up but left unsatisfied

[Sam - Spines in a Line · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was sweet. A quick serial read available for free online, I've loved Gailey's short apocalyptic fiction with found family! It does handle a lot of heavy topics (homophobia and transphobia, reference to police violence, domestic abuse) but it feels like but it balances this dystopian landscape with genuine relationship-building.

[Sophia · Rating 3 out of 5]

ugh so creepy i looove