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daumari's review against another edition
5.0
I was expecting more of a memoir out of this, but pleasantly, Crash Override analyzes and offers suggestions of how to fight the internet hate machine. Quinn is also aware that POC and trans people have long gotten attacked in this fashion before she has, and uplifts by ceding the 'mic' to marginalized voices on experiences & the importance of community. Her organization, Crash Override Network (named in reference to the Hackers movie) provides support work for internet abuse victims, and helps with documentation, filing reports on the myriad of websites abusers use, etc.
Quick read. At a little over 200 pages, it's not a comprehensive analysis of every single thing that happened (and I'd guess other writers will document that at some point), but it's a great overview & more importantly, a toolbook to use in this current era of fake news and twitterbots.
Quick read. At a little over 200 pages, it's not a comprehensive analysis of every single thing that happened (and I'd guess other writers will document that at some point), but it's a great overview & more importantly, a toolbook to use in this current era of fake news and twitterbots.
badseedgirl's review against another edition
2.0
Zoe Quinn may be an excellent code writer and game designer, but she really needed someone to help her write this book. Clunky, and a tad poor as me in the first section. Once she starts writing about Crash Override, it was much more interesting.
I feel incredibly bad for Ms. Quinn and what she went through. I'm not sure why people feel it is ok to say whatever they want on the internet. I doubt much of the horrible things said to and about her would have been said if the speaker were not allowed to hide behind internet anonymity but were forced to do it face to face.
And let this be a lesson to the Millennial generation. Keep your personal life personal and don't throw it all over the internet.
I feel incredibly bad for Ms. Quinn and what she went through. I'm not sure why people feel it is ok to say whatever they want on the internet. I doubt much of the horrible things said to and about her would have been said if the speaker were not allowed to hide behind internet anonymity but were forced to do it face to face.
And let this be a lesson to the Millennial generation. Keep your personal life personal and don't throw it all over the internet.
tiarala's review
5.0
I really enjoyed this book. Far more than a memoir, Quinn does an outstanding job of diagnosing the triggers that lure weak, impressionable (mostly) men into internet mob culture, as well as outlining the path that personal internet terrorism follows. It's a science now (as predictable as the pathetic deluge of one-star reviews), and she's cracked the code through living it. But this largely isn't a book about Quinn. Her story provides a backdrop to the story of Crash Override and their activism work, as well as a primer on how we can be responsible consumers and participants of social media. She explains, through her words and those from marginalized voices, how we can actively fight against internet mobs effectively, and how we can do it without retraumatizing their victims. She elevates the voices of others in a really effective way and I found myself learning a lot about how to talk about the sad souls who perpetuate this kind of garbage, and the bastards who watch it happening and refuse to step in. PROTIP: Juxtapose this book with reporting about how international terrorist groups use social media to give yourself nightmares for days.
readingpicnic's review against another edition
4.5
I'm glad I got to hear about GamerGate from their point of view instead of only hearing about them as a victim of the movement. It was also nice that they actually provided advice on how to deal with and combat online hate, advocated for helping victims of abuse even if they were once abusers, and spoke to how getting off the internet is not a good solution for people for whom the internet is the only place they can find community and be open about their identities. It feels like other books about online hate don't offer real solutions and ways to navigate it, so it was refreshing to be more educated on what people can actually do. I didn't know anything about their victim advocacy group Crash Override, so I am glad I now know about it now.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, Stalking, Sexual harassment, Sexism, Misogyny, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Racism, Homophobia, Outing, Deadnaming, and Transphobia
thewallflower00's review against another edition
3.0
It’s hard to read a book like this in a time like 2017, but it’s necessary. Christ, how naive we were back then, when “ethics in journalism” was all we had to worry about from the alt-right. But I’m getting off track.
GamerGate was a phenomenon filled with false information, fake news, lies, damned lies, statistics, and damned lying statistics. But in 2014, we had no precedent for this kind of thing. This was the shining premiere of famed Men’s Rights Activists Toby Fair and Actual Lee. But after the Kotaku posts and Reddit threads, there’s a person at the end of the computer, and this is her story how a bunch of assholes made a her life miserable by publishing personal information and online harassment.
Only half the book is really the tale of GamerGate from Zoe Quinn’s perspective. The other half is what can we do about it–what’s wrong with the current state of online bullying and what the police and congress can’t or don’t do about it (meaning they’re woefully behind the times). I would rather have a book on the whole GamerGate scenario, dissecting the truth and laying it out in narrative non-fiction. But I can’t judge the book based on what I wanted, only what it is.
And I guess it depends on what you’re looking for. If you’re looking for Zoe Quinn’s side of the story, it’s here. If you’re looking for information on how you can further the cause of stopping online harassment and bullying, it’s here. But the two tastes don’t taste great together. It’s not a memoir, it’s more of an advocacy book. But it’s all difficult to get through (because it’s so disgusting to read about) and given everything that’s happening in the world today, it’s hard to give such things serious thought with nuclear war and white supremacy on the horizon.
Zoe Quinn’s a surprisingly good writer for being an engineer/coder (but then again, so am I). I’d only recommend this book if you’re at all interested in GamerGate (maybe you are, having been a front-of-the-caution-tape witness), but not if bigger political issues flip your cookie.
GamerGate was a phenomenon filled with false information, fake news, lies, damned lies, statistics, and damned lying statistics. But in 2014, we had no precedent for this kind of thing. This was the shining premiere of famed Men’s Rights Activists Toby Fair and Actual Lee. But after the Kotaku posts and Reddit threads, there’s a person at the end of the computer, and this is her story how a bunch of assholes made a her life miserable by publishing personal information and online harassment.
Only half the book is really the tale of GamerGate from Zoe Quinn’s perspective. The other half is what can we do about it–what’s wrong with the current state of online bullying and what the police and congress can’t or don’t do about it (meaning they’re woefully behind the times). I would rather have a book on the whole GamerGate scenario, dissecting the truth and laying it out in narrative non-fiction. But I can’t judge the book based on what I wanted, only what it is.
And I guess it depends on what you’re looking for. If you’re looking for Zoe Quinn’s side of the story, it’s here. If you’re looking for information on how you can further the cause of stopping online harassment and bullying, it’s here. But the two tastes don’t taste great together. It’s not a memoir, it’s more of an advocacy book. But it’s all difficult to get through (because it’s so disgusting to read about) and given everything that’s happening in the world today, it’s hard to give such things serious thought with nuclear war and white supremacy on the horizon.
Zoe Quinn’s a surprisingly good writer for being an engineer/coder (but then again, so am I). I’d only recommend this book if you’re at all interested in GamerGate (maybe you are, having been a front-of-the-caution-tape witness), but not if bigger political issues flip your cookie.
angengea's review against another edition
5.0
This book NEEDS to be read, and heard. This book is about pain and sorrow and PTSD and humanity and kindness and hope. It's brilliant and funny and moving and scary and infuriating. It's necessary, even if I wish it wasn't.