The Side Quest Book Club discussion

Spoils away

Some thoughts on diversity in this book - I like that an effort was made to include a range of racial and national backgrounds, sexual orientations and gender identities. It doesn't come off as tokenistic and generally only mentioned when it impacts the story. That said, I feel like intersection of racism and capitalism isn't touched on as much as it could be. Even when Seth talks about his experience with racial issues, it's as the only black guy in a group of white friends. Maybe this is absence is just a sign of Doctorow, a white guy, staying in his lane. It makes me wish for a companion book (or books) in the Walkaway universe written from other points of view.

I also felt the absence of characters with physical disabilities/chronic illnesses. There's mention of advances in prosthetic technology that ties into walkaway culture, but there are no characters I can recall that have that experience. Maybe it's for the same reason there are so few kids, the implication being that a nomadic pioneer culture poses greater challenge to that populace. But come on, who is more "surplus to Default's requirements" than the handicapped and chronically ill? Who would have more cause to walk away?

e wrote: "True on the disabled/chronic illness characters. He could have written it as if they'd have even more interest in the uploading."

Yes! I didn't even think about the uploading, but it's so true! It's the one thing I would consider a flaw in this book.

e wrote: "https://www.tor.com/2017/08/30/party-..."

Very good short story, I would cross post that on the SQBC FB :)

e wrote: "some of us don't have fb accounts..."

I remembered that after posting. Tell Ilona to do it.

A lot of last night's discussion talked about the perspective that Doctorow writes from (most succinctly: Walkaway is the gentrification of refugee life). It reminded me of an interview with futurist (and BoingBoing fave) Kevin Kelly:

Q: As someone who’s had a ringside seat to Silicon Valley since its early days, what are your thoughts on the issues of misogyny and racism that have cropped up in recent years? Do you think the tech industry is especially prone to them?

KK: I think that misogyny and racism and prejudice have been ubiquitous throughout history. Silicon Valley culture actually has less of it than most. But because of its Utopian ideals, people thought it had conquered all those things. So they were surprised to discover that there are still remnants. But to say that Silicon Valley has more of it is simply not true.

It's that kind of blind spot that really spoils my buy-in to the utopia that Doctorow presents. A future that ignores the experiences of whole groups of people is likely to replicate the same patterns of inequality.