Book Review: Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom

Down and out in the Magic Kingdom by Cory Doctorow

This is a very interesting and original read. Let me set the scene. We are in the distant future. Due to increases in technology, we have learned how to download our minds electronically. This has led to the end of death, since people can download and then upload their personalities and knowledge back into a cloned body. In addition to the end of death, we have also ended hunger and poverty.

The end of death led to a change in the economy as well. Since no one dies, it is more important to do good and gain other peoples favor than it is to acquire physical wealth. The new money is Whuffie which is an electronic ranking of what people think of you. When you do good, people give you whuffie and you become wealthy.

This book takes place in the Disneyland of the future. Disneyland still exists as a bastion of what the world was like before immortality existed. A beloved place where people went to escape when they used to have to work and feared death. It was a magical land then and it is in the future as well. The main character Julius finds himself murdered which he finds offensive as it was only his fourth time dying. He thinks that his death was a distraction meant to allow a rival committee to overtake and change the Hall of Presidents attraction. Julius wants Disneyland to stay the same. His rivals want to make new technological changes to the rides. The main story revolves around Julius trying to retain control and keep Disneyland the way it has been in the past. A classic fight exists between change and progress, vs adhering to tradition and what as been done on the past.

The story is not extremely engaging. I enjoyed the book more for it's originality and fresh ideas. The way I see it, how could you not want to read a story that takes place hundreds of years in the future, in Disneyland.

How it applies to the singularity

One of the themes of the singularity centers around the idea that you humans will become super human due to the increases in technology. This is a prevalent theme in this book. People can download their souls and minds electronically, which allows them to defeat immortality. Every character in the book is also plugged in to what is basically the futuristic version of a wi-fi Internet. They are able to send information to each other electronically. They are also super intelligent because they have direct access to all of mankind's knowledge. If the machines do not take over first, I wouldn't be surprised if some of these ideas were to appear soon. We already have access to information wherever we want. It does not seem unreasonable to expect that we will find a way to biologically jack us into an Internet like structure. Sign me up.

I would recommend this book. You can buy it, but the author has allowed it to be released electronically under a creative commons license which makes it free. I downloaded it to my IPOD through my Stanza app but you can also get it here.

Fight for the Flesh

Deckard