Little Brother is a young adult novel about a seventeen year old techno-geek named Marcus Yallow, that goes by the name of “w1n5t0n”, which I think is creatively spelled and written. “W1nst0n” is really smart and is known to outwit and cause trouble with his technical savvy. Like most teens their age Marcus and his friends end up in the wrong place at the wrong time, consequently, they are picked up by the Dept. of Homeland Security when San Francisco’s Bay Bridge is bombed in a terrorist attack. They are taken to an illegal prison where they are interrogated for days and once released, Marcus has a major issue with the new regime the city is under. The DHS are now dedicated to finding any national threats even if it means compromising the privacy and freedom of everyday citizens. Marcus feels that this is a violation to a persons constitutional rights and decides to take down the DHS with his technological skills.
This novel is a complete dystopia because of how futuristic and extreme the security measures are. I can definitely see something like this happening in the future. While there were many themes in this novel, the main one is: security trumps freedom—if its for a greater good, of course. Cory Doctorow really developed the main character, Marcus and made him come to life. While reading, I was thinking the whole time just how smart Marcus and his friends were. They were very articulate and too technological competent, but this may be the “norm” in years to come!
I loved all the techno slang Doctorow used; it was very much appreciated because I engage in this type of talk daily. This was an overall good read because it shows just how evolving Technology truly is.
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