People don't actually behave like this

The Circle is a thinly disguised critique of internet companies like Google and Apple and the adulation they inspire. However it is continually annoying to read because the main character Mae constantly fails to stand up for herself or exhibit any normal human reactions. Most of the other characters are obsessed by the concept of complete openness and no-one except for Mae's parents, her ex-boyfriend and one other main character value their privacy. Everyone else is like no-one you have ever met. Furthermore, the trolls that infest the internet don't seem to exist in this world. Customer service is consistently rated at over 95% and smiles outweigh frowns by a huge amount. Dave Eggers has created a world with a certain type of human in it to make a fairly sledgehammer point. Therefore he hasn't had to deal with the complexities of real humans. For that reason, I found the book ultimately unsatisfying. It is just too artificial.

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3 people found this helpful

Eerily close to the future

The high tech future is inevitable. With these advances also come great responsibility. Fascinating story.

The BEST narrator ever!!!

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1 person found this helpful

Don't know too much

Very good book, good voice. My advice is to listen to it without reading too many reviews, or reading too much about it. read it by going in blind. there's such a thing as knowing too much... or is there, up to you.

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1 person found this helpful

Comfortably horrendous vision of the future

Eggers vividly describes a world not too far from our own where there is no more privacy aka secrets under the guise of solving the world's problems. Very apt in light of recent big tech giant censorship of COVID dissent.

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Thought provoking

An enjoyable thought experiment on the extent of technology's involvement in our lives. Likeable characters and a setting that's just close enough to reality.

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Fantastic book. Perfect ending.

I could not stop listening. Had me hooked from the first page. My new favourite

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The best horror story EVER

This book scared me soooooo much. I’ve read it before, seen the sanitised movie, and now listened to it again, just to remind myself how precious my privacy is to me. It scares me to see parallels in existence already.
I hope all the kids of my gen read this and I hope even younger ones too.
I hope I never live to see this level of scrutiny of our lives…scary Shiite…

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The female leads are so disappointing

The story is a well trodden group of ideas. Privacy, control, cults and power. It's been better done in other novels. The opening is interesting and the idea of the overall powerful internet company is ok.
The infuriating aspect are the two female leads, they are sketched out as been smart, intelligent and good at their jobs. The main character Mae is impossibly good at her job. She's like a machine.
Yet neither has any crucial thought, like nil. It is so disappointing. They make choices that no one would consider normal.
There is zero opposition to this company and Mae. The few characters that do kind of stand up are quickly killed off. It seems everyone in the world has joined the mob rule and no one founds that weird.
This could have been a good solid story, instead the female leads have as much depth as a puddle of water. They quickly become these ego centric mad women. I seriously doubt you will be liking any of the characters.

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2 people found this helpful

I wouldn’t recommend it

This author should have deleted about 10 chapters. Unsatisfying story that never went where I assumed it would go.

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Loved it!

Can’t wait to read The Every.
Fantastic story, superb narration and production; this had me riveted from start to finish

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