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unplugged
ONE OF KIRKUS REVIEWS’ BEST INDIE BOOKS OF 2024
America, 2046. The youngest Millennials will be middle-aged. Their children, Generation Alpha (disparagingly referred to as the “Children of COVID”), will be just getting out of college. Twenty-two years of perpetual cynicism and emotional numbness will create a generation of timid, antisocial brainiacs. There’ll be ten billion people in the world and not nearly enough work to go around.
Quentin will only know a world enshrouded by the Internet, an algorithmic world, a hindered world. A botched suicide attempt in his late twenties will inspire a revelation, an impulsive declaration online urging fellow young folk to boycott the Internet in the hopes of reverting society back to its pre-digital existence. Quentin’s manifesto will strike a chord with Gen A and the Unplug Movement will be born. But as America’s greedy present finds itself in conflict with America’s neglected future, #Unplug will explode into a generational culture war that cannot be stopped, cannot be tamed, and cannot be won.
David Schulze’s unplugged imagines a world just around the corner, a satire on nostalgia, fickle capitalism and emotional activism that’s just as relevant today as it will be when it’s all too late.
America, 2046. The youngest Millennials will be middle-aged. Their children, Generation Alpha (disparagingly referred to as the “Children of COVID”), will be just getting out of college. Twenty-two years of perpetual cynicism and emotional numbness will create a generation of timid, antisocial brainiacs. There’ll be ten billion people in the world and not nearly enough work to go around.
Quentin will only know a world enshrouded by the Internet, an algorithmic world, a hindered world. A botched suicide attempt in his late twenties will inspire a revelation, an impulsive declaration online urging fellow young folk to boycott the Internet in the hopes of reverting society back to its pre-digital existence. Quentin’s manifesto will strike a chord with Gen A and the Unplug Movement will be born. But as America’s greedy present finds itself in conflict with America’s neglected future, #Unplug will explode into a generational culture war that cannot be stopped, cannot be tamed, and cannot be won.
David Schulze’s unplugged imagines a world just around the corner, a satire on nostalgia, fickle capitalism and emotional activism that’s just as relevant today as it will be when it’s all too late.
224 pages, Paperback
First published May 30, 2024
1 person is currently reading
6 people want to read
About the author
David Schulze
4 books17 followersDavid Schulze was born and raised in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania. A lifelong admirer of movies, mythology, and classic literature, David loves stories across all mediums.
In 2017, David graduated from Emerson College with a B.A. in Writing for Film and Television and a minor in Literature. He has written nine feature screenplays and four shorts, placing in a variety of screenplay competitions. His bestselling debut novel “The Sins of Jack Branson,” based on the screenplay of the same name, was published in 2021. His critically acclaimed second novel “Andrezj of Hollywood,” published in 2023, won the Bronze IPPY for West Pacific Fiction, and his novella “unplugged” was named one of the Best Indie Books of 2024 by Kirkus Reviews.
David lives in Marlton, New Jersey and Sarasota, Florida with his husband Howie.
In 2017, David graduated from Emerson College with a B.A. in Writing for Film and Television and a minor in Literature. He has written nine feature screenplays and four shorts, placing in a variety of screenplay competitions. His bestselling debut novel “The Sins of Jack Branson,” based on the screenplay of the same name, was published in 2021. His critically acclaimed second novel “Andrezj of Hollywood,” published in 2023, won the Bronze IPPY for West Pacific Fiction, and his novella “unplugged” was named one of the Best Indie Books of 2024 by Kirkus Reviews.
David lives in Marlton, New Jersey and Sarasota, Florida with his husband Howie.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 6, 2024
This novella kept my interest for the majority of it. The novella is also extremely thought provoking . Technology definitely has its perks but it has its downside too and someday soon what David wrote in this novella could soon become reality (definitely aspects of it).
December 10, 2024
David Schulze’s unplugged "imagines a world just around the corner, a satire on nostalgia, fickle capitalism and emotional activism that’s just as relevant today as it will be when it’s all too late".
The topic of this novella is relevant for all of us today!
The systemic view of psychology considers how individual behavior is influenced by broader systems, such as family dynamics and societal pressures. As David noted in the introduction to his work, "we live in a world enshrouded by the Internet". We are pressured by society to "plug-in" to cell phones, SMART TVs, internet and social networking sites, and mobile apps to manage our relationships with others and the world on a daily basis. Now, artificial intelligence is permeating into all aspects of our lives and we have limited control to remove ourselves from what is happening. David's novella creates a vision of America in 2046. David's approach was philosophical and encourages self-reflection regarding our own agency related to this formidable issue.
I enjoyed reading about Quentin and the Unplug Movement! Impressive storytelling!
The topic of this novella is relevant for all of us today!
The systemic view of psychology considers how individual behavior is influenced by broader systems, such as family dynamics and societal pressures. As David noted in the introduction to his work, "we live in a world enshrouded by the Internet". We are pressured by society to "plug-in" to cell phones, SMART TVs, internet and social networking sites, and mobile apps to manage our relationships with others and the world on a daily basis. Now, artificial intelligence is permeating into all aspects of our lives and we have limited control to remove ourselves from what is happening. David's novella creates a vision of America in 2046. David's approach was philosophical and encourages self-reflection regarding our own agency related to this formidable issue.
I enjoyed reading about Quentin and the Unplug Movement! Impressive storytelling!
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews