review:
An incredible premise, flipping between a past in a post-colonial Indian village to a post-apocalyptic global corpo-government. Mix in some sci-fi elements of genetic engineering, leaps of advancements in digital computing, and an anarchy community. Sounds interesting. But the writing is hand-wavy on most things. Yes, I get it that this is a take on Apple, and many other techie things. But to just declare that a future has been created is a hack, an unsatisfying whimsy that makes it clear that you are interested more in the ideas than in thinking them through. Maybe this book is more interesting and feels better for people who do not understand technology or corporate power or the resilience of politicians in not ceeding their own control. The story about the village life in India was charming, and if the book had only been about that, perhaps intersped with less fantastical things, it would have been a nice read.,