Holy wow, this was an awesome audiobook.

(Summary paraphrased from jacket copy) Titus is a teenager whose ability to read, write, and even think for himself has been almost completely obliterated by his "feed", a transmitter implanted directly into his brain. But then Titus meets Violet, a girl who cares about what's happening to the world and challenges everything Titus and his friends hold dear. A girl who decides to fight the feed.

So, besides being a completely awesome and intense and well-written book, this is one of the best audiobooks I've ever listened to. Narrator David Aaron Baker gives each character a distinct voice and he totally gets the cadence of teen speech. The production is great, too. There's a slight echo effect to indicate when characters are "chatting" each other (talking using the feed instead of their voice) and the story is periodically interrupted by commercials just like you're listening to the actual feed.

Highly HIGHLY recommended for high schoolers and adults. (Fair warning: there is a fair amount of foul language.) ( )

Like your sci-fi with a hefty dash of satire? Then this one is right up your alley.

No one reads anymore and School(TM) is all about learning how to use the feed more effectively. Commercials and internet are wired directly to your brain. Corporations monitor your every thought and desire and compile huge databases on your likes and interests, the better to sell you stuff. The feed also lets you chat--like a telepathic IM.

The story starts on the way to the moon, where Titus and his friends visit for spring break. In the midst of his friends' moronic fooling around, Titus feels vaguely lonely and dissatisfied, but doesn't really have the words to express how he is feeling. And then he sees Violet, a beautiful girl who is different from anyone else he knows. She actually fights the feed, in an effort to think for herself.

The scariest thing about Anderson's vision of the future? Our consumer culture and the state of technology is not really so far away.

Violet joins the group and they go to a club. While there, they are "hacked" by a protester and their feeds are disrupted. Everyone else recovers quickly, but Violet starts to experience random glitches as her feed hardware malfunctions. ( )

A book about futuristic earth when the population is a war and slowly deteriorating but they don't realize it because they are basically brainwashed by a computerized system called the Feed installed at birth. Lots of language which was really unnecessary, but a good story and I loved it as a book on tape because all the Feed segments were dramatized. ( )

I was really excited to read this book initially because the concept seemed interesting and complex. As I started reading the book, I realized I would most likely be disappointed. The novel approached its plot very artistically and it was very brief. I was hoping for something a little meatier and more thrilling. This novel had the opportunity to be great, but I'm afraid it fell short. ( )

Excellent book. Absolutely not what I expected. ( )