Video War

by Stephen Manes

When city officials try to close down the local video parlor because they think it is less than beneficial for the children, the young people of the town form Video, a protest group.

Genres: Ebooks

249 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1983

About the author

Stephen Manes (born 1949) wrote the "Digital Tools" column that appeared in every issue of Forbes until recently when he took a break. He is expected to return in the future. He is also co-host and co-executive editor of the public television series "PC World's Digital Duo," a program he helped create.

Manes was previously the Personal Computers columnist for the Science Times section of The New York Times and a regular columnist for InformationWeek. He has been on the technology beat since 1982 as a columnist and contributing editor for PC Magazine, PC/Computing, PC Sources, PCjr, and Netguide. The now defunct Marketing Computers named him one of the four most influential writers about the computer industry and called him "a strong critical voice."

From April 1995 to December 2008, he also wrote the "Full Disclosure" column, anchoring the back page of PC World.

Manes is coauthor of the best-selling and definitive biography Gates: How Microsoft's Mogul Reinvented an Industry--and Made Himself the Richest Man in America. He also wrote The Complete MCI Mail Handbook and programmed much of the Starfixer and UnderGround WordStar software packages.

Manes is also the author of more than 30 books for children and young adults, including the Publishers Weekly bestseller Make Four Million Dollars by Next Thursday! and the award-winning Be a Perfect Person in Just Three Days!, which was adapted for the public television series Wonderworks. His books include the cult favorites Chicken Trek and The Obnoxious Jerks and have won a commendation from the National Science Foundation, International Reading Association Children's Choice awards, and kid-voted awards in five states. His writing credits also include television programs produced by ABC Television and KCET/Los Angeles and the 70s classic 20th Century-Fox movie Mother, Jugs & Speed.

Manes is currently serving his fourth term as an elected member of the National Council of the Authors Guild, the country's oldest organization of book authors. Born and raised in the hills of Pittsburgh, he now lives in hillier Seattle.

Reviews

[TheCultureVulture · Rating 3 out of 5]

I miss old school arcades....shout out to the Pirate's Den in the International Mall.

[Byron · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a long forgotten book. The kind that, if you ever find a copy, should be sent to me immediately for safe keeping. But you should read it first.

I haven't read it in years so it is quite likely that it has not aged well at all, but as a thirteen year old who realized that video games were to me what rappers and rock bands were to everyone else, I found this book revelatory. It was my first experience with first person present tense. The way Stephen Manes used descriptions of fictional video games to describe what was happening to the protagonist opened my eyes to new ways of using language as well as to thinking of video games as something other than my favorite distraction. Before I found my love of 80s teen movies, this was my too-cool high school fantasy.

Even knowing that I will likely find fault with this book if I ever get the chance to re-read it, it will always have a special place in my heart. I hope that someday it can have a special place in your heart too.

[Katie · Rating 2 out of 5]

At first, I admit, I didn't realize that Video War was written in 1983. I thought it was just written to sound that way - and yes, 80s YA does have a bit of its own distinctive voice.

It is nice to see teenagers who act like teens, complete with some of the overly dramatic reactions to things. But our protagonist, Zoz, really does get to be irritating at times.

This book wasn't bad, but I don't know that I have strong feelings on it either way, except for the ending. You can definitely empathize with the kids of VIDEO when you learn how things turned out and why they turned out that way.

[morbidflight · Rating 3 out of 5]

As I've aged, I realize I dislike how the internal thoughts of teenagers are portrayed. This book read like a wannabe catcher in the rye. It's pretty interesting, though, and learning how old it is actually makes me intrigued; girls and boys seem equally interested in saving vidya and it's kind of cool that the quiet black girl is a secret computer nerd and game developer who wants to make games that comment on experience and stuff.

[Samuel Guglielmo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Story about some kids who fight an upcoming law to ban video games from their county. It's okay. Strange writing style at times. Sudden weird ending.

[Phil · Rating 3 out of 5]

S'alright.