I broke my rule with this book and watched the movie before I read it. In my defence, I didn’t realise at the time I watched The Circle that there even was a book, but when I found out, I knew I had to read it. I really enjoyed both the movie and the book, but as is usually the case, the book is much better, and even if you’ve seen the movie, it’s definitely worth reading The Circle.
The Circle by Dave Eggers
Blurb from The Back Cover
The Circle runs everything – all of your internet activity in one easy, safe and visible place. Now wonder it is the world’s most powerful and influential company. So when Mae Holland lands a job at its glittering California campus, she knows she’s made it. But the more her ideas and ambitions become aligned with those of The Circle, the closer she comes to discovering a sinister truth at the heart of an organisation seeking to remake the world in its image …
My Thoughts on The Book
I really enjoyed The Circle. It had a real Black Mirror feel to it and I loved the Black Mirror series. Mae is a likeable character, just a normal girl who wants to impress at her new job, and I think Dave Eggers does a fantastic job at showing how even someone with good intentions can become slowly brain washed into thinking taking away more and more freedoms from people is actually a good thing.
There were times during reading The Circle that I found myself agreeing with some of The Circle’s philosophies and had to kind of catch myself and remember that generally people who want to control everything aren’t the sort of people you want to be able to do it.
The mystery surrounding Kalden, someone Mae meets in The Circle headquarters, is a fun sub plot that threw up a brilliant twist that I didn’t see coming at all.
Conclusion and Rating
The Circle is a fun read that kept me gripped all of the way through it, and it’s a fantastic cautionary tale about how far is too far when it comes to technology embedding itself in our lives. 5/5
You can grab your copy of (affiliate link – see below for more info) The Circle here.
Have you read The Circle or seen the movie? Let me know in the comments 🙂
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Lydia C. Lee
Haven’t read this yet but it keeps popping up on my radar…might get on to it.
Debbie, My Random Musings
Definitely worth a read
Jeanne
Hello, I saw the movie (in the movie theater) and then read the book as well. It was thought provoking. I value privacy and don’t like the idea of tons of cameras monitoring people, and so I found the plot unsettling. I recall finding the death of the old boyfriend (?) being so easily dismissed awful as well. Dystopian unease anyone?
Jeanne
Hello, I saw the movie (in the movie theater) and then read the book as well. It was thought provoking. I value privacy and don’t like the idea of tons of cameras monitoring people, and so I found the plot unsettling. I recall finding the death of the old boyfriend (?) being so easily dismissed awful as well. Dystopian unease anyone?
Debbie, My Random Musings
Yeah it was like they just sort of went oopsie and carried on with their lives
Terry Crylen
I love stories. Stories of every kind. And I’ve always been partial to a book with one so good that it nearly jumps off the page.