"Little Brother" Could be a Little Better

By Sahil M. Following the story of a technology-loving teenager after a terrorist attack on San Francisco, Little Brother is a thrilling book that crosses the digital world with civil rights from the real world. The author, Cory Doctorow, is a copyright activist and science fiction author with a lot of experience writing about the internet and digital laws. He is able to use this experience to create a gripping tale of the government infringing on citizens' digital rights. Marcus Yallow, the protagonist of the story, is a cocky, reckless teenager who is also an amazing hacker. He knows his way around the school's firewalls and security, and suspicion of him gets him called to the principal's office. After nonchalantly talking his way out of trouble, Marcus and his friends ditch school to play an alternate reality game called 'Harajuku Fun Madness'. Soon after, the San Francisco Bay Bridge is bombed, Marcus and his friends get captured by the Department of Homeland Security. They are heavenly questioned with no regard for their rights and eventually released. Back at home, Marcus realizes the government has increased its digital surveillance across the city through bugs on devices, cameras, and more. Marcus decides to combat the government and creates a private network called Xnet. Marcus and his friends continue to fight for the digital privacy of the city while meeting more friends along the way. Little Brother was a well written fictional thriller that is fast paced at some points, but slow where necessary. One thing that may be unlikeable about the book is its strong ties to the cyberworld and digital technology. The book talks a lot about RFIDs, digital civil rights, firewalls, cryptography, and other terminology that even I, a current teenager, couldn't understand. Although the plot is well written, this central theme of technology can be annoying for readers who are not greatly interested in technology and cybersecurity. Marcus is a well developed character, that although is cocky (and almost arrogant), is still likeable due to his cunningness, courageousness, and integrity. This novel is definitely more targeted at teenagers who are interested in technology. Its use of technological and cybernetic terminology can detract from experience if the reader does not know what it is talking about. I feel the story could be much better if it did not focus so much or go in as much depth explaining the digital aspect of the story. Although the plot does eventually take over and you eventually get used to the vernacular, I would still only recommend this book to teenagers interested in hacking, coding, or other forms of digital citizenship.