Little Brother / Cory Doctorow

This book reminds me a lot of the movie Pump Up The Volume. The only real common plot element is a teen working underground inspires a rebellion among fellow youth against unjust authority. But the main similarity I think is more the feel of the work: wishful thinking. I agree with the politics. I think kids need to rebel, not for their sake, but for society’s. But I still think the book is wishful thinking.

Marcus Yallow is a teen geek. He ditches school one day with three friends to play an alternate reality game (A.R.G.) which involves running around the streets of San Francisco looking for clues. As they do so, terrorists blow up the Bay Bridge. In the panic and confusion, the band of youth are picked up by the Department of Homeland Security (D.H.S.) and held for six or so days incommunicado, subject to minor torture. One doesn’t make it back.

Although scared and afraid, Marcus fights back against the fascist D.H.S. takeover of San Francisco through underground computer networks, flash mobs, and culture jamming. But fear of D.H.S. keeps him underground and keeps him from revealing his incarceration and the one friend left behind.

I really liked the book, despite the tendency for Doctorow to info dump lots of background on various geeky topics. I think the information is cool. Though it does sometimes come across as lecturing by the author/protagonist. But I bet a lot of people purposely fry their R.F.I.D. chips after reading the book as a result of the info dump.

One question in my mind though is whether the book will break out of the geek set. I just can’t see non-geek kids really getting in to this with all the technology-geekism. Civil liberties aren’t really sexy enough for high school kids to get interested in droves. It should be. And Little Brother has as good a chance of any book at doing it. But… wishful thinking.

For those already of the techno-civil liberties mindset, this is a great book.

Plus, Little Brother is available free from the author’s web site. The Creative Commons licensed version also has a dedication to a bookstore before each chapter. What I love about the dedications, other than them being totally cool, is that he includes chain book stores as well as little independents. Too many times the chains are vilified as if they don’t provide hundreds of thousands of titles at low price to people who want to read. Doctorow sings their praises just as much as he does the small guys.

Title: Little brother
Author: Cory Doctorow
Imprint / publisher: Tor
Format: E-book (published version is hardcover)
Length: 155 p. (hardcover is 384 p.)
Publication date: April 2008
ISBN-10: 0-76531985-3
ISBN-13: 978-00765319852
Subject: United States. Dept. of Homeland Security — Fiction
Subject: Terrorism — Fiction
Subject: Computer hackers — Fiction
Subject: Civil rights — Fiction
Subject: Counterculture — Fiction
Subject: San Francisco (Calif.) — Fiction
LC classification: PZ7.D66237 Lit 2008