Phlogger aka Andrew Walmsley

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You should read this (Doctorow)

I know, I know, what’s all this about you say.  Well as I travel through life, I have and will always read, till my eyes give out anyway.   I feel reading takes me to another place, let my imagination go and forget about the world.  Reading fiction has been something I have carried out since my early teens and I implore you to try it, there’s something for everyone!

Yes, reading detracts me from blogging here, going out with my camera or editing but it’s who I am, I’ read teenage fantasy and football books in the ’80s.  Moving forward I started on to Adams, Clarke, Asimov of the science fiction world, then I realised my school education was so bad I started reading classics such as Romeo & Juliet (which I love) and Sherlock Holmes.  Moving through adulthood I settled on spy and thrillers with the odd book that felt random (who didn’t like Number Four or Divergent) and the classic Bond books.

Throughout my life, I read something I’m fixated on (Knights Templar is an example) and read a few books and then move on, go back to Lee Child or Clive Cussler then try a new writer like Andy Weir and his amazing book The Martian.

So why books – they are personal, say something about you and your likes, they can be traded, commented on and sold, read to others, you can store them away and paper smell’s great!

image of homeland by doctorow

Right let’s get to the recommendation, well it’s by the author Cory Doctorow and the book is Homeland.  I came across this book through a Linux friend (he’s a web developer and active on Twitter).   One day he tweeted about the author, I checked out online, ordered a book (Pirate Cinema) and loved his writing.   I was lucky as I received Homeland, but to summarize why you should buy and topics covered:

  • hacking/Linux/Android
  • drones
  • privacy law
  • civil liberties
  • the press
  • business
  • a smidgen of politics

I don’t believe in writing about plots or characters, read the book and find out yourself, but suffice to say it’s been compared to 1984.  Even if you don’t like it at least you can pass it to someone else or trade online.

Thanks for reading

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