This man did:
He may not look like a world class writer and futurist, but looks can be deceiving! This man is Gary Shteyngart, 39, born in Leningrad, USSR, but raised in New York City. Shteyngart is a novelist, and his novels have been described as satirical, topical, witty and smart.
I've read two of his books; the first one I wasn't so hot on (I think you have to be Russian or Jewish or both to really understand Absurdistan) but the second- wow!
Super Sad True Love Story is equal parts dystopian fiction, love story, comedy, and techno thriller. It's set in the near future USA -think 2020 or 2030- and let's just say it's a very turbulent time for our country.
For one, the US has gone and gotten itself involved in another unprovoked war, this time in Venezuela. But the social safety net back home has been so weakened by years of bad budgets that, unlike today, returning veterans have no support programs available to them. So what do they do? They and thousands of sympathizers occupy areas of New York over economic justice issues. Sound familiar? They even get their heads cracked open by the police!
The eerie similarities don't end there. Shteyngart's future is one in which the dollar has lots its world reserve currency status. Oh sure the Benjamins are still in use, but only the 99% try to get by on dollars any more. The new hot purchasing power comes from Yuan-pegged dollars, currency that is pegged to China's powerhouse economy which all but owns America at this point, along with several middle eastern and Scanadanavian Sovereign Wealth Funds.
Politically, Shteyngart gives us what all Americans seem to want: bipartisanship. In fact, in Shteyngart's America, there is no Democrat or Republican, there is only the Biparistan Party, a sinister unity party that promotes consumerism and serves the interests of shadowy oligarchs and foreign creditors.
Finally, Shteyngart takes our current obsession with gadgets and social networking to the extreme -if logical- end. In the future, the 1% have a kind of super cell phone, dubbed an apparat, that instantly networks with other apparats and gives its owners the lowdown on every person around them. There is no privacy here, and each person with an apparat is given a rating on how....sexy they are. The ultra-wealthy of the future have the money and time to experiment with life-extending medical treatments, buy see-through jeans, engage in endless superficial discussions and jet all over the world to exclusive parties and clubs.
But they can't read, write, or think very well and don't understand why our protagonist keeps old, dusty books around.
All this rich background and I haven't even talked about the plot! I'll just say this: whether you're a fan of dystopian fiction or love stories, you'll be content with Super Sad True Love Story. Read it now (available on Kindle, Sony, or, yes, old fashioned paper) and wonder, like I do, whether it's really fiction at all.
Who predicted #OWS, technological dissonance, and economic disruption?
He may not look like a world class writer and futurist, but looks can be deceiving! This man is Gary Shteyngart, 39, born in Leningrad, USSR, but raised in New York City. Shteyngart is a novelist, and his novels have been described as satirical, topical, witty and smart.
I've read two of his books; the first one I wasn't so hot on (I think you have to be Russian or Jewish or both to really understand Absurdistan) but the second- wow!
Super Sad True Love Story is equal parts dystopian fiction, love story, comedy, and techno thriller. It's set in the near future USA -think 2020 or 2030- and let's just say it's a very turbulent time for our country.
For one, the US has gone and gotten itself involved in another unprovoked war, this time in Venezuela. But the social safety net back home has been so weakened by years of bad budgets that, unlike today, returning veterans have no support programs available to them. So what do they do? They and thousands of sympathizers occupy areas of New York over economic justice issues. Sound familiar? They even get their heads cracked open by the police!
Politically, Shteyngart gives us what all Americans seem to want: bipartisanship. In fact, in Shteyngart's America, there is no Democrat or Republican, there is only the Biparistan Party, a sinister unity party that promotes consumerism and serves the interests of shadowy oligarchs and foreign creditors.
Finally, Shteyngart takes our current obsession with gadgets and social networking to the extreme -if logical- end. In the future, the 1% have a kind of super cell phone, dubbed an apparat, that instantly networks with other apparats and gives its owners the lowdown on every person around them. There is no privacy here, and each person with an apparat is given a rating on how....sexy they are. The ultra-wealthy of the future have the money and time to experiment with life-extending medical treatments, buy see-through jeans, engage in endless superficial discussions and jet all over the world to exclusive parties and clubs.
But they can't read, write, or think very well and don't understand why our protagonist keeps old, dusty books around.
All this rich background and I haven't even talked about the plot! I'll just say this: whether you're a fan of dystopian fiction or love stories, you'll be content with Super Sad True Love Story. Read it now (available on Kindle, Sony, or, yes, old fashioned paper) and wonder, like I do, whether it's really fiction at all.