Pine Reads Review's Reviews > The XY

“MAN. MEN. MURDER. GUNS. WAR. KILL.”

River has never seen a man. Sixty years ago, a virus that targeted anyone with a Y chromosome spread throughout Earth. The men who survived were placed into protective sanctuaries separate from society. Meanwhile, women began to rebuild the world by focusing on peace, kindness, and trust. However, younger generations, like River and her mother, have grown up in a culture that shuns men and blames them for the problems in the pre-pandemic world. Men are considered to be violent, greedy, and the source of deadly wars. When River comes across a mysterious, sickly figure on the side of the road, she is confused and alarmed by the boy’s strange behavior and vicious threats. However, the town elders band together to save the boy despite it being against the new world order. He, too, appears to be brainwashed against the opposite gender and leads River to contemplate if the perfect government is hiding something.

I was intrigued by The XY and thought I knew what to expect, but I was wrong. I predicted that since neither River nor the boy she finds named Mason had ever seen a member of the opposite gender that a romance or attraction would form between the pair, and I am oddly disappointed that this did not happen. River and Mason have a bizarre relationship due to their upbringings that taught them to fear one another. I did enjoy learning about the matriarchy established after the disease, especially the new governing style, laws, and societal culture. I felt it was extremely effective to make the granmumas—the oldest surviving generation in the book—the current young adult generation and include pop culture references such as Twilight. River’s narrative made me think because while the girls reenacted Twilight to please the granmumas, since there are no boys in society, the new generation is unable to understand. Romantic love and attraction within society are not discussed. The new world order may be more efficient, but it is also a step back technologically and emotionally. The XY makes you contemplate the inner workings of society and the role of gender and stereotypes. However, I feel like I am left with more questions than answers as River and Mason never develop their relationship, gender notions of extreme violence and femininity are never erased, and nothing is done to better the lives of the men who are stuck in the sanctuaries and are still blamed unjustly for all of the world’s problems.

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