There's an App for That

An interesting and enjoyable read which gained my attention from the outset. The reader is immersed in technology from the moment a passenger buys a ticket, through her entire journey. Toolis has successfully replaced train carriages which thirty years ago might have been occupied by newspaper readers competing for space with people listening to personal stereos, with people working on their way to work.Technology which is being enjoyed today, is intertwined with apps which begin to push boundaries with interesting yet believable results. An app which sets out assisting with pregnancy, begins to impinge on decision making.Apps which enable everyone to participate and to reach vast audiences become exactly what they set out to be as the characters latch on to the opportunities which are being opened up to them.At times the boundary between delusion and reality becomes blurred, as I found myself questioning what was actually happening, and what was being played out in a games app. I loved the scenes with Saul, the shrink, who found himself dealing with those with various experiences of their apps. There was a real poignancy in the therapy scene with other shrinks afterwards.Aside from the individual experiences set out in the book, and the amusing side to some of the failures of technology, the reader is left to ponder some of the consequences of a world at our fingertips. Glimpses of the many who can’t quite get their piece of the action are salutary.More than a commentary, the book gives an insight into a world where ‘we can do anything’ if we choose to, becomes a world where anyone else can too! It’s a good read, especially if you’ve the time to reflect afterwards!