Razorcake hates Follow for Now
Before you start thinking that everyone loves Follow for Now (they don’t), check out Keith Rosson’s review on Razorcake. Here’s an excerpt:
There’s just not much interesting material being covered, even in the music and literature sections, which I feel a lot more comfortable with than, say, the science section. Like when Christopher interviews Milemarker—and time has still not proven to me that they were anything but a pretty boring band made up of some decent writers—and in lieu of trying to make Al Burian squirm a bit or trying to bring a bit of life to a band that’s always been celebrated for its coldness, he asks them “whom they read and respect.” Honestly, man—I couldn’t give a flying shit how some space-rock band has been using their library cards.
In contrast — and though he means it pejoratively — he nails it when he says, “Follow for Now unfortunately seems more interested in the ideas being presented regarding technology, media, literature, etc. than the interviews themselves.” Well, yeah!
Anyway, Rosson may have missed the point of the book, but I appreciate the attention as always.
No commentsCool Book of the Day
Follow for Now is Dan Janal’s Cool Book of the Day today. Dan Janal runs the public relations firm PR Leads, among other things, and I am stoked to have Follow for Now on his book review site.
Many thanks to Dan and his staff over there.
No commentsFeminist Review on Follow for Now
Ann Raber posted this review of Follow for Now on Feminist Review, saying,
The title comes from the lyrics of a Public Enemy song, which is the equivalent of a Jesus fish drawn in the sand for white guys raised in the 1980s. So all of you Wired subscribers who jam Handsome Boy Modeling School and know what “Obey Giant” means, you are among friends.
However, as much as I like guys who like old school hip-hop, Follow for Now has some issues. First of all, the terribly pretentious and off-putting front matter ought to be addressed, lest an unsuspecting reader open up the book and get so icked out by the preface that they toss it aside in horror–which would be a shame.
Lest you think I exaggerate, behold the opening line of the preface: “This book is decidedly eclectic.” I know. It might as well read: “Pretentious self-important douchiness abounds in many forms.”
Ms. Raber clearly likes my book, but does not care for me, and that’s fine. Her review is thorough, and I appreciate her attention to it. My comment over there was only to correct a misquote.
If you’re still interested after all of that, the book is available on Amazon, Powell’s, and right here at followfornow.com.
No commentsFollow for Now now available at MonkeyWrench
For my local friends who don’t already have it, my interview anthology, Follow for Now: Interviews with Friends and Heroes (Well-Red Bear, 2007), is now available at Austin’s own MonkeyWrench Books.
I am very stoked to have my work in MonkeyWrench. As their website says, “MonkeyWrench Books is more than just a bookstore. It is a library and educational resource. It is a place for meetings, film screenings, talks, benefits and book readings. It is also a relaxed space to network and make connections over a cup of organic coffee or tea.” They’re located at 110 E. North Loop here in Austin, Texas.
Read more
Look Inside Follow for Now on Amazon
Finally… You can take a peek inside my interview anthology Follow for Now: Interviews with Friends and Heroes on Amazon. For those that don’t know, Follow for Now is an anthology of forty-three interviews with minds of all kinds. bOING bOING founder Mark Frauenfelder called it “an exotic plant with roots sucking nutrients from the skulls of the most interesting people on the planet,” Disinformation named it “among the most important books published in 2007,” and Erik Davis called it “a crisp and substantial remix of the major memes of the last decade or so.” Read more
Resource Center for Cyberculture Studies Review
The Resource Center for Cyberculture Studies at the University of San Francisco chose Follow for Now as its book of the month for September, 2008. Ellis Godard, who is Assistant Professor of Sociology at California State University, Northridge, wrote a deep and insightful review of the collection. Read more
No commentsNewPages: New & Noteworthy
Follow for Now is on the NewPages list of New & Noteworthy books for August of 2008 (down at the bottom under “Anthologies”). Awesome!
No commentsGareth Branwyn on Follow for Now
Gareth Branwyn posted the following to his StreetTech site today:
Follow for Now: Interviews with Friends and Heroes is a collection of interviews put together by Roy Christopher. It features a glowing cavalcade of cyber stars, talking on technology, culture, media, and science. Interviewees include Bruce Sterling, Doug Rushkoff, Brenda Laurel, DJ Spooky, Steven Johnson, Mark Dery, Geert Lovink, and many others. Oh… and ME. At 400 pages long, with interviews conducted over seven years, this is a fascinating group snapshot of key thinkers of the webbed world. Oh… and ME.
Many thanks to Gareth.
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