Review: An Army of Davids

If you're a blogger, chances are pretty good that you've heard of Glenn Reynolds at Instapundit. His blog is one of the oldest and most popular in the blogosphere. And for me, it's a must-read several times per day. So when I received a copy of Glenn's new book, An Army of Davids, I was thrilled!

The premise of the book is described as follows:

There was a time in the not-too-distant past when large companies and powerful governments reigned supreme over the little guy. But new technologies are empowering individuals like never before, and the Davids of the world -- the amateur journalists, musicians, and small businessmen and women -- are suddenly making a huge economic and social impact.

Then, at the end of the introduction, Reynolds gives specifics on what the book covers:

In the chapters that follow, we'll look at how technology is empowering ordinary people in all sorts of ways -- from journalism and entertainment, to homeland security and counterterrorism, to manufacturing and scientific research -- and at how it's likely to influence the world in the future. Because in the future, the efforts of individuals and small groups, acting sometimes on their own and sometimes in informal cooperation with others, are likely to make a bigger difference than they've made in centuries.

And that, quite simply, is what the book delivers.

The first six chapters cover the changes we've already seen caused by blogging and technology, while the last six give Reynolds's thoughts on what the future will bring (including predictions on space travel, human longevity, etc.) In between is an "interlude" that contains Reynolds's thoughts on "good blogging" -- an oh-so-short six pages from the Master of Blogging.

When I first heard that Reynolds was writing a book on blogging, I was hoping it would focus on his thoughts about "good blogging" and be more practical in nature. But this book contains only a splash of that sort of content and instead is an intellectual treatise on the current and future impact of technology on people's lives.

The book does an excellent job of covering what it promises. Reynolds is not only a great blogger, he's a big thinker who explores technology in a fascinating manner by merging seemingly disparate thoughts and weaving them into logical, meaningful conclusions. If you like thought-inspiring, challenging, futuristic reads, you'll love this book.

I, however, do not like this type of book. To me it's about as exciting as a graduate school textbook (which, by the way, I tried to read as few of as possible when I got my MBA). Call me an intellectual lightweight, but I like stuff a lot more entertaining and practical. In addition, I mourn what could have been -- 250 pages of "here's how to be a great blogger" by the Instapundit.

So while I love Reynolds and his blog, the Free Money Finance Rating for An Army of Davids (based on my 0 thru 10 rating system) is: 5 Stars.

Comments

[Dave]

does that mean my name is too common :o/