M.T. Anderson's 2002 dystopian novel Feed is a prophetic look at our always-connected, ever-distracted, times.
Author: M.T. Anderson
Released: February 2002
Genre: Fiction
Pages: 308
Audiobook Length: 5 hours (approx.)
Awards/Acclaim
Golden Duck Award for Young Adult (Hal Clement Award) (2003)
Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Young Adult Literature (2002)
National Book Award Finalist for Young People's Literature (2002)
Boston Globe-Horn Book Award Nominee for Fiction (2003)
Nominee Green Mountain Book Award (2005–2006)
Margaret A. Edwards Award (2019)
American Library Association's list of most commonly banned and challenged books - 68th spot - (2010-2019)
A Time Magazine 100 Best YA Books of All Time Selection
Review
Feed is a future-dystopian novel. Think Idiocracy except the corporations are thriving. The Earth and its inhabitants not so much.
The majority of the population is connected to the feed and is more ignorant for it. The feed is an internet connection implanted in the brain that allows for chat, visual/audio displays, and search. In addition, much like today, companies use the feed to better understand an individual's buying habits. Consumer profiles are used to blast targeted advertisements directly into a person's mind.
The book is like being stuck in a FB group you can't escape, with the most dumbed-down, annoying people you know.
Most notably M.T. Anderson wrote Feed prior to the rise of social media.
Read Kate Knibbs' article commemorating the 20-year anniversary of the book (Spoilers are in the article.)
There is an interesting political backstory that I would have loved to have read more details about or a separate book from just that angle. All that being said,
Feed was a memorable and engaging novel.
Plot
Titus narrates the book. He is an average young man who is vacationing on the moon with his close friends. He meets teenage Violet Durn who is noticeably different from the rest. She's smart, loves words, is inquisitive, and is a little quirky. However, the group, including Violet, soon finds themselves hospitalized after a political protester hacks their feeds.
Titus is intrigued by Violet. She cares about the world outside the feed, she wants to resist the algorithm shaping their lives, and is seemingly the only one concerned about the lesions that are increasingly erupting from people's skin.
The classic tale of mediocre-boy meets too-smart-for-him girl.
Additional Comments
Feed is often assigned reading in school. I found a really good podcast that extensively discusses the book. It can help to better inform for an academic paper or for your local bookclub discussion. The hosts do go on a few tangents within the two-hour episode, but worth it for the in-depth discussion of Feed. Major spoilers, obviously.
About the Author
Matthew Tobin Anderson is the author of numerous novels. He's also written two series - Pals in Peril series and the Norumbegan Quartet. Additionally, he wrote the non-fiction book Symphony for the City of the Dead: Dmitri Shostakovich and the Siege of Leningrad.
M.T Anderson likes hiking in New Hampshire and Vermont. In the winter, he enjoys cross-country skiing. And, as a child was exorcised multiple times by his grandmother.
Content Warnings
Body Horror
Verdict
Score: 9.5/10
Anderson wrote a fascinating story, wrapped in harsh criticism of late capitalism, augmented reality, the attention economy, consumerism, and corporatism before many of these were part of our contemporary zeitgeist.
Yes, get it! Pick it up at your library, local bookstore, or favorite online retailer.
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