The Gate To Women's Country by Sheri Tepper

 

This book is a different kind of "after WWIII" type of story.  Most of the human race has been killed, but those that remain are slowly rebuilding in towns and small cities.  The level of technology is still comparable to 100 years ago.  But society is different.

 

To a large extent, men and women live separately.  Men and boys over a certain age live in garrisons outside the towns.  Women and children live in the towns and are responsible for most of the economy and technological revival.  Men from the garrisons and women from the towns only mingle during festival periods.  The towns also have a few men who have chosen to give up life in the garrisons.

 

In this context we follow a mother who is a member of a town council.  Her son at the designated age goes to the garrison.  We also follow her daughter, and a soldier the daughter becomes attached to.  We are given a picture of how male bonding and male psychology drives lives in the garrison.  We especially see the daughter's passage through infatuation, attraction, conflicts with social rules, learning the workings of society and development into adulthood.  There are also some manipulations between the garrison and the women’s town council.

 

The story progresses through mysteries and intrigue, adventures showing life outside the women's towns and men's garrisons, etc.  At the bottom, it's based on the belief women are more able to maintain a safe, peaceful society than most men are, and the future has to be based on this fact.  It's a good read, as long as you can do without hi-tech and such.  And it has a reasonably unique premise.