shaymccoy's review
2.0
So disappointing... basically another baby boomer saying "millennials are killing [insert anything here]", which is frankly becoming exhausting. His holier-than-thou-I-am-more-enlightened-than you Luddite attitude completely derailed the narrative of a historical tragedy that I came to the book looking to find. The author seemed just as self-absorbed as the "cyberians" he looked down on and did not do the story justice, making it seem like the deaths of those Inuks invalid and something you could look past.
jordanjones's review
5.0
Lawrence Millmanâs At the End of the World is billed as true crime, but this is a stretch, which has led many to give the book low marks. It is certainly not a true crime book, or a book of any genre whatsoever, unless it be in a category Iâm inventing now, called the âbarbaric yawp.â
Walt Whitman, in his âSong of Myself,â wrote:
âThe spotted hawk swoops by and accuses meâhe complains of my gab and my loitering.
âI too am not a bit tamedâI too am untranslatable;
I sound my barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world.â
Millman is untamed and untranslatable. He complains about the destruction of nature and of a livable earth by people who want to make it âbetterâ by imposing religion and technology on it, to make it homogeneous, dead, boring, and mediated by screens and devices.
The book does not move forward in a straightforward fashion to tell the story of the Belcher Island murders, but proceeds haltingly, popping back and forth between topics of environmental degradation, racial and cultural imperialism, the loss of the ability to see, feel, and engage with the word concomitant with a fixation on âiDevicesâ and the Internet, and the ever present, but for Millman quite distant, terrorist attacks. Millman draws parallels one wouldnât expect between seemingly unrelated things. For example, here he is connecting invasive species and proselytizing:
âOriginally from the Caucasus mountains, giant hogweed is an alien plant that has outcompeted native plants in many parts of Canada ... just as the Christian God, an alien deity in the Canadian North, has outcompeted local deities.â
Come to this book expecting a better understanding of the struggles of the Inuit to maintain their culture, and their own monsters, under the onslaught of qallunaak (white) culture; come to it expecting to be shown parallels between settler imperialism and environmental destruction; come to it expecting to see how digital life and focus on distant sensational events threatens oneâs very ability to live in the actual world, and you will not be disappointed.
Come to this book expecting a true crime genre book, and you will be sorely disappointed indeed.
Walt Whitman, in his âSong of Myself,â wrote:
âThe spotted hawk swoops by and accuses meâhe complains of my gab and my loitering.
âI too am not a bit tamedâI too am untranslatable;
I sound my barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world.â
Millman is untamed and untranslatable. He complains about the destruction of nature and of a livable earth by people who want to make it âbetterâ by imposing religion and technology on it, to make it homogeneous, dead, boring, and mediated by screens and devices.
The book does not move forward in a straightforward fashion to tell the story of the Belcher Island murders, but proceeds haltingly, popping back and forth between topics of environmental degradation, racial and cultural imperialism, the loss of the ability to see, feel, and engage with the word concomitant with a fixation on âiDevicesâ and the Internet, and the ever present, but for Millman quite distant, terrorist attacks. Millman draws parallels one wouldnât expect between seemingly unrelated things. For example, here he is connecting invasive species and proselytizing:
âOriginally from the Caucasus mountains, giant hogweed is an alien plant that has outcompeted native plants in many parts of Canada ... just as the Christian God, an alien deity in the Canadian North, has outcompeted local deities.â
Come to this book expecting a better understanding of the struggles of the Inuit to maintain their culture, and their own monsters, under the onslaught of qallunaak (white) culture; come to it expecting to be shown parallels between settler imperialism and environmental destruction; come to it expecting to see how digital life and focus on distant sensational events threatens oneâs very ability to live in the actual world, and you will not be disappointed.
Come to this book expecting a true crime genre book, and you will be sorely disappointed indeed.
lanko's review
3.0
Definitely a misleading title. One would think about a Mystery/Thriller story or a non-fiction account of some bizarre murder in an expedition or something similar.
Instead it's a travel memoir. Not a bad thing necessarily, but depending on your expectations this might not be a book for you.
The author is an ecologist who traveled a lot to the Arctic and other regions. His accounts on the Inuit, the culture, the local mythology, the fauna and flora are all fascinating.
The thought of a crazy, religiously fanatic Eskimo killer who also thinks he's Jesus looks like something too bizarre and more akin for some crazy comical cartoon than real life... but it did happen.
Unfortunately, despite the book's already short length, the murders (that's no mystery, it was all in broad daylight) occupy a very small part of the book.
May not be the author's fault though. The publishers are the ones who decide on titles regardless of what an author may think and is very possible this was a totally one-sided decision.
A very good part of it have the author ranting on technology and people who use it too much. Initially I rolled my eyes. Later I bought some of his arguments. By the end he really made me think about it and some witticisms were actually funny.
I think there were merits to some of his thoughts while others were too bitter and condescending. Most importantly, technology had nothing to do with the murders, as it may look like he's trying to draw non-existing parallels, even if perhaps unconsciously.
Anyway, good as some of his points are, most likely the tone in some of them won't help him get people to think on the issue, which is unfortunate.
Not what I was expecting but I still enjoyed reading about this Canadian remote corner and some insights were pretty good.
Instead it's a travel memoir. Not a bad thing necessarily, but depending on your expectations this might not be a book for you.
The author is an ecologist who traveled a lot to the Arctic and other regions. His accounts on the Inuit, the culture, the local mythology, the fauna and flora are all fascinating.
The thought of a crazy, religiously fanatic Eskimo killer who also thinks he's Jesus looks like something too bizarre and more akin for some crazy comical cartoon than real life... but it did happen.
Unfortunately, despite the book's already short length, the murders (that's no mystery, it was all in broad daylight) occupy a very small part of the book.
May not be the author's fault though. The publishers are the ones who decide on titles regardless of what an author may think and is very possible this was a totally one-sided decision.
A very good part of it have the author ranting on technology and people who use it too much. Initially I rolled my eyes. Later I bought some of his arguments. By the end he really made me think about it and some witticisms were actually funny.
I think there were merits to some of his thoughts while others were too bitter and condescending. Most importantly, technology had nothing to do with the murders, as it may look like he's trying to draw non-existing parallels, even if perhaps unconsciously.
Anyway, good as some of his points are, most likely the tone in some of them won't help him get people to think on the issue, which is unfortunate.
Not what I was expecting but I still enjoyed reading about this Canadian remote corner and some insights were pretty good.
ccquinn93's review
1.0
Wow I hated this book. The only reason I finished it because I wanted to know about the murder story and its aftermath...you know, what the book was supposed to be about? Instead the author frequently went into what he would think are his clever rants about how awful technology is and his superiority.
crowyhead's review
1.0
If you're the kind of person who thinks, "You know what would make this potentially fascinating story of murder and religion in the Arctic even better? The smug ramblings of a Neo-Luddite!" then this book is for you.
Everyone else can probably give it a miss. This was so disappointing.
Everyone else can probably give it a miss. This was so disappointing.
labgmom's review
1.0
I have NEVER before felt the urge to burn a book rather than return it to the library, just that that no one else would have to suffer through this tripe. The story of the Arctic murders was fascinating, but it was the thinnest of broken threads popping up randomly through this book. The majority of the book consisted of Neo-Luddite rantings and ponderings. Fine, if the author feels that way and wants to express it, but why disguise it within what it being sold as a non-fiction accout of historical murders in a remote setting? I feel duped by the cover and title. If there was a tie between the murders and the author's hatred of technology, that tie was visible only to the author, and he did not make it clear to his readers. The author came across as a narcissistic curmudgeon with a social disorder. I am ashamed that the publishers allowed this book to go to press.
jilliancoleen18's review
1.0
Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC, which I received in exchange for my honest review.
I had a really difficult time getting into this book - I tried multiple times and made it about halfway through before I decided not to finish it.
Millman's style is very conversational - many paragraphs end in ellipses as he trails off, jumps into side notes and tangents, many of which have a very tenuous relationship with the story itself. Millman is also incredibly judgmental of technology (even as he describes his use of it) which is intended to draw a parallel between modern life and the isolated community he's describing.
Overall, I wasn't hooked by Millman's style and couldn't make it past halfway. Some folks may enjoy his style, but I didn't, and couldn't make myself finish, which was unfortunate, as the premise was enticing.
I had a really difficult time getting into this book - I tried multiple times and made it about halfway through before I decided not to finish it.
Millman's style is very conversational - many paragraphs end in ellipses as he trails off, jumps into side notes and tangents, many of which have a very tenuous relationship with the story itself. Millman is also incredibly judgmental of technology (even as he describes his use of it) which is intended to draw a parallel between modern life and the isolated community he's describing.
Overall, I wasn't hooked by Millman's style and couldn't make it past halfway. Some folks may enjoy his style, but I didn't, and couldn't make myself finish, which was unfortunate, as the premise was enticing.
emmycd's review
1.0
I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley.
I requested this book as I teach the Dene for IB Social Anthropology and I thought this would make an interesting read and perhaps something I could adapt for my students. There is actually a lot of information and research in the book that would make for an excellent ethnography; in fact the increasing use of technology amongst Inuit people is a growing focus in anthropology.
Unfortunately, the book as it stands is not a good read. The book reads more as a man telling you things at a social event; going off on tangents, anecdotes about things he has experienced and his personal views on technology. This is mixed in with the actual focus of the book, which got lost in all the waffle. I found it very hard to follow the story of the murders and the people involved as Millman simply kept flitting between stories and times.
I would recommend that Millman sits down and writes an ethnography about the use of technology amongst this group of people. I feel it would be a much better read.
I requested this book as I teach the Dene for IB Social Anthropology and I thought this would make an interesting read and perhaps something I could adapt for my students. There is actually a lot of information and research in the book that would make for an excellent ethnography; in fact the increasing use of technology amongst Inuit people is a growing focus in anthropology.
Unfortunately, the book as it stands is not a good read. The book reads more as a man telling you things at a social event; going off on tangents, anecdotes about things he has experienced and his personal views on technology. This is mixed in with the actual focus of the book, which got lost in all the waffle. I found it very hard to follow the story of the murders and the people involved as Millman simply kept flitting between stories and times.
I would recommend that Millman sits down and writes an ethnography about the use of technology amongst this group of people. I feel it would be a much better read.
savvymac's review
1.0
I have never written a Goodreads review before but this book was so disappointing that I needed to vent about it. Do NOT read this book. It's awful. It bills itself as being an investigation into murders in the arctic with a lot of Inuit and natural history of the area along the way. This sounded like something I would really enjoy, like my true crime podcasts and Bill Bryson came together. NOPE! It's terrible. It's just a series of thoughts, like reading postit notes about whatever caught the authors eye in a given moment. Most of the time these are just rantings about technology/ the internet and how stupid anyone who uses those things are. The murders are such a small part of the book and the author's disjointed style was painful to read.