I am playing real fast and loose with the term “read,” as I have been going through audio books. I don’t consider audio books to be proper reading but as my time is okay an all time premium, i will take what i can get.
I know Taylor Lorenz’s book, Extremely Online: The Untold Story of Fame, Influence, and Power on the Internet, was highly anticipated. Rather than a run through of the development of the early days of Al Gore’s Internet to web four point oh, I was expecting something more along the line of a memoir. Shame on me for jumping to conclusions based upon the name of the book and Taylor Lorenz’s online reputation.
Nevertheless, I enjoyed the narrative-based book that devolved into all of the iterations of social media and how and why they failed, if in fact they failed! Probably more than I would have enjoyed a memoir of a journalist who made a name for herself breaking stories (oh hi, viral engagement circa summer 2019).
I listened to this audio book over the course of several evenings during my post dinner rituals of cleaning the kitchen. I found myself looking forward to the forty-five months that I carved out for myself, the dirty dishes, Lysol wipes, and Extremely Online: The Untold Story of Fame, Influence, and Power on the Internet.
Will I relisten to this? Maybe! I can see this being something that both my husband and I could agree on during a road trip. Otherwise, I will likely pass on listening to it solo, in favor of either another audio book or a podcast.
more good reads