Pirate Cinema, Cory Doctorow (3.5)
Once again Cory Doctorow has written a funny book that
matches current issues with modern technology – throw in a strong dose of
teenage angst -and set it all in the fringe dominated by the outliers of
society. He has a way of merging interesting technical possibilities with the
social issues that emerge. In this case, the young protagonist is obsessed with
an old actor and has edited many of his movies into new, clever shorts. Due to
his illegal piracy, the Internet is taken from his family. In his despair (both
from losing the Internet and what it’s done to his family who relied on it for
work and health), he runs away to London and melds into the company of other
teenage runaways. The majority of the story consists of his fight to change the
laws to allow for the creativity that comes from using someone’s IP in a new
way. The fight is worthwhile and timely. My one concern with many of Mr.
Doctorow’s books is how they will hold up over time. He puts the spotlight on
issues that emerge due to today’s technology, presumably those issues will be
solved or be different 10 to 20 years from now. I would recommend reading this
now, but can’t assure you that it will be as relevant in the future.
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