I was planning on writing a quick review of Doctorow’s stellar new book, “For the Win,” but as first-hand reports of the Toronto G20 arrest conditions roll in, it seems that “Little Brother” is more relevant, a futuristic telling of the here and now...“Little Brother” tells the story of Marcus, a cyberpunk teen in a pervasive surveillance state who is forced into a Guantanamo Bay-style prison. Set in a San Francisco where technology is slightly more advanced, and monitoring technology is prevalent and accepted, Marcus and his high school friends skip school and are caught up in the backlash of a terrorist attack analogous to New York’s 9/11.

Quickly arrested, the teens are brought to a secret prison on an island just off the coast of San Francisco. After torture and interrogation, Marcus is released, but finds that a wounded friend has not been returned.

Marcus’ journey to rescue his missing friend and fight the fascist police state brought on by the terrorist attack form the meat of the story, while tackling issues of personal rights and providing a “how-to” guide to subvert surveillance technology.

Little Brother can be a bit over-obvious at times in relating 9/11 and Homeland Security to his fictional events and organizations.  The Homeland Security characters tread close to cartoonishly evil villains.  However, while not as tightly written as his later book “For The Win,” Toronto native Cory Doctorow managed to catch the essence and horror of a police state, an Orwellian homage for the millennium. It is informative, believable, and entertaining, giving readers equal parts subversive tools, warnings and slice of teen life.

Call it “Fast Times at Orwell High.”

What is particularly striking about the book in light of recent events is the description of the imprisonment and violation of basic human rights the characters endure. While Doctorow must have based much of the details on Guantanamo Bay accounts, it is eerily prescient of details surfacing about the mass arrests and holdings in the recent Toronto G20 summit.

Water and sleep deprivation, callousness, a refusal to answer any questions and the impression that police have carte blanche to violate human rights are tactics that most people associated with other countries, and not something that happens on home soil.  Not anymore. 

High profile events of the last ten years (and recalled ugly events such as the Kent State shootings)show that the thin veneer of human rights is too easily ripped away when “for a higher cause.” Most teens (the target readers) grew up in the post 9/11 state, and have little to no memory of the actual events or life beforehand. Hopefully it will serve as a current signpost against human rights abuses.

You can read “Little Brother” for free here or buy the dead tree copy.

[buy now from Amazon US]

[buy now from Amazon Canada]