Scorch

by A.D. Nauman

In the future world of Scorch, America is run by a "corporacracy." Three conglomerates have taken control not by force but by manipulating common beliefs and values through the media, and particularly by playing on Americans' fears of Big Brother. Consumerism and privatization have run amok in this landscape of flashing screens and subtle brainwashing, a world where even city streets and public schools are run by big business. This is a darkly comic...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1887128646
• ISBN13: 9781887128643
• Release Date: May 2001
• Publisher: Soft Skull
• Length: 250 Pages
• Weight: 0.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

eerie

This is a neat contemporary swipe at a dystopian novel. It's a quick read and a good story. The premise is incredibly timely and, though it was written before 9/11, the book actually has religious fanatics campaigning to rid the world of evil in a way that is all too familiar these days. This lends it an additionally spooky quality. I give it five stars 'cause it's a juicy, quick read. I make no representation about its literary merit, but time will tell...

Libertarianism, Consumerism, and Capitalism Run Amok

This debut dystopian novel posits an America in the not so distant future in which libertarianism, consumerism, and free market capitalism have run amok and have replaced the imperfect representative democracy of today. This old form of governance is known as "Big Brother Government", and is held in contempt for its protection of the weak and its attempt to regulate. So, instead of federal government, there are three huge corporations who control everything and everyone, but most importantly the media. Entertainment, news, and advertising have seamlessly merged, resulting in consumerism as the dominant driving force in society. Sitcoms have evolved beyond having product placements to becoming outright commercials, or "adstories" which often featuring graphic violence and sex. These adstories and their constant reminders of what people lack (a better car, nicer furniture, a prettier woman, personal safety, and soforth), perpetually reinforce the notion that people can never really be happy without the latest model of everything. Thus every waking hour is devoted to either working for money or spending money, and no one has time to think.Set in Chicago, the story follows Arel Ashe, an assistant at Adstory who has not entirely bought into the system. At her night job she discovers a storeroom of books (which are obsolete and ignored in this America), and by reading some of them is energized to try and mess with the dominant paradigm that equates happiness with purchasing. Thus, she tries to tweak some of the adstories that pass through her computer, but her clumsy attempts backfire on her and she must scramble to avoid becoming one of the dreaded homeless. This is a serious problem, as a prominent self-help videobook author has turned into a religious fanatic whose credo that "Satan Walks Among Us Today" is an anti-homeless message that results in overnight support for a scheme to imprison all homeless. (This is quickly abetted by the corporations paying [money] for every homeless person brought in to their corporate prisons, where they are put to work.) As she scrambles to stay afloat, she also embarks on a relationship with an odd outsider named Ben, who works all day on a secret scheme of his own.The book is studded with current trends stretched to their fairly clever satiric extremes, which in some cases aren't so extreme. Drivers shooting at each other is common, everyone carries "sellphones" on which they receive "FlashNews", instead of mace people carry personal "Flame-Off" mini-flamethrowers to roast would-be muggers, streets are totally privatized and tolled, schools are privatized brainwashing facilities, only the rich can afford to pay for police, and so on. Of course, as with many dys (and u) topian novels, there's a lot left unexplored and unexplained. For example, it's not clear if the rest of the world, or even the rest of the country is this way. Surely there are pockets of alternative lifestyles? It's also not clear why people don't

Reads Like a Dystopian Comic Strip

Like few people today, AD Nauman is not blind to where our comsumption-driven lifestyle will lead us. Positioning a token loner in a world of corporate ownership, random violence, and gratuitous sex stripped of meaning, she conjures up a high-voltage, competitive universe that does not stray far from the present. Scorch is outrageous and entertaining, full of odious characters with cartoonish idiosyncrasies. The book is nearly void of emotion, and not until the reader takes a good look at his or her own life will they realize why. Massive consumption displaces human attributes. AD Nauman establishes that perfectly in this satirical prediction of what is to come.

best future sci fi book I have read in a long time

Read this kick ... science fiction book that will give you a taste of the awful ad filled future we are headed towards. In the near future sitcoms and advertising have merged the heroin is an editor at Adstory. The streets are not safe; no one is safe even with a job. Set in Chicago. Sexy, gritty and determined the heroin in the book made me fall in love with her. She tries to break down the system through careful editing of the Adstories...but you have to read the rest to get the whole picture. At something like 240 pages you should definitely read this.

Dead On Satire.

AD Nauman's book is so dead on it's a bit frightening. While reading it, you become aware that she's really not writing about a futuristic, dystopian society, but where we are today. She makes excellent use of hyperbole to make a sardonic and frightening commentary of where our product obsessed society is headed. When your done reading it, close your eyes, open them, and then look around your room. Think about your job and your possessions, and ask yourself "Is this book really fiction?"It made me wince and laugh out loud. I finished this book and instantly started to read it again. I'm 30 today and the last time I did that was with The Grapes of Wrath in 8th grade.If you're looking for a writer with a fresh voice or a book that breaks the boredom of what the conglomerate publishing houses are releasing - I highly recommend this book.It's amazing.