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Xiaowei Wang: Blockchain Chicken Farm (2020, Farrar, Straus & Giroux) 4 stars

Note about the author: The author is non-binary and uses they/them pronouns in English.

"A …

A dose against techno-optimism.

5 stars

First and foremost, this book is beautifully written. Xiaowei Wang's style of writing is probably one of the most comforting aspects about their work, especially considering the topic at hand. It also kind of helps embody the difficulty of the subject, highlighting the nuances rather than the binary discussion that often happens (tech good vs. tech bad).

But it also helps put a lot into perspective. Part of this is through showing how China and the US aren't all that different with regards to capitalism (despite what we may be led to believe), even though it may present in different forms. Part of it is through explaining so much about technology that both feels absurd and showing how it's manufacturing spaces. And more than that, they explain how the systems in the US and in China converge and impact each other.

It's hard to put a lot of it into words. This book is fantastic.