nomadreader

The backstory: To Rise Again at a Decent Hour , Joshua Ferris's third novel, is on the 2014 Booker Prize longlist. He's also one of The New Yorker's 20 Under 40 . I've previously enjoyed his novel The Unnamed  ( my review .)   The basics: Paul O'Rourke has a thriving dental practice in New York City, an obsession with the Boston Red Sox, and a rather pathetic social and love life. When a website for his dental practice appears, he's perplexed. Soon a Facebook page and Twitter profile emerge as well. Paul isn't behind any of them, and he's troubled someone seems to know so much about him and is misrepresenting him as religious. My thoughts: Paul O'Rourke is an instantly memorable character. He's delightfully (or perhaps annoyingly to some) quirky. He's an alarmingly honest narrator who has no problem talking about himself honestly, and he has strong opinions on everything--from the small to the very big. The two biggest themes in this b...

The backstory:   The Tyranny of Email  is one of the readings this semester in a course I'm teaching on how technology impacts our lives and the world. The basics:  Aptly subtitled "The Four Thousand Year Journey to Your Inbox," The Tyranny of Email  is one part history of email (and written communication) and one part fix for email over-dependency. My thoughts:  I didn't pick this book for my course, and I wasn't quite sure what to expect when I began reading it and planning to teach it. I'm fascinated by technology and its power to connect us, and I did not consider myself to think email is tyrannical (at least for me.) In many ways, The Tyranny of Email  is the tale of two books for me. I was fascinated by Freeman's history of written communication. The first chapter focuses on the evolution of the postal service from the pony express. As someone who finds such joy in receiving mail, it was fascinating to see its beginnings. I knew bits and pieces...