The Circle
Ratings306
Average rating3.3
An interesting take on the needy culture social media is creating. The need to know everything and to share everything. But above all the need to rate and be rated (just like I'm doing here on Goodreads).
The story is just not that convincing, it was ok, but not great. I have never read anything by Eggers, but my expectations were quite high, because of my friends. They are really into him. I also really enjoyed McSweeney's. Maybe this only enlarged the dissapointment.
Nevertheless it is an interesting read and just makes you think again about the overly-shariness we've grown accustomed to.
Kind of a ridiculous story and heavy handed, but fun to read regardless. I expected a lot more from this book based on the NY Times excerpt. Being a fan of whole dystopian, world going to hell in hand basket genre, I expected a lot more out of this book but nothing new was really added to the conversation. It was just a Corporate Big Brother, rather than the Government overstepping it's power... a counter to the libertarian movement maybe?
It was essentially an extended version of the rant from Johnathan Franzen in the Guardian this past year about how technology is ruining our lives. Is any of this possible? sure, why the hell not. But the idea that everyone was so bendable, and Mae, good god MAE! How easily she adopted everything THE CIRCLE was pushing, without an ounce of critical thought was just...ridiculous and hard to believe.
My feelings about this book are difficult to separate out from a few facts:
1) I think we are entering the era of backlash against Dave Eggers but I still just love him, like, as a person and as an author who has written works that are important to me, as a person
2) I am an avid user of social media
Okay. So. I think this is sharply-observed and honestly some good technological guesswork. It's not too hard to imagine a world where Facebook has been replaced by the Circle. And I do think the privacy issues raised by social media, and by The Circle, are very important to consider.
It's not quite as Jonathan Franzen-y as, um, Jonathan Franzen, but it still feels a lot like it was written by someone who doesn't use or understand social media trying to explain the appeal of social media? Like, guys, it is possible to have meaningful connections over social media. It is! Stop acting like it isn't. That said, of course, it's also good to step back and think about what role social media is having in your life, and the difference between sharing voluntarily and the kind of dystopian total transparency that ends up happening.
It's a bit heavy-handed, as I think his fiction tends to be. I guess maybe his nonfiction is too, but it has a different feel... I guess by virtue of being “true” you can get away with more. Still, an overall good read and more of a page-turner than I expected.
