Book Review #2 Little Brother

Little Brother
This book is not for everyone. It has aspects of every genre (except fantasy), and it hits home to modern controversy, security vs. privacy.

It tells the story of a 17-year-old techno-rebel who lives in a world where schools give out free laptops, but monitor your every action. Marcus, the protagonist, is a hacker. He finds his way around surveillance systems in his school, simply for the reason of having privacy. Cameras can recognize how you walk, so he puts gravel in his shoes so that every step will change with the way the gravel moves. Many of the things he does he explains thoroughly. Some of these things are fictional, but take root in modern technology. Some things are entirely true, making this novel not only enjoyable, but informative.

There is a game in this book called Harajuki Fun Madness, in which you must find clues in cyberspace and in real life. He cuts class one day in order to get a head start on this game with his "team." While he is out of class, a terrorist attack occurs on the Bay Bridge and what is called the "BART." During the frenzy, one of his friends is stabbed. They try to wave down an ambulance or a police car, but once something finally stops, it turns out to be a military truck. He and his team are taken away for harsh interrogation. When he finally gets home, he is afraid to tell his story, worried that the Department of Homeland Security might take him and his friends back into illegal custody.

As it dawns on him that security has been amped up in San Francisco, where he lives. It was already intrusive, now it's downright Orwellian. The gov't has camera on every street, and the passcards used to get on things like Subways have sensors that allow the DHS to track any "suspicious movements." Marcus begins trouble by switching around these sensors/codes so it seems that several people are moving suspiciously. This causes a jam in the city, but it only causes for more enforcement in San Francisco.

As the story moves on, the real point of the novel becomes clear. Would you rather be extremely safe but monitored, controlled, and suspected as terrorists constantly, or have less security but more privacy? This is the theme. The protagonist is for the latter, while it seems that everyone around him thinks otherwise.

As m1k3y, Marcus's username, becomes more and more well-known, he wages war on the DHS, to find his friend, Darryl, still in illegal prison, and to fix the mess that the US is in.

The book doesn't have to have any political meaning for you, it's a thriller. It thrills. There are steamy love scenes, and there are pages devoted to talking about cryptology... DNS servers... hacking, and friendship.

Read this book if you're a geek, and read this book if you're thinking of being one. Also, I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys reading, but likes to have a book that makes you think.

Enjoy!