There have been a few books that have caught my eye about the evolution of language on the internet, but Algospeak was offered on Netgalley so I pickeThere have been a few books that have caught my eye about the evolution of language on the internet, but Algospeak was offered on Netgalley so I picked this one up first. After I finished it, I was wondering if I would still be interested in other books on this topic. From looking at the synopsis of a similar book, Because Internet by Gretchen McCullough, the unique thing that stands out about Algospeak is that its primary focus is on short-form video on TikTok and Instagram, rather than taking a longer view back to the earlier days of the internet. So if you've already ready other internet language books, I think this one has a hook that is worth the time.
I have to admit I had a little bit of a mental meltdown when the author referenced being in middle school in the mid-2010s. That was just yesterday, right? I thought this book was written by a grown person?
Once my brain did some reluctant math, I came to really appreciate the perspective on this topic of someone who grew up when short-form video content started dominating social media. Rather than reading something written by an older outsider who is researching and trying to understand how this form of communication has shaped language, we have a guide who has been steeped in it and can share firsthand observations of how it has evolved. I thought that it was very valuable that he gave plenty of examples from his own social media content and was able to explain what he did with it and why.
On the downside, not all of the trends he referenced were explained, and my exposure to TikTok has primarily been through being a semi-regular viewer of After Midnight. I'm not online enough to recognize what some of these trends were without a sentence or two to describe them. He mentioned the Roman Empire a lot without explanation, I am guessing this is not a historical reference? But what is it?
I think the most useful thing that the author did was tying in the current trends in language to the overarching trends in language evolution that have always existed, and explaining how what we're seeing now isn't any different than the way language has always evolved. He did this fairly regularly throughout the book and kept tying each new point into this. It definitely took my original point of view that kids are really bizarre and need to put their phones down and go outside, and turned it around a bit to feeling like okay, we're just continuing on this path we've always been on. ...more
There is no piece of media that I love more than Buffy, so when I saw this book available on NetGalley, I grabbed it without scrutinizing the synopsisThere is no piece of media that I love more than Buffy, so when I saw this book available on NetGalley, I grabbed it without scrutinizing the synopsis too much. I didn't quite realize that it was really more about a podcast about Buffy, and about the personal lives of the hosts of the podcast. I still would have read it if I'd realized - I like memoirs, and I know of Jenny Owen Youngs' music, and did I mention Buffy? - but since I'm not a podcast person and I wasn't aware of this podcast or its community of listeners, I don't think I was fully the right audience. It felt really voyeuristic at times, since they were jointly talking about their divorce and sharing some gnarly details together. I would have rather read a book where they talked about the topics they covered on the podcast, rather than a behind-the-scenes deal, because those bits where they shed some light on that were my favorite parts....more
I got this book when Netgalley offered up a free copy - I usually enjoy essay collections like this, especially when they are funny and examine socialI got this book when Netgalley offered up a free copy - I usually enjoy essay collections like this, especially when they are funny and examine social issues. I hadn't read her first book, so I don't know if it was as hilarious as the synopsis for Sucker Punch promised, but I didn't think that humor was a characteristic of this one. In fact, during the first chapter, I was groaning because the author was NOT someone who I would have wanted to be around in any capacity. The way she described her tendency toward fighting with everyone just sounded exhausting.
However, I kept reading and really warmed to her because she did such an excellent job examining her argumentative nature and her life and describing what she learned she wanted for herself. Another thing that I liked was the circular nature of the book. Usually essay collections are a fairly linear deal, but the author kept interrogating the same ideas from different angles throughout the essays, and brought things back around to her opening essay at the end. It made the book more of a planned-out package rather than a pile of separate pieces bound together.
I wondered before starting this one if I should read her first book first, but I wouldn't necessarily recommend it if you haven't - she spends a lot of time in Sucker Punch analyzing things she wrote in her first book and giving her new perspective on them now that she's older and more sure of who she is. ...more