While the premise of the Qin Empire, the Mindbank, Memory Capitalism, and memory censoring is fascinating, there is very little said about how all of this works. Given it was this premise that drew me to the book, I was disappointed.

Instead the book is comprised of a series of vignettes - memories. They are all told in the first person. At first I thought they were all of the narrator’s mother’s personal memories. However, there are two memories featuring young women about the same age, so they can’t possibly belong to one woman. I found this very confusing.

Were these memories his mother collected, since they didn’t all appear to be her own? And if so how did she manage to inherit them while evading the censors? So many questions!

That said, I am in the minority given the 4 rating on both Storygraph and Goodreads. Obviously, this book wasn’t meant for me. Yiming Ma is a good writer who knows how to paint a scene that’s easy to see. So I can understand how readers with a more literary appetite enjoyed this book. I really didn’t.

Thank you to Mariner Books and author Yimimg Ma for access to the ARC of These Memories Do Not Belong to Us. This book focuses on a boy retrieving memories from his mother who passed. In a world where China, renamed Qin, has taken over much of the world including America. Written in short stories, this book relives stories before, after, and during the war in which Qin claimed much of the world. In this future the boy lives in, Mindbanks (which people use to quickly access memories and share memories with others) are standard for people to use. Memories that go against party ideals are dangerous to possess. The stories our main character finds involve many revolutionary ideals. Each individual story connects in some way to other parts of this book which is a very nice touch. I enjoyed the concept of this book and the pacing. I wish there was more!

Is this going to be one of my favorite books of the year? Probably. I'm really going to have to sit with this one and maybe re read it a couple times to fully wrap my head around everything, but I will enjoy every second of it.

This book consists of several short stories, which can be read in almost any order. In a future where memories are shared just as easily as we share reels and tiktoks today, our narrator inherits several memories from his mother, only to discover that they are banned memories and he will suffer the legal consequences of owning them once the government gets around to screening them. These memories cover a wide span of time and take place around the world. We are offered a range of perspectives on the war and the Mindbanks that have propelled this society's timeline forward. Some stories feel a little Black Mirror, and others feel so "normal" that you forget you are reading a science fiction book. All of them feel real.

I love a book that makes me think. I spent most chapters considering 1. Why tell us this story? and 2. Why ban this story? There are some obvious parallels to what we are currently experiencing in real life, but Memories also demonstrates how the gradual destruction of our human connections makes us weak and isolated. The memories all have a degree of sadness but are not overly bleak, and often have an undertone of hope. I'm a sucker for a quiet dystopian novel that doesn't launch me into a bottomless depression.

Considering recommending this for book club to force my friends to talk about it with me.

Even though the book is presented to us in loosely-related short stories, the narrative does have an escalating tone that helps keep its readers engaged. I'll randomize the chapter order a bit more for subsequent reads. Looking forward to more from Yiming Ma in the future! Thank you so much to NetGalley and Mariner Books for the ARC!

These memories Do Not Belong to Us is a series of short stories set in a post-apocalyptic China, renamed Qin, where memories are used as currency. There is literal trade and monetary value extracted from the use of memories, and those memories may be passed from person to person in order to relive experiences from a true first person angle. As you would expect, censorship occurs and many of the Memory Epics, a title used for notable memories, begin to become either redacted or outright banned as anything which may be considered anti-Qin is suppressed. You gain access to your mother's memory bank which contains many banned memories and Memory Epics - what will you discover about your world? The parallels to modern-day China are very clear with themes of government censorship and control of the media, though this takes it a step further in which those memories may be literally deleted -erased from existence aside from those who harbor rogue, unadulterated copies.

The format of the novel is incredibly smart - by having a series of short stories, it's like we the audience are able to experience the various banned memories in first person. None of the stories are very long and breeze by quickly, but you continue to learn more about the worst as you continue reading. I found each of the short stories to be individually enjoyable, and slowly piecing together the history of this alternate timeline is incredibly satisfying. By the end, I had a strong urge to reread the novel just to see what I missed now that I have some additional context! The novel also provides a recommended reading order (aka the order it's published in), but offers the opportunity to experience these stories in any order which is nifty as well and plays into many of the themes of individual expression and freedom.

My only issue with the novel is the lack of emotional depth that I felt with any of the individual stories. They're all snappy and read easily, but you never get to know the characters enough that their personal tragedies go beyond a base layer of empathy. There are some recurring characters and references are made to the events of previous stories, but we never grow with a single character enough to really bond with them. This may be a general issue with short story compilations, but I digress.

Overall, I recommend this novel for people who enjoy Sci-fi which plays into themes of identity, individualism, and the dangers of government control. The stories are well paced and the reveal of information about the world is satisfying.

4/5 stars.

I really enjoyed the writing style of this book. I am not usually into sci-fi but the premise of inherited/shared memories was intriguing to me.

It took me awhile to piece together how the chapters connected to each other but once I got far enough in and started seeing the big picture it really made me think. I got serious 1984 vibes from this.

The ending was kind of a let down for me, but I think the ending is meant to be more open and make you think rather than being a definitive “the story is over now” kind of ending. This ending worked really well for the book and the story it told, but it just wasn’t as impactful for me personally as I would have liked.

Overall, it was an enjoyable read and I liked that it made me think about the world today even if it took place in a future time.

In this stunning, genre-bending work, author Yiming Ma introduces us to a world that parallels our own, but one where China has become the global superpower and the introduction of Mindbanks, a device implanted in individuals' brains, leads to the rise of Memory Capitalism and the overarching surveillance of the Party. The opening pages are told from the perspective of an unnamed narrator who has inherited his deceased mother's Mindbank and memories - and despite the risk of experiencing and sharing them, he chooses to do so. What follows is a series of short stories that are loosely interconnected, told from various time periods before, during, and after the rise of the Qin empire and the devastation of the Chrysanthemum Virus that plagued the world.

Each of these stories act like mosaics - a piece of art independently, but even more beautiful when put into context with the others. In "First Viral Memory: Chankonabe", a mother questions her decision to send her only child to train as a sumo wrestler and years later, tries to bring to him a pot of her signature chankonabe stew after his eventual success. In "Swimmer of Yangtze", an armless swimmer from the small village of Wuhan is enlisted in the Olympics and tries to obtain fame for his hometown - at a devastating cost. In "+86 Shanghai", a Qin deserter leaves his family behind in China and attempts to make a new life in New York City, working as a food delivery person in the hopes of bringing his family with him. Each of these stories is immersive, thought-provoking, and beautifully written, questioning our ties with our loved ones, our reliance on technology, the deeply expanding surveillance of state, how our memories and experiences craft who we are.

Despite how short "These Memories Do Not Belong to Us" is, I found it deeply impactful and memorable. Especially in the current state of the world and the ever-changing geopolitical status, the message underlying this work feels deeply relevant. Very much a recommended read when this is published in August 2025!

Thank you to NetGalley and Mariner Books for this ARC!
These Memories Do Not Belong to Us is a collection of short stories following characters before, during, and after a war that leaves a single authoritarian state in control of the entire world in which not even your own mind and memories are safe. These are all different settings, circumstances, and people, but each story is connected, a poignant reminder that the same is true in reality. It was easy to sympathize with all the characters, no matter their backgrounds or flaws. Whether the stories ended hopefully, sadly, or with bittersweet feelings, each were distinct and made you truly think about what you would do in the same circumstances.
In the current political climate, stories of systematic propaganda and misinformation hit unfortunately close to home. The 'main' narrator's story ends without resolution, but as we can hope for a better world, we can also hope that his narrative does not end tragically.
I will be thinking about this book for a long time.

Yiming Ma’s These Memories Do Not Belong to Us is not your traditional novel, and that’s what makes it so haunting. There’s no singular protagonist, no neat, linear progression—just fragments of lives lived under an increasingly oppressive regime, where memories are recorded, rewritten, and erased.

Through a series of interconnected narratives spanning different time periods, economic backgrounds, and government structures, Ma crafts a chilling vision of a future that feels uncomfortably close to reality. The novel explores authoritarian control, media manipulation, and the slow, methodical erasure of personal and collective history. The most unsettling part? It doesn’t read like speculative fiction—it reads like a warning.

The structure forces the reader to engage deeply, piecing together the overarching story through different perspectives. Some struggle within educational restrictions, others live under the weight of a government rewriting their past, and all of them—regardless of their circumstances—grapple with the same question: How do you hold onto hope when the very fabric of your reality is being altered?

Ma doesn’t leave the reader entirely adrift in despair, though. The novel builds toward a type of resolution, offering a form of closure for those searching for meaning in the chaos. But the real power of These Memories Do Not Belong to Us isn’t in the answers it provides—it’s in the questions it forces us to ask about our own world.

This is a book that lingers. It’s disturbing, timely, and impossible to ignore. If you’re looking for something that will challenge you, unsettle you, and make you think about the fragility of truth, this is it.

3.75 stars

4⭐️

The premise that you can read these stories in any order instantly intrigued me - it’s such a rarity in stories and definitely made this a unique reading experience. I found myself crying multiple times during this book at the beauty of these stories and what they symbolized. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would love to reread it in a different order - it seems like a story you can revisit multiple times and get a new experience with each read-through. Thank you for the early copy!

“Because you’re my koala, and I’m your tree.” ❤️

A beautiful and powerful novel of how memories eventually become a commodity with a new invention of "Mindbanks" in this new dystopian society of Qin. We dive into several "Memory Epics" or short stories from a variety of perspectives, and how governmental surveillance and control come into play with each Epic.

A true thought provoking novel as we reflect on our current global state. <3

*These Memories Do Not Belong to Us" is a thought-provoking exploration of memory, identity, and human emotion. The book's structure—shifting between fragmented memories—keeps readers engaged, with powerful moments emerging in scenes like the sumo wrestler, chess game, and swimmer’s struggle. These emotional highlights truly resonate, offering a deeper connection to the characters.

The ending ties everything together beautifully, leaving a satisfying sense of closure. However, I found myself wishing for more emotional depth throughout the book. Still, the story cleverly challenges readers to reflect on our global state and future possibilities, making it a memorable and intellectually stimulating read.

An incredible dystopian collection of interconnected short stories, spanning three different time periods. Each chapter offers a unique perspective either before, during, or after the war. The protagonist lives in a world where memories have been turned into a commodity - editable, marketable, and easily corrupted. In this society, a single memory can determine one’s fate and jeopardize their freedom. I found the story to be incredibly immersive, drawing me into a world where personal memories challenge the controlled narrative of history.

When I was a boy, my mother used to tell me stories of a world before memories could be shared between strangers. Some of the Memory Epics from which she drew her stories must have been censored already by the Party. Any loyal patriot would have deleted these memories.

There’s a deep melancholy, accompanied by a quiet hope, in each story. At times it felt like a reality check, eerily similar to today’s world. The contrast between individualism and systematic control is striking. Making this not just a story of the past, but one that resonates with the present as well. It reminded me of Black Mirror, with its unsettling exploration of technology and control. Overall, it’s a thought provoking and beautifully written book that will linger with you long after the last page. I look forward to re-reading this in the future.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Mariner Books for the ARC!

“They want to use nature to remind us to be afraid, It’s their greatest source of power. Because they don’t want us to know what it’s like to live without fear.”

“In their wisdom, our leaders deemed it wiser to phase out the violent aftermath of the War, rather than delete the entire history at once.” 

This story follows a narrator that has inherited the memories from his mother’s Mindbank, the devise that records all memories and interactions for an individual. The narrator discovers that several of these memories are considered criminal and puts them at risk of arrest and criminal sentencing. The narrator makes these memories available to the general public to see before they are erased from the public space.

I loved this story. The idea that there was a war in which China has taken over the world and has mandated that everyone have a Mindbank placed so that they can monitor everyone’s interactions and memories for events that could be considered “dissident”. The book flows through the narrators inherited memories and you get to see how Qin (China) implemented their control. The story has three sections where the memories gradually increase in how critical or dissident they are. There are memories from before during and after the war so the reader gets to see how society has changed. I also greatly enjoyed that the stories connect to each other through the whole book. Whether it is a descendent from an earlier story or a new character interacting with a previous character.

For those who do not like books with multiple points of view, I don’t think they will like this as there is a different pov every chapter.

These Memories Do Not Belong to Us by Yiming Ma is a beautifully written book that explores the power of memory, government totality, and hope. Each chapter feels like a small glimpse into different lives, but together, they give us a view into a dystopian world.

Two of my favorite chapters were First Viral Memory: Chankonabe and After the Bloom. Even though we don’t spend a lot of time with each character, I still found it easy to connect with them, which isn’t always the case in books with so many different perspectives.

One thing I wish had been done differently was the "Map of Memories." The book jumps around in time, which mostly works (usually my personal preference is against it), but I think it would have been helpful to have the years or simple labels like “Before,” “During,” or “After the War” on each chapter rather than having to refer back to the Map of Memories. Most of the time, I could figure out where I was in the timeline after reading a little, but clearer markers would have made it easier to follow.

Overall, I enjoyed this book and hope the future it contains never comes to fruition.

These Memories Do Not Belong to Us by Yiming Ma is a series of interconnected short stories that tell the story of a near future full of censorship, governmental violence, obfuscation of the truth, deadly diseases... oh wait, maybe it's not the near future, maybe it's our present moment. So often science-fiction/speculative fiction feels like it is holding up a mirror to our society and showing us a reflection of our current moment. TMDNBTU is a series of memories that ask us- who do our stories belong to? Do they belong to our government? Do they belong to our culture? Or do they belong to us? Joan Didion once said "we tell ourselves stories in order to live." What will we do when our stories are co-opted by authoritarian governments intent on their version of truth being recorded in the history books?

I loved the questions that this book brought up for me, I deeply connected to the characters who felt forced to watch the end of the world through their apartment windows with little to no power to stop it- until that moment where they realize there is nothing to lose if everything has already been taken away from you. The structure was a beautiful puzzle of how the stories connect and relate to each other as you read through them. I'm looking forward to holding a physical copy in my hands so I can read through the book again.

I cannot thank Mariner Books and NetGalley enough for the opportunity to review such an incredible book. I only recently have discovered my love for sci-fi/ dystopian books, however, I think I've made quite a dent in my brain-bank with all of the catching up I've been doing. This is hands-down the best sci-fi/dystopian book I have ever read. From the plot, to the characters, to the story-telling. You name it, it was amazing. I am so grateful that I was able to read and review this book. Mind-blown.

Wow - I'm blown away by These Memories Do Not Belong to Us, and I'm astonished to learn it's a debut.

The concept is compelling and almost disconcertingly timely, and I thought the writing and structure really did it justice. The interstitial setup, through which we occasionally hear from the narrator - the son who's received banned memories from his mother after her death, and is increasingly aware that his freedom is limited - helped orient and link her constellation of memories into a powerful overarching story. Structurally and conceptually, it reminds me of Sequoia Nagamatsu's How High We Go in the Dark - a high compliment! - with tonal elements of Rumaan Alam. I'll be eager to recommend this to anyone who likes near-in science fiction, dystopian literature, or just comes in asking for a really good book.

Thank you NegGalley and HarperCollins for the opportunity to read an ARC of These Memories Do Not Belong to Us. This is a dystopian novel of a future in which memories can be uploaded and shared among people via devices that have been implanted into their brains, and memories become a form of currency. The novel is composed of loosely related short stories that take place either before, during, or after a war that resulted in the whole world being ruled by the Chinese, who have renamed themselves as Qin. Each short story is a memory that was passed down to the narrator by his mother and there are “interstitial” chapters throughout the book that give some context to the stories in this larger overarching plot. The memories are all considered forbidden by the government due to their content and the narrator is trying to disseminate these memories to as many people as he can before he is caught and the are gone forever. The memories circle around themes of freedom, government censorship, family and filial piety, and friendship. They are beautifully written and engaging and it was fun to find easter eggs within later stories of events/characters etc from earlier stories. I found this novel to be reminiscent of some of my most favorite novels, The Overstory by Richard Powers and North Woods by Daniel Mason, and I look forward to picking up a finished copy of this upon the release date. I feel that a reread will be even more rewarding than reading it for the first time.

This book was a starkly beautiful and extremely prescient series of interconnected stories set in the same universe, revealing mundane, everyday life and small acts of resistance in a totalitarian state of the future.

In this world China is now Qin and has developed a technology called Mindbanks, which records our memories as we experience them, the ultimate form of control and the next level of data surveillance. The protagonist's mother has collected memories from different people that could be dangerous in the Party's eyes and unexpectedly radicalize her son. Qin is an aggressive colonial power that has taken over America.

There's a story of an armless Swimmer from a small town; a stuffy diplomat's son who falls in love with a white American woman who teaches him chess and English; a writer who apprentices to a watchmaker and learns platonic love; a man who fears losing his girlfriend to activism; and a pair of brothers who share illicit poetry penned by a foreigner at night.

The writing style could at times be slow to read but that could just be the translation. I had a pit of dread in my stomach the whole time while reading this but also admired the courage of people who still tried to find beauty and love when their lives were so thoroughly controlled by the government. Reading this really made me think; it was challenging at times but it will definitely stay with me.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Over the past few weeks, I had the pleasure to read Yiming Ma’s (debut?) short story collection. In this collection we are transported to a future (and sometimes a past) where a person’s memories are recorded on Mind Banks. The sum total of a person’s memories can be recorded and played in the mind’s eye.

The collection with the narrator having recently inherited his mother’s memories. However, the Mind Banks aren’t the only thing new in this future. China has become an authoritarian, global empire spreading across most of America and Asia. Several of the memories the narrator inherits are critical of the powers of this empire, and will most likely lead to some good-old fashioned “re-education” by censorship officials.

Using the framing device of the narrator going through these inherited memories, Ma tells several compelling stories spanning several themes. We get a range of stories from two people driven apart due to their place in society, and a swimmer bringing pride and patriotism to home village, all the way to a story about a wife looking through her husband’s Mind Bank.

Ma masterfully uses this dystopian future setting to apply some additional pressure to our everyday world. This allows him to investigate the main themes of government surveillance and overreach, societal pressure, and even some comments on the downfalls of patriotism.

Not only are the setting and frame narrative expertly done, Ma’s prose is masterful. There is profound melancholy, sadness, and a fair bit of hope in his writing. This level of emotion helps the reader connect with each character, even if they will only be with them for a few pages.

Who is this book for? This book is for people who like near future science fiction, authors who use the setting to tell as much of a story as the plot, and people who love wonderful prose.

This is great for readers who like Ed Park’s “An Oral History of Atlantis” as well as near future science fiction.