Well, I’m glad I read this, not because I loved it, but I liked it, and it helped me understand the Story of General Dann and Mara’s Daughter, Griot and the Snow Dog much better. It is clear to me now that one of the major themes Lessing explores in these books is what it takes for human beings to survive under extremely dystopian conditions in the distant future. There is physical survival – food, water, shelter, etc. – but more interesting to Lessing is the knowledge necessary for survival. More important than the knowledge necessary for subsistence is the knowledge necessary for understanding and identity. She also explores the ties that bind us, even to people who hurt and betray us and how having such connections is essential to our survival as people.