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Statisticity
Logan is having a rough day. He hasn’t slept in weeks, his crew is near mutiny, and his latest project is predicting a massive attack of some sort right here in Shanghai. And all before his morning congee.
The year is 2084. Shanghai is a decaying husk of its former self, an empty city staffed by Party members and an army of scavengers recycling the infrastructure to keep things running. Most of the population now lives inside Zhongguo, a virtual replica of the real world introduced by China as a technological solution to climate change, a fix that lets users cling to their quality of life while meeting strict carbon quotas.
Logan operates a goldfarm between these two worlds, a shelter for refugees who survive by providing unauthorized Zhongguo services to a select clientele. But his fragile sanctuary has been teetering for months, and a new arrival may soon tip them all over the edge.
Statisticity introduces a new kind of reading experience. Powered by Beneath the Ink’s elegant ebook technology, Statisticity features a standalone, novel-length dystopian thriller shorn of the plodding exposition and cumbersome world-building that weigh down many entries in this genre. Throughout the book, highlighted words allow readers to access a third dimension with the tap of a finger, a carefully crafted compendium of interactive maps, wikis, character profiles, short stories, photos, and illustrations hidden beneath the ink. Readers can choose to experience Statisticity as a fast-paced, plot-driven tear through the heart of Shanghai circa 2084, or they can pause to explore the rich world waiting below the surface.
Order the Statisticity webbook now for any computer, tablet, reader, or phone with a web browser:
http://bit.ly/statisticity
The year is 2084. Shanghai is a decaying husk of its former self, an empty city staffed by Party members and an army of scavengers recycling the infrastructure to keep things running. Most of the population now lives inside Zhongguo, a virtual replica of the real world introduced by China as a technological solution to climate change, a fix that lets users cling to their quality of life while meeting strict carbon quotas.
Logan operates a goldfarm between these two worlds, a shelter for refugees who survive by providing unauthorized Zhongguo services to a select clientele. But his fragile sanctuary has been teetering for months, and a new arrival may soon tip them all over the edge.
Statisticity introduces a new kind of reading experience. Powered by Beneath the Ink’s elegant ebook technology, Statisticity features a standalone, novel-length dystopian thriller shorn of the plodding exposition and cumbersome world-building that weigh down many entries in this genre. Throughout the book, highlighted words allow readers to access a third dimension with the tap of a finger, a carefully crafted compendium of interactive maps, wikis, character profiles, short stories, photos, and illustrations hidden beneath the ink. Readers can choose to experience Statisticity as a fast-paced, plot-driven tear through the heart of Shanghai circa 2084, or they can pause to explore the rich world waiting below the surface.
Order the Statisticity webbook now for any computer, tablet, reader, or phone with a web browser:
http://bit.ly/statisticity
- GenresScience FictionDystopia
362 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 29, 2015
2 people are currently reading
513 people want to read
About the author
Yaron Glazer
2 books15 followersIn the time before memory there was a boy and he loved to read. He read like it was going out of style, which it was, though he didn’t realize it at the time even though the characters in his sci-fi novels never read books. This boy could read for hours on end, often staying up through the night and only noticing when it was like 6 am and daylight was creeping in under the blinds. He finished all 6 of the Dune books in 3 weeks this way, and all 5 books of the Hitchhiker’s trilogy.
That love grew and grew, and soon the boy started reading literary fiction. He chewed through the classics. He had a Russian period. He vowed to finish every book he started. He read Ulysses and Gravity’s Rainbow and Infinite Jest, and then he read them again. There was no other direction his obsession could go. He had to start writing.
If you’ve made it this far, I’m just going to go ahead and give away the ending here and confirm that the boy in the story is indeed David Mitchell. Okay, fine, it’s me. But you’ll never guess the rest…
Because slowly at first, and then faster and more noticeably, our boy lost his amazing ability to read. He finished Atlas Shrugged and promptly denounced his childish vow to finish every book. He struggled with literary fiction and found himself returning to sci-fi. For twenty years, his head had been bombarded by news and information and movies and all manner of substances. Then social media came along and killed his sickly attention span dead.
Don’t get me wrong. I still love getting lost in books. It’s just much harder now, because I don’t have the patience to let authors build their story. Hell, these days I’m proud of myself if I can sit still and read 4 paragraphs without clicking a link or checking my inbox. I need my novels to be instantly engaging. But I also still want them to conjure up fully formed worlds as they drag me through them by the eyeballs.
Wouldn’t it be great if some book out there could do both?
That love grew and grew, and soon the boy started reading literary fiction. He chewed through the classics. He had a Russian period. He vowed to finish every book he started. He read Ulysses and Gravity’s Rainbow and Infinite Jest, and then he read them again. There was no other direction his obsession could go. He had to start writing.
If you’ve made it this far, I’m just going to go ahead and give away the ending here and confirm that the boy in the story is indeed David Mitchell. Okay, fine, it’s me. But you’ll never guess the rest…
Because slowly at first, and then faster and more noticeably, our boy lost his amazing ability to read. He finished Atlas Shrugged and promptly denounced his childish vow to finish every book. He struggled with literary fiction and found himself returning to sci-fi. For twenty years, his head had been bombarded by news and information and movies and all manner of substances. Then social media came along and killed his sickly attention span dead.
Don’t get me wrong. I still love getting lost in books. It’s just much harder now, because I don’t have the patience to let authors build their story. Hell, these days I’m proud of myself if I can sit still and read 4 paragraphs without clicking a link or checking my inbox. I need my novels to be instantly engaging. But I also still want them to conjure up fully formed worlds as they drag me through them by the eyeballs.
Wouldn’t it be great if some book out there could do both?
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
February 13, 2016
Statisticity - what a great name!
Let’s get the disclaimer out the way - Yaron (the author) contacted me on Goodreads to ask if I’d like to read and review his new indie sci-fi. I get quite a few requests like that, and I only take-up one or two offers a year - but this book definitely sounded interesting.
I find mixed reviews the hardest to write - if it’s all good, or all bad, it’s easy to say why. Statisticity is a mixed bag - some great ideas, a well developed world, distinct characters and a really high standard of writing throughout - yet the sum of the parts did not entirely wow me. I’ll try and explain why... (WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD)
I confess that that I am a harsh critic - I mostly read award winning sci-fi and fantasy, ‘the best spec fic has to offer’ - and I can’t help but compare...
•any VR/hacker story is getting judged against Gibson and Stephenson
•any post-apocalpytic story set in Asia, is getting judged against Bacigalupi
•if it’s a psychic detective story, I’m going to hold it up against Hamilton
•etc, etc, etc
Statisticity is a good book - but judged against the best it falls short.
Let’s start with the premise:
Somewhere in the past (our future) the shit hit the fan. Modern consumer life is not maintainable in a climate-change crippled world, and the populace need a new vision. China steps in with a new VR world, Zhongguo. It’s so good that people flood to it - there they can live the good life, a cross between social media and gaming, only emerging to eat and exercise before plugging back in. A sort of voluntary ‘Matrix’. Their every action in Zhongguo is automatically tracked, analysed and fed into the ‘Stability Algorithm’, which uses Zhongguo data to accurately model human behaviour, to allow the government to better control the populace offline. The real world has become a grey and shabby place, with most folk plugged in - and Zhongguo kept getting better, upgrading to Z.v2, with Z.v3 on the horizon. That’s where our story starts.
There are aspects of the premise that I love - the moral ambiguity of the Zhongguo scheme (is it an evil empire controlling the people, or is it safety net for a population which has proven it cannot manage itself properly?) - the stated goal of ‘achieving stability’ - (does stable equal stagnant or safe?). Setting it in China is a great idea - the Chinese are frequently ‘the other guys’ in Sci-Fi, with authors recognising that they would be a huge power, but failing to make it the focal point - so that’s refreshing. I love VR stories - two worlds running in parallel - it’s one of the most successful fantasy structures (eg, Neverwhere - there’s another world right next to ours that we just don’t see/recognise, or Thomas Covenant - there’s another world that sucks you in when it needs you) and VR brings elements of that world-with-a-world into sci-fi.
But I don’t think the premise fulfills its potential. The core element of the premise is the Zhongguo universe, but the story is set 99% offline - the setting is an ‘empty’ Shanghai - the world of the people who didn’t join Zhongguo. The premise offers this rich contrast between vibrant-online and a desaturated-offline, but with the online unexplored all we’re left with is the grey-scape. There are logistical issues with a world where 99% of the populace plugged-in that just aren’t addressed, and tend to undermine the believability. Who grows the crops and runs the factories? Who keeps the power on, and the water running? How does a world economy continue to function? These questions are glossed over. Then there’s the VR access technology: I’ve read quite a few VR books, and there are many options for tech - from modern era goggles, near-future skin-stim-suits, textured gel tanks, far future neural jacks, nanotech, etc. We’re given glimpses of the tech - some kind of halo-headset, some kind of initiation process/surgery? In many ways Glazer is from the ‘Le Guin’ school of sci-fi, more interested in the people and society than the technology - but for me, that’s still got to be bullet-proof. My final issue - no technology stands in isolation. This is an exploration of the impact of advanced VR on humanity - but where is the artificial intelligence, robotics and cybernetics, genetic manipulation, advanced materials and engineering, etc? No technology evolves in isolation, but it feels like everything except VR has stayed still (or stepped backwards). The best sci-fi often focuses on one ‘core’ tech-type to explore, but still includes nods to hundreds of others to present a cohesive, integrated future. And for a world specifically crippled by global warming, there seems to be very little awareness of environmental factors noted in the culture - you’d think that would have made an impact (beyond the traumatic ‘chaos’ of the period).
There’s 2 key characters:
•Logan: A businessman-hacker, running a dubious ‘goldfarm’ business from a bunker. He’s an ex-prodigy just trying to get by.
•Detective Wu: A man who cannot enter Zhonggou due to a fundamental mental incompatibility. He also sufffers from headaches and seizures brought on by proximity to high/Zhonggou-type technology.
Logan is trying to trace his missing buddy, Raz, who has been arrested and ‘relocated’ by the government. Detective Wu is given a promotion and set on a special mission that his condition makes him suitable for. Then lots of Zhonggou infrastructure buildings get blown up. One of these turns out to be a secret research lab, and some ‘special’ kids have escaped - finding them is Wu’s new case. One of these turns up in Logan’s bunker. Ling-Ling’s father is being made the scapegoat for the attacks. Logan and Ling-Ling think they can predict more attacks based on data he provided before he vanished. They have to flee the bunker, and join the metro workers, who are embroiled in a civil/turf-war - and they realise that the weird kid they picked up has special powers. Logan logs into Zhongguo and meets a ghost-type-recording of his missing buddy, Raz.They come up with a plan to try and sabotage the launch of Z.v3. They enact the plan - some weird stuff happens turning the people within Zhonggou into a botnet. Wu realises the experiment kids have the same condition as him and shares visions with one. Metro wars start. The end.
Side note: Raz’s full name is Erasmas. My cat is called Raz/Erasmas. I named my cat after a Neal Stephenson character and I’m pretty sure the author is also a Stephenson fan. There seems to be a good chance his Raz and my Raz are both named after the same Anathem-monk. This makes me happy.
Issues with these characters:
Wu’s motivation is too muddled throughout. He’s all confused with headaches, and confused to be jolted out of his routine, and he’s cautious and nervous… He’s conflicted between loyalty to the state and empathy with the kids he’s hunting for. He has no clear goal - he’s just following the path of his investigation, without a strong purpose - he’s not trying to catch an evil murderer, he’s not trying to save a child in danger - he’s just drifting along the breadcrumb trail of clues to see where they go…
Logan has a clear goal he’s pursuing, but his character is very flat. There was nothing about him that resonated with the Chinese setting. He’s smart and determined and competent - but there’s nothing specifically likeable about him, to make him really own his moments in the spotlight.
Some of the supporting POV cast - Ling-ling, Sister Song, Metro Dude (I forget his name) have a bit more spark about them, but they don’t have enough air-time to compensate.
I also took issue with the ending - it builds up some good momentum, but then just fizzles away. Not enough is explained or resolved. The ending packs no particular thematic punch; the story just stops.
The biggest plus point is the quality of the scene-by-scene writing. Dialogue, descriptions, pacing, tone and style - all spot on. It reads very smoothly, the pages flicker by, and it’s probably the best standard of scene writing I’ve encountered in indie sci-fi - and that’s what makes me enthusiastic about the future for this author. All the issues I’ve mentioned above can be improved with a good editor to kick the tyres at the cast design and plotting stage - but an editor can’t make the actual words flow, and fortunately Glazer already knows how to do that!
I’ve deliberately left-off mentioning the e-book format until last. It’s an online book - not an e-book like a kindle format. This basically means words can be tagged like web links - clicking place names will show you where they are on a map - unusual words will link to definitions as per the a story-world equivalent of wikipedia (with some reddit like comments). Character names can link to profiles, etc. Some of it is quite handy. Some of it is the equivalent to traditional footnotes - expanding on prose points - but the format allows the main text to shuffle apart to allow the footnote next to pop in at that point - which is great. Mostly it adds to the experiences, and shows the extra care and love that’s gone into the story’s creation.
There are two usages that I didn’t (personally) like.
1.Pictures. Most books don’t include imagery - and it’s a gamble when they do. The ebook format makes it easier to embed imagery - and it’s great for factual things like maps, graphs, etc - but the illustrated scenes jarred with my imaginings.
2.Short stories. There are short stories embedded within some of these link words - some of them are good, giving extra details/depth about what happened between one ‘core scene’ and the next - but I found the placement of them as link words mid sentence/paragraph jarring - because you can’t read something of that length and then just carry on at the same length - and you don’t know the length of the footnote/short story before you click the link. I’d advise keeping the link words for the factual/definition stuff - and add the short stories in as ‘bonus chapters’ with clear links at the chapter break points. That way they can complement the story structure, and better manage the audience expectations.
Overall, very interesting - some very strong points, comfortably clears the 3-star threshold, but too many issues for me to give it any more than that.
Let’s get the disclaimer out the way - Yaron (the author) contacted me on Goodreads to ask if I’d like to read and review his new indie sci-fi. I get quite a few requests like that, and I only take-up one or two offers a year - but this book definitely sounded interesting.
I find mixed reviews the hardest to write - if it’s all good, or all bad, it’s easy to say why. Statisticity is a mixed bag - some great ideas, a well developed world, distinct characters and a really high standard of writing throughout - yet the sum of the parts did not entirely wow me. I’ll try and explain why... (WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD)
I confess that that I am a harsh critic - I mostly read award winning sci-fi and fantasy, ‘the best spec fic has to offer’ - and I can’t help but compare...
•any VR/hacker story is getting judged against Gibson and Stephenson
•any post-apocalpytic story set in Asia, is getting judged against Bacigalupi
•if it’s a psychic detective story, I’m going to hold it up against Hamilton
•etc, etc, etc
Statisticity is a good book - but judged against the best it falls short.
Let’s start with the premise:
Somewhere in the past (our future) the shit hit the fan. Modern consumer life is not maintainable in a climate-change crippled world, and the populace need a new vision. China steps in with a new VR world, Zhongguo. It’s so good that people flood to it - there they can live the good life, a cross between social media and gaming, only emerging to eat and exercise before plugging back in. A sort of voluntary ‘Matrix’. Their every action in Zhongguo is automatically tracked, analysed and fed into the ‘Stability Algorithm’, which uses Zhongguo data to accurately model human behaviour, to allow the government to better control the populace offline. The real world has become a grey and shabby place, with most folk plugged in - and Zhongguo kept getting better, upgrading to Z.v2, with Z.v3 on the horizon. That’s where our story starts.
There are aspects of the premise that I love - the moral ambiguity of the Zhongguo scheme (is it an evil empire controlling the people, or is it safety net for a population which has proven it cannot manage itself properly?) - the stated goal of ‘achieving stability’ - (does stable equal stagnant or safe?). Setting it in China is a great idea - the Chinese are frequently ‘the other guys’ in Sci-Fi, with authors recognising that they would be a huge power, but failing to make it the focal point - so that’s refreshing. I love VR stories - two worlds running in parallel - it’s one of the most successful fantasy structures (eg, Neverwhere - there’s another world right next to ours that we just don’t see/recognise, or Thomas Covenant - there’s another world that sucks you in when it needs you) and VR brings elements of that world-with-a-world into sci-fi.
But I don’t think the premise fulfills its potential. The core element of the premise is the Zhongguo universe, but the story is set 99% offline - the setting is an ‘empty’ Shanghai - the world of the people who didn’t join Zhongguo. The premise offers this rich contrast between vibrant-online and a desaturated-offline, but with the online unexplored all we’re left with is the grey-scape. There are logistical issues with a world where 99% of the populace plugged-in that just aren’t addressed, and tend to undermine the believability. Who grows the crops and runs the factories? Who keeps the power on, and the water running? How does a world economy continue to function? These questions are glossed over. Then there’s the VR access technology: I’ve read quite a few VR books, and there are many options for tech - from modern era goggles, near-future skin-stim-suits, textured gel tanks, far future neural jacks, nanotech, etc. We’re given glimpses of the tech - some kind of halo-headset, some kind of initiation process/surgery? In many ways Glazer is from the ‘Le Guin’ school of sci-fi, more interested in the people and society than the technology - but for me, that’s still got to be bullet-proof. My final issue - no technology stands in isolation. This is an exploration of the impact of advanced VR on humanity - but where is the artificial intelligence, robotics and cybernetics, genetic manipulation, advanced materials and engineering, etc? No technology evolves in isolation, but it feels like everything except VR has stayed still (or stepped backwards). The best sci-fi often focuses on one ‘core’ tech-type to explore, but still includes nods to hundreds of others to present a cohesive, integrated future. And for a world specifically crippled by global warming, there seems to be very little awareness of environmental factors noted in the culture - you’d think that would have made an impact (beyond the traumatic ‘chaos’ of the period).
There’s 2 key characters:
•Logan: A businessman-hacker, running a dubious ‘goldfarm’ business from a bunker. He’s an ex-prodigy just trying to get by.
•Detective Wu: A man who cannot enter Zhonggou due to a fundamental mental incompatibility. He also sufffers from headaches and seizures brought on by proximity to high/Zhonggou-type technology.
Logan is trying to trace his missing buddy, Raz, who has been arrested and ‘relocated’ by the government. Detective Wu is given a promotion and set on a special mission that his condition makes him suitable for. Then lots of Zhonggou infrastructure buildings get blown up. One of these turns out to be a secret research lab, and some ‘special’ kids have escaped - finding them is Wu’s new case. One of these turns up in Logan’s bunker. Ling-Ling’s father is being made the scapegoat for the attacks. Logan and Ling-Ling think they can predict more attacks based on data he provided before he vanished. They have to flee the bunker, and join the metro workers, who are embroiled in a civil/turf-war - and they realise that the weird kid they picked up has special powers. Logan logs into Zhongguo and meets a ghost-type-recording of his missing buddy, Raz.They come up with a plan to try and sabotage the launch of Z.v3. They enact the plan - some weird stuff happens turning the people within Zhonggou into a botnet. Wu realises the experiment kids have the same condition as him and shares visions with one. Metro wars start. The end.
Side note: Raz’s full name is Erasmas. My cat is called Raz/Erasmas. I named my cat after a Neal Stephenson character and I’m pretty sure the author is also a Stephenson fan. There seems to be a good chance his Raz and my Raz are both named after the same Anathem-monk. This makes me happy.
Issues with these characters:
Wu’s motivation is too muddled throughout. He’s all confused with headaches, and confused to be jolted out of his routine, and he’s cautious and nervous… He’s conflicted between loyalty to the state and empathy with the kids he’s hunting for. He has no clear goal - he’s just following the path of his investigation, without a strong purpose - he’s not trying to catch an evil murderer, he’s not trying to save a child in danger - he’s just drifting along the breadcrumb trail of clues to see where they go…
Logan has a clear goal he’s pursuing, but his character is very flat. There was nothing about him that resonated with the Chinese setting. He’s smart and determined and competent - but there’s nothing specifically likeable about him, to make him really own his moments in the spotlight.
Some of the supporting POV cast - Ling-ling, Sister Song, Metro Dude (I forget his name) have a bit more spark about them, but they don’t have enough air-time to compensate.
I also took issue with the ending - it builds up some good momentum, but then just fizzles away. Not enough is explained or resolved. The ending packs no particular thematic punch; the story just stops.
The biggest plus point is the quality of the scene-by-scene writing. Dialogue, descriptions, pacing, tone and style - all spot on. It reads very smoothly, the pages flicker by, and it’s probably the best standard of scene writing I’ve encountered in indie sci-fi - and that’s what makes me enthusiastic about the future for this author. All the issues I’ve mentioned above can be improved with a good editor to kick the tyres at the cast design and plotting stage - but an editor can’t make the actual words flow, and fortunately Glazer already knows how to do that!
I’ve deliberately left-off mentioning the e-book format until last. It’s an online book - not an e-book like a kindle format. This basically means words can be tagged like web links - clicking place names will show you where they are on a map - unusual words will link to definitions as per the a story-world equivalent of wikipedia (with some reddit like comments). Character names can link to profiles, etc. Some of it is quite handy. Some of it is the equivalent to traditional footnotes - expanding on prose points - but the format allows the main text to shuffle apart to allow the footnote next to pop in at that point - which is great. Mostly it adds to the experiences, and shows the extra care and love that’s gone into the story’s creation.
There are two usages that I didn’t (personally) like.
1.Pictures. Most books don’t include imagery - and it’s a gamble when they do. The ebook format makes it easier to embed imagery - and it’s great for factual things like maps, graphs, etc - but the illustrated scenes jarred with my imaginings.
2.Short stories. There are short stories embedded within some of these link words - some of them are good, giving extra details/depth about what happened between one ‘core scene’ and the next - but I found the placement of them as link words mid sentence/paragraph jarring - because you can’t read something of that length and then just carry on at the same length - and you don’t know the length of the footnote/short story before you click the link. I’d advise keeping the link words for the factual/definition stuff - and add the short stories in as ‘bonus chapters’ with clear links at the chapter break points. That way they can complement the story structure, and better manage the audience expectations.
Overall, very interesting - some very strong points, comfortably clears the 3-star threshold, but too many issues for me to give it any more than that.
Read
September 2, 2015Let me tell you about this book. This book that took me 5 long years to make. It's revolutionary! It's a completely new thing! It's a total reimagining of the science fiction novel!
You know how sci-fi novels take forever building worlds and introducing characters and then having them do stuff, and you're basically asleep by the time the story gets going? Well great news, because Statisticity is the book for you! Also, you know how sci-fi novels focus too much on plot and really skimp on world-building and character development and backstory? Well great news, because Statisticity is the book for you too!
How can one book pull off this (admittedly minor) incredible miracle, you ask? It's simple: on the surface, Statisticity looks just like your standard-issue dystopian thriller that's light on inessential detail. But throughout the book, highlighted words let you access a third dimension with the tap of a finger. Because, you see, hiding beneath the e-ink is a veritable world of interactive maps, wikis, character profiles, short stories, photos and illustrations.
You can choose to experience Statisticity as a fast-paced, plot-driven tear, or you can pause and luxuriate in the side-, back-, and understory. It's perfect for the sci-fi novel lover who may once have been able to read novels for hours on end, but can't seem to get past 4 paragraphs these days without clicking a link. That's as close as I'm coming to a confession.
Okay, so Statisticity is a complete and total reimagining of the very concept of science fiction. But that's worth like 4 stars, tops. What else is Statisticity going to do for you?
So, China. What a crazy place, right? It seems like the perfect setting for science fiction, and yet when was the last time you read a sci-fi novel set in China? Well I'll go ahead state the obvious here and confirm that Statisticity is indeed set in China. But I didn't just read about China and decide to set my book there, or like visit for a creative writing research trip. I lived in Shanghai. For 8 years. I know this place, and if you read Statisticity then you will too. Guaranteed.
Also, Climate change. I spend a lot of time thinking about this shit, and for Statisticity I meticulously constructed a timeline describing the slow descent into chaos and disaster that will (ahem, under some of the IFCCC's more dire projections...) take place over the course of this-here century. I did it on Facebook and Twitter over the course of several months in daily headlines from the future that linked to related scientific articles from today. And you know what? It isn't even part of the book! It's just, like, backstory. A cli-fi prequel. Because Statisticity isn't about climate change. It's about algorithms, and data, and surveillance, and gaming - the stuff that really makes your neck-hair salute.
I'm telling you, you gotta experience this book!
You know how sci-fi novels take forever building worlds and introducing characters and then having them do stuff, and you're basically asleep by the time the story gets going? Well great news, because Statisticity is the book for you! Also, you know how sci-fi novels focus too much on plot and really skimp on world-building and character development and backstory? Well great news, because Statisticity is the book for you too!
How can one book pull off this (admittedly minor) incredible miracle, you ask? It's simple: on the surface, Statisticity looks just like your standard-issue dystopian thriller that's light on inessential detail. But throughout the book, highlighted words let you access a third dimension with the tap of a finger. Because, you see, hiding beneath the e-ink is a veritable world of interactive maps, wikis, character profiles, short stories, photos and illustrations.
You can choose to experience Statisticity as a fast-paced, plot-driven tear, or you can pause and luxuriate in the side-, back-, and understory. It's perfect for the sci-fi novel lover who may once have been able to read novels for hours on end, but can't seem to get past 4 paragraphs these days without clicking a link. That's as close as I'm coming to a confession.
Okay, so Statisticity is a complete and total reimagining of the very concept of science fiction. But that's worth like 4 stars, tops. What else is Statisticity going to do for you?
So, China. What a crazy place, right? It seems like the perfect setting for science fiction, and yet when was the last time you read a sci-fi novel set in China? Well I'll go ahead state the obvious here and confirm that Statisticity is indeed set in China. But I didn't just read about China and decide to set my book there, or like visit for a creative writing research trip. I lived in Shanghai. For 8 years. I know this place, and if you read Statisticity then you will too. Guaranteed.
Also, Climate change. I spend a lot of time thinking about this shit, and for Statisticity I meticulously constructed a timeline describing the slow descent into chaos and disaster that will (ahem, under some of the IFCCC's more dire projections...) take place over the course of this-here century. I did it on Facebook and Twitter over the course of several months in daily headlines from the future that linked to related scientific articles from today. And you know what? It isn't even part of the book! It's just, like, backstory. A cli-fi prequel. Because Statisticity isn't about climate change. It's about algorithms, and data, and surveillance, and gaming - the stuff that really makes your neck-hair salute.
I'm telling you, you gotta experience this book!
December 9, 2015
Statisticity isn’t a book, it’s a journey.
The enhanced ebook is fascinating tale of life in China in the future, where people are encouraged to register themselves, live in an online virtual reality, give away all their data and are heavily surveilled – sounds familiar doesn’t it? You can really see the parallels with modern society today and how the world might shake out in seventy years time. But that’s just the premise of the story, the real intrigue is the underground “entrepreneurs” that have sprung up to deliver services to an elite clientele, the discovery that the stability algorithm is about to receive a jolt and a detective who’s sensitivity to the electromagnetic forces in the online world makes him the perfect man to investigate on behalf of the State.
It great story, the tension builds at a steady pace and there is a nice twist at the end.
In the beginning I clicked on a lot of the links, but found it distracted me from the main story and I quickly realised you didn’t necessarily need the information in them it’s quite clear from the main text what a link might be referring to. So then I started just clicking on the links where I found I did want to know more about some of the detail behind it, more for my own amusement than anything else such as the Fake Market. Later on I realised that actually behind some of the links are expanded scenes or flashbacks, again not essential to the main text, but they add another dimension to the story nonetheless.
I also enjoyed the images that appear at the end of some scenes. I like that they are placed here because it doesn’t interfere with how I’m imagining the scene reading the text, and it’s fascinating to see how the author viewed the world he describes.
This is the first enhanced ebook I’ve read (normally I’m a paperwhite kind of girl), but by the end of it I’m a convert. I have the feeling I could go back to the beginning, read it again choosing different links and have a whole different perspective on Statisticity.
The enhanced ebook is fascinating tale of life in China in the future, where people are encouraged to register themselves, live in an online virtual reality, give away all their data and are heavily surveilled – sounds familiar doesn’t it? You can really see the parallels with modern society today and how the world might shake out in seventy years time. But that’s just the premise of the story, the real intrigue is the underground “entrepreneurs” that have sprung up to deliver services to an elite clientele, the discovery that the stability algorithm is about to receive a jolt and a detective who’s sensitivity to the electromagnetic forces in the online world makes him the perfect man to investigate on behalf of the State.
It great story, the tension builds at a steady pace and there is a nice twist at the end.
In the beginning I clicked on a lot of the links, but found it distracted me from the main story and I quickly realised you didn’t necessarily need the information in them it’s quite clear from the main text what a link might be referring to. So then I started just clicking on the links where I found I did want to know more about some of the detail behind it, more for my own amusement than anything else such as the Fake Market. Later on I realised that actually behind some of the links are expanded scenes or flashbacks, again not essential to the main text, but they add another dimension to the story nonetheless.
I also enjoyed the images that appear at the end of some scenes. I like that they are placed here because it doesn’t interfere with how I’m imagining the scene reading the text, and it’s fascinating to see how the author viewed the world he describes.
This is the first enhanced ebook I’ve read (normally I’m a paperwhite kind of girl), but by the end of it I’m a convert. I have the feeling I could go back to the beginning, read it again choosing different links and have a whole different perspective on Statisticity.
January 16, 2016
A dystopian book, with a monitored virtual world and interesting enhanced edition features, but too much heavy on technology for my tastes.
In the future, people are all connected to Zhongguo. This virtual world is controlled to reach order and harmony, but everything doesn't always work as expected. For example, Logan and his team provide unauthorized services, some people have health problems because of Zhongguo, etc. We follow several characters while some changes happen in this world.
I'm an avid dystopian reader, so I jumped in this story with pleasure. The landing was a bit hard because I'm really neither fond of virtual worlds in dystopias, nor technical stuff. And the book is crowded with software and hardware, as the story follows mostly the characters outside Zhongguo. My other problem was the lack of connection I'd with Logan and his team, they were flat for me, a little uni-dimensional and not really interesting. Detective Wu was more likable, I enjoyed his chapters and he added some purpose to the story, searching to discover what was happening to him and to his surroundings. The book didn't have big flaws, but with its high tech characteristics and its story, it wasn't a good choice for me, falling too far from my tastes.
Regarding the enhanced features: it was an interesting experience. I particularly enjoyed the pictures for the characters and the maps, they were pleasant to look at and well done. The "wiki" was also interesting but there was too much of it so, after a time, I stopped using it because it took me out of the story each time I was reading a popup. The things I didn't enjoy were the "hidden scenes", because with an ebook, I expect to know exactly how many pages are left and I'm used to put the book away at any time and re-start it exactly where I left, which is not possible with these scenes and some are relatively long. Overall, it was a nice glance at the future of reading, which is pretty nice with a dystopian book!
In the future, people are all connected to Zhongguo. This virtual world is controlled to reach order and harmony, but everything doesn't always work as expected. For example, Logan and his team provide unauthorized services, some people have health problems because of Zhongguo, etc. We follow several characters while some changes happen in this world.
I'm an avid dystopian reader, so I jumped in this story with pleasure. The landing was a bit hard because I'm really neither fond of virtual worlds in dystopias, nor technical stuff. And the book is crowded with software and hardware, as the story follows mostly the characters outside Zhongguo. My other problem was the lack of connection I'd with Logan and his team, they were flat for me, a little uni-dimensional and not really interesting. Detective Wu was more likable, I enjoyed his chapters and he added some purpose to the story, searching to discover what was happening to him and to his surroundings. The book didn't have big flaws, but with its high tech characteristics and its story, it wasn't a good choice for me, falling too far from my tastes.
Regarding the enhanced features: it was an interesting experience. I particularly enjoyed the pictures for the characters and the maps, they were pleasant to look at and well done. The "wiki" was also interesting but there was too much of it so, after a time, I stopped using it because it took me out of the story each time I was reading a popup. The things I didn't enjoy were the "hidden scenes", because with an ebook, I expect to know exactly how many pages are left and I'm used to put the book away at any time and re-start it exactly where I left, which is not possible with these scenes and some are relatively long. Overall, it was a nice glance at the future of reading, which is pretty nice with a dystopian book!
November 22, 2015
Yaron Glazer's Statisticity is an ambitious read to say the least. I've never had the pleasure of diving into an ebook quite like this, and I'm pretty sure the reason why is because of the tremendous amount of effort that went into it. But enough of that, the real point of a review is to discuss whether I liked the book. The answer to that question, much like the plot of Statisticity, is complex (but the short answer's hell yeah).
The overall strengths of the story have to be milieu and plot. I've had the chance to live in China (not in Shanghai or Beijing) so I can say that I really dug the description of future China. While most modern takes on the future of The Middle Kingdom are all sunshine and roses Mr. Glazer goes the more realistic route. The place is choked with corruption and pollution to the extent the only real sanctuary lies within virtual reality, however human nature knows no bounds as the more nefarious aspects seep into the electric world, as our hero Logan discovers. I also really liked the descriptions. I felt like I was really in this alternate world. The sights, smells, and sounds were all well described in a way that made me feel like I was among the action instead of merely witnessing it, however it didn't weigh down the plot or slow the pacing.
However, I will say that the experience of reading the story was different, and will probably feel a little odd for most first time readers. Instead of just words there are maps, pictures, and explanations linked to the corresponding words throughout the novel. Personally I found this sometimes very helpful and other times they pulled me from the plot while I was just really getting into it, which made it feel sort of half book/half video game that someone else is playing.
Still, I'd really recommend this book. It's ambitious as anything I've ever read, and the story is well crafted even through the manner in which it's delivered can be a little 'new; compared to traditional books. Although you shouldn't let that put you off, especially if you're an early adapter of new technology, then you're going to absolutely want to check it out because I got a weird feeling it's the future of ebooks.
The overall strengths of the story have to be milieu and plot. I've had the chance to live in China (not in Shanghai or Beijing) so I can say that I really dug the description of future China. While most modern takes on the future of The Middle Kingdom are all sunshine and roses Mr. Glazer goes the more realistic route. The place is choked with corruption and pollution to the extent the only real sanctuary lies within virtual reality, however human nature knows no bounds as the more nefarious aspects seep into the electric world, as our hero Logan discovers. I also really liked the descriptions. I felt like I was really in this alternate world. The sights, smells, and sounds were all well described in a way that made me feel like I was among the action instead of merely witnessing it, however it didn't weigh down the plot or slow the pacing.
However, I will say that the experience of reading the story was different, and will probably feel a little odd for most first time readers. Instead of just words there are maps, pictures, and explanations linked to the corresponding words throughout the novel. Personally I found this sometimes very helpful and other times they pulled me from the plot while I was just really getting into it, which made it feel sort of half book/half video game that someone else is playing.
Still, I'd really recommend this book. It's ambitious as anything I've ever read, and the story is well crafted even through the manner in which it's delivered can be a little 'new; compared to traditional books. Although you shouldn't let that put you off, especially if you're an early adapter of new technology, then you're going to absolutely want to check it out because I got a weird feeling it's the future of ebooks.
October 31, 2015
This work clearly took its author an exceptional bit of effort and the result is incredible!
(Disclaimer: Admittedly, it isn't my kind of book. I consider that a personal matter of taste, so let me discount it. I generally shy away from books with profanity, as I feel we get enough of it in day to day life. This book reaches Rated R by 10 pages in. But if you can live with that, please check out this experience.)
What I most admired about this book was the opportunity to see where e-literature may be going in the future. With pictures, wikis, maps, and just a massive heap of additional research thrown into the hyperlinks, readers can get to whatever story they most enjoy reading. If you're not the sort for a lot of extra back-story, as the author stated, this book may still be for you. If you're the sort to really sink your teeth into world-building, you can find a decent book here.
I give this book a four due to personal taste, but I must say, even if you don't enjoy the story, it is really neat to see what can be done with an e-book, and it is my hope that many more will follow suit in the future.
With many thanks to Yaron Glazer for sharing this project with me for an honest review.
(Disclaimer: Admittedly, it isn't my kind of book. I consider that a personal matter of taste, so let me discount it. I generally shy away from books with profanity, as I feel we get enough of it in day to day life. This book reaches Rated R by 10 pages in. But if you can live with that, please check out this experience.)
What I most admired about this book was the opportunity to see where e-literature may be going in the future. With pictures, wikis, maps, and just a massive heap of additional research thrown into the hyperlinks, readers can get to whatever story they most enjoy reading. If you're not the sort for a lot of extra back-story, as the author stated, this book may still be for you. If you're the sort to really sink your teeth into world-building, you can find a decent book here.
I give this book a four due to personal taste, but I must say, even if you don't enjoy the story, it is really neat to see what can be done with an e-book, and it is my hope that many more will follow suit in the future.
With many thanks to Yaron Glazer for sharing this project with me for an honest review.
Want to read
December 22, 2015Thank you Goodreads for sending me this book. This is a book based in the future in China in the year 2084. It is all about surveillance which a lot of futuristic books seem to be based on. The book moves at a fairly brisk pace. This not a book I would normally choose to read and I found it quite difficult at times, but I am glad I gave it a go, as I overall, I did find it very enjoyable and it was a worthwhile and rewarding read.
April 14, 2016
I got this book from goodreads giveaway.
I enjoyed reading this book though at first it was quite hard to get into because of all that technology stuff, but once I got used to it I was captivated by the story. The world in "Statisticity" is very well developed, the plot is interesting though I didn't fully connect with the characters, some of them seemed a little bit flat.
Overall, "Statisticity" is an interesting and enjoyable read that I would recommend to sci-fi and dystopian lovers.
I enjoyed reading this book though at first it was quite hard to get into because of all that technology stuff, but once I got used to it I was captivated by the story. The world in "Statisticity" is very well developed, the plot is interesting though I didn't fully connect with the characters, some of them seemed a little bit flat.
Overall, "Statisticity" is an interesting and enjoyable read that I would recommend to sci-fi and dystopian lovers.
December 1, 2015
3.5 Stars
I really did enjoy Staticity, it had that great Firefly feel to it, and the bonus of being able to click links to
find more details about places and characters rocked. It allowed it to not be held back with tons of
unnecessary background filler so we could get into the story that much quicker. The only downside, I
wasn’t able to get back easily with some links. I had to remember where I was to go back. A BACK link at
the bottom of some of the bonus content would improve this drastically. Also, I think there are still a
few kinks in the formatting, as having so much extra content has caused my reading program to crash
more than once. I didn’t include the technical hiccups as criteria for my star rating, but I felt it was
something to note. It’s definitely the future of eBooks but not sure this one is 100% there yet.
But story wise, I liked the plot. I felt like you might’ve gotten too lost in creating so much detail for the
character and the world, and we’re able to really focus on the writing. There are a few lines that just
come across awkward, but thoughts and dialogue, but I’m sure another round of editing could easily
correct those. I just felt with the some of the disjointed phrasing and the length of the piece, it could just
another editing round. I think the storyline is solid, but needs to be condensed a bit, and could really
pack a stronger punch. I think as it stands now, it’s good, but it could be great if the technology glitches
were fixed, the general phrasing cleaned up a bit, and the length shortened a bit. You get a bit lost in all
the density of story writing and it pulls the reader out of this well-crafted world you built. I also felt
some of the characters were very stereotypical, not all of them, but a few. Maybe go back, and take a
deeper look at them and see if you can make them more unique then the standard Sci-Fi characters tend
to be.
I really did enjoy Staticity, it had that great Firefly feel to it, and the bonus of being able to click links to
find more details about places and characters rocked. It allowed it to not be held back with tons of
unnecessary background filler so we could get into the story that much quicker. The only downside, I
wasn’t able to get back easily with some links. I had to remember where I was to go back. A BACK link at
the bottom of some of the bonus content would improve this drastically. Also, I think there are still a
few kinks in the formatting, as having so much extra content has caused my reading program to crash
more than once. I didn’t include the technical hiccups as criteria for my star rating, but I felt it was
something to note. It’s definitely the future of eBooks but not sure this one is 100% there yet.
But story wise, I liked the plot. I felt like you might’ve gotten too lost in creating so much detail for the
character and the world, and we’re able to really focus on the writing. There are a few lines that just
come across awkward, but thoughts and dialogue, but I’m sure another round of editing could easily
correct those. I just felt with the some of the disjointed phrasing and the length of the piece, it could just
another editing round. I think the storyline is solid, but needs to be condensed a bit, and could really
pack a stronger punch. I think as it stands now, it’s good, but it could be great if the technology glitches
were fixed, the general phrasing cleaned up a bit, and the length shortened a bit. You get a bit lost in all
the density of story writing and it pulls the reader out of this well-crafted world you built. I also felt
some of the characters were very stereotypical, not all of them, but a few. Maybe go back, and take a
deeper look at them and see if you can make them more unique then the standard Sci-Fi characters tend
to be.
September 28, 2015
Yaron Glazer's novel, Statisticity, is the future of eBook writing. Glazer has created an enhanced reading experience by including various links in the eBook format. These links help to enhance and explain the incredible world that is created and form a unique science fiction adventure.
The story's plot is unique and takes place in a dystopian and digitalized China. The characters are one of a kind and Glazer uses his "e-ink" to help expand on each character and how they became a part of this new world. The plot and storyline may be a bit hard to follow for those not used to science fiction writing and the technical jargon that is used. However, by utilizing the e-ink, Glazer opens up the Science Fiction genre to a new audience and helps explain some of the more challenging or hard to follow storylines.
I enjoyed the experience of having the ability to simply click a link and have a map pop up and show me exactly where a particular scene is taking place. It made following the story much easier and also made it fun, as if you were a character in this novel, rather than just a reader.
I hope to see a follow up to this novel, especially with the exciting cliffhanger used by Glazer to end this story. I would recommend this novel to all science fiction lovers and anyone looking for a unique and new age way of reading. The three star review is due to the technicality of the story that may confuse some readers, but it shows incredible promise and I can not wait to enjoy the sequel!
http://novelideareviews.blogspot.com/...
The story's plot is unique and takes place in a dystopian and digitalized China. The characters are one of a kind and Glazer uses his "e-ink" to help expand on each character and how they became a part of this new world. The plot and storyline may be a bit hard to follow for those not used to science fiction writing and the technical jargon that is used. However, by utilizing the e-ink, Glazer opens up the Science Fiction genre to a new audience and helps explain some of the more challenging or hard to follow storylines.
I enjoyed the experience of having the ability to simply click a link and have a map pop up and show me exactly where a particular scene is taking place. It made following the story much easier and also made it fun, as if you were a character in this novel, rather than just a reader.
I hope to see a follow up to this novel, especially with the exciting cliffhanger used by Glazer to end this story. I would recommend this novel to all science fiction lovers and anyone looking for a unique and new age way of reading. The three star review is due to the technicality of the story that may confuse some readers, but it shows incredible promise and I can not wait to enjoy the sequel!
http://novelideareviews.blogspot.com/...
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