I should probably start this book review with the following disclaimer, I watched the film first. I didn’t realise it was a book, I didn’t know anything about it and it was just something we saw on Netflix that we thought might be interesting. My friend saw me post on Facebook that I’d watched it and asked if I’d read the book. The irony of this now is not lost on me.
I just finished reading The Circle by Dave Eggers. If you’ve ever sat and wondered what it would be like if Facebook, Google and Amazon got together and plotted to take over the world, then this is the book for you. After reading the book I saw on my Goodreads feed that someone had described this book as “Alice leaves Wonderland, travels to Brave New World, realises it’s 1984 and decides she likes it”, I can honestly say that sums it up beautifully, better than I could have done. It’s disturbing, seriously disturbing and I think that’s because it could so easily be true. The book and the movie have two completely different endings, one goes one way and the other in the exact opposite direction. I was so engrossed in this book I couldn’t put it down until I’d finished it, realised it was past midnight and had to go to bed so I could function at work the next day. Yes, the book does follow the same dystopian themes as 1984 and Brave New World but, in all honesty, it doesn’t detract from the book itself. I can’t recommend this book enough.