Just Read: The Circle

Source: npr.org

Whenever I'm in the airport, I like looking at the book displays, hoping to find some new books to borrow from the library. When I saw The Circle by Dave Eggers, I knew I had to read it. First, I like reading works by Eggers (thank you a high school friend). And second, the synopsis on the back. The book is about Mae, a recent graduate who lands a job at a huge tech firm, the Circle. Essentially, the Circle is Google to the max. They control a huge swath of the internet, creating a streamlined account for people to track their money, social media accounts. health, you name it. They are working on ways to reduce child abductions and to collect all the knowledge in the world. In a Big Brother-type movie, they place cameras everywhere so everyone can see what's going on in the Middle East or the currents in San Francisco Bay. Mae gets caught up in the company and all it stands for. It's a little long (480 pages) and the storylines aren't great but it makes you think about privacy and being connected and knowledge. How far will we go for transparency? Can you truly be yourself with everyone watching? Can you disconnect from the world? Are secrets bad? If you experience something that someone else can't, is it selfish to not film it or share it? It's about information overload and social media and monopolies. And there is going to be a movie!