Reviews

Little Brother by Cory Doctorow

traseeey's review

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I read this book quickly, in about a day's time. It was an interesting young adult novel which focused on an alternate near-future which focused heavily on the potential issues that come with heavy government surveillance in the name of protecting America's citizens from the danger of terrorism. It also has a big emphasis on using technology as a tool for political organization and activism against tyranny. Written in 2007, it hits on some future technologies which kind of already exist today but didn't at the time, which is always interesting for me to see in books and movies.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture

Moderate: Police brutality

jane_c586's review

4.0

A bit preachy, but an interesting read.

cellardoor10's review

4.0

I could have done without the afterword, but the story itself is pretty solid. Seventeen year old small time hacker/anti-surveillance high schooler gets caught in the wrong place at the wrong time when a terrorist attack hits San Francisco. The Department of Homeland Security finds him and friends in the area and decides they are Threats.

And then all hell breaks loose.

I appreciated the protagonist (a white guy with several BIPOC friends) gradually being forced to realize that he was an exception as a white guy, that mostly BIPOC folks were receiving the brunt of these actions. But it took a little while for his tendency toward very white-coded anarchic chaos to see that particular issue in front of him.

Also, I think Doctorow was trying to seem "hip" and like a "realist" when he wrote the narration about parts of San Francisco, but using slurs like tr*nny and being judgemental about homeless folks and sex workers, etc., just makes your protagonist sound like an asshole. It just felt really out of place and a little try hard to me personally.

CW for detailed, first person descriptions of torture, "enhanced interrogations" and terrible imprisonment conditions, many of the victims are minors.

hammerhead69's review

adventurous informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

magik_the_cat's review against another edition

4.0

This was a great read! I always love a good dystopian/totalitarian government book. I really enjoyed all the high tech stuff and I have no idea if any of it is accurate but it was still cool to read. It was fast paced and I'm excited to read book 2.

brendalovesbooks's review

4.0

I really loved this book. Yes, it's science fiction, but it's also scary how easily a lot of the things that happened in this book could happen today, or have happened to some extent. As a person whose political leanings tend towards anarchy (or at least lots smaller government), this book really hit home with me.


There were parts where the author start explaining the technical aspects, how things work, etc., that I didn't care for and I felt like it jerked me right out of the story. For that reason I give the book an A instead of an A+. There were also minor editing issues, that even though they were few and far between, were glaringly obvious. Like writing the wrong persons name. Or changing a persons name a paragraph after introducing them.


Still, I would highly recommend this book to almost anyone, but especially liberty loving libertarians (try saying that three times fast) like myself.

pottermr's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

flooey's review

3.0

This was a fine book, though I think it's aimed at a younger audience. The opening chapters read like a polemic against the surveillance state, but it picks up and gets more interesting as the book goes on.

pokypic's review

adventurous emotional hopeful reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

catherine_mack's review

5.0

Well, lots has already been said about this book re: style, call-to-arms etc. I loved it from the point-of-view of a Teacher-Librarian always on the look-out for books to recommend to adolescent boys. It has the action of a Matt Reilly but then something more, something to chew over, to agree with or disagree with. It's a challenge.

Can I make a comparison with Ayn Rand's "Atlas Shrugged"? Yeah, her writing was not literary but she used what was highly consumable for her audience and made a helluva ripple in her time.