The One Device by Brian Merchant

The secret history of the iPhone is explored in this excellent text: THE ONE DEVICE by Brian Merchant. Booklist description: "a fascinating and often surprising look" and Merchant's text is certainly full of facts and personal observations.

There's a related and recent Longreads article, too, called:  "A Sociology of the Smartphone" which says in part, "it appeared in our lives so suddenly and totally that the scale and force of the changes it has occasioned have largely receded from conscious awareness."

To get a sense of how quickly the iPhone was adopted, glance at the accompanying chart which is part of an Wall Street Journal article by Tripp Mickle called "How iPhone Decade Reshaped Apple."

THE ONE DEVICE explores the history of wireless networks and points to the many inventors, innovators and workers who contributed to this technology.  Merchant goes on to talk about the period between 2004 and 2007 when the iPhone was a secret project at Apple. He frames this in part by quoting one source who says, "Apple is best when it's fixing the things that people hate."  He continues with chapters on speech recognition (Siri) and product sourcing and manufacturing.  This book is written in a way which will appeal to many iPhone users, especially the future engineers, programmers, and entrepreneurs among them.  I am looking forward to discussing it with our students. 

Before the Fall by Noah Hawley

Before the Fall by Noah Hawley is both a mystery story and a social commentary.  It is an engaging read that you will be able to finish quickly, but that will leave you pondering the quirks of fate.

Emmy and Golden Globe Award winner Noah Hawley’s latest novel begins with a private plane’s crash over the ocean between Martha’s Vineyard and Teterboro airport in New Jersey. Onboard are 11 people: rich executives, their spouses, two children, a painter-friend, a bodyguard, and the crew.  The mystery is whether this was an accident or an act of sabotage. The social commentary concerns the lifestyle choices made before, during and after the flight.

Yes, some passengers do survive and are later subjected to harsh media scrutiny.  Hawley is obviously playing with us and with concepts like: “Life is a series of decisions and reactions.  It is the things you do and the things that are done to you. And then it’s over.” 

Since we all have stories, unexpected encounters and feelings, Before the Fall has surprisingly wide appeal for fans of mysteries and more literary fiction.  This suspenseful tale involves a huge trust fund, phone tapping, indictments, depictions of natural disasters, and exercise star Jack LaLanne. Of course, in some ways it is sensationalized, but Before the Fall also asks that we reflect on what is ultimately important, even while continuing to guess about the most likely motive for the crash. Before the Fall received starred reviews from Booklist, Library Journal, and Publisher’s Weekly.

The Swans of Fifth Avenue by Melanie Benjamin

I know several people on our staff who raved about Melanie Benjamin’s The Aviator’s Wife so I was very curious to read her newly released The Swans of Fifth Avenue. It is set primarily in the 1950’s and 1960’s and focuses on Truman Capote’s friendship with Babe Paley and other society figures, the “swans” of the title. 

As such, the book is an interesting, gossipy look at that life and explores the idea that appearance matters most. Once again, Melanie Benjamin has chosen to focus on an unhappy women who is overshadowed by her husband. I did not know very much at all about Babe Paley or other socialites (like Pamela Churchill, C. Z. Guest, and Gloria Guinness) before reading this book and I found myself frequently flipping to Wikipedia or the internet for background and images as I was reading. 

Truman Capote, of course, is more well-known and seems to be experiencing a revival of sorts due to his friendship with Harper Lee. In The Swans of Fifth Avenue he is portrayed as very insecure and Benjamin stresses this again and again (and again), along with Babe’s unhappiness in contrast to their glamorous lifestyle.  With tales of Capote’s famous Black and White Ball, references to contemporary figures like Kenneth, and cameo appearances by stars like Lauren Bacall, this novel will certainly entertain those who remember the era. Overall, though, a fifty year old “scandal” seemed muted and I wished for a somewhat faster pace.  The Swans of Fifth Avenue received a starred review from Library Journal.