Staff Picks computers and internet Books

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Anna Wiener spent years in the midst of America’s self-mythologizing disruptors of the future. We are so fortunate that she maintained her clear eye and sharp tongue; her memoir of her time in Silicon Valley is a masterpiece.
Recommended by Keith M.

How To Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy

Jenny Odell

Jenny Odell has achieved a spectacular balancing act, resulting in a timely and beautiful book. It’s easier to list what this book is not: it is never scolding, simplistic, unrealistic, or naïve. As she says, she’s an artist who works in the medium of context, and that allows her to shed a fresh light on the current culture of presentational productivity, and provide a viable strategy to combat it.
Recommended by Keith M.

Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now

Jaron Lanier

Social media is certainly affecting your life and your perceptions more than you realize, and you should challenge yourself to contend with Lanier’s arguments, which are clear, concise, and (unlike so much other technology writing) neither utopian nor dystopian.
Recommended by Keith M.

Best American Infographics 2016

Gareth Cook, Robert Krulwich

I always enjoy the annual edition of the Best American Infographics, and the latest is no exception. This election year, there are a lot of startling political infographics, but there's so much more than the election here. I love flipping through this in my downtime; I always learn something new.
Recommended by Ashleigh B.

Block Wonders How to Build Super Structures in Minecraft

Kirsten Kearney

This new book by Kirsten Kearney, author of the bestselling Block City, features 34 mind-blowing Minecraft building projects by the best Minecraft masters. Marvel at the 12,000-block version of the Museum of Natural History, and follow the easy tutorial on how to build a T. rex on the next page.
Recommended by Kim T.

Dataclysm: Love, Sex, Race, and Identity – What Our Online Lives Tell Us about Our Offline Selves

Christian Rudder

Using the data he collected from his dating website as well as other social media sources, Harvard grad and OkCupid cofounder Christian Rudder presents us with a highly readable, honest, and funny look at human behavior. From flirting demographics to marital success stats, he demonstrates our changeable yet predictable nature in a way that is neither plauditory nor judgmental. The charts, graphs, and illustrated tweets throughout are the perfect... (read more)
Recommended by Aubrey W.

Second Machine Age Work Progress & Prosperity in a Time of Brilliant Technologies

Erik Brynjolfsson, Andrew McAfee

As we become more technologically advanced as a society, challenges such as job loss and failing industries are inevitable. In The Second Machine Age, a compelling case is made for shifting our policies toward preparing for technological progress and stemming economic decline.
Recommended by Jen C.

Body Type: Intimate Messages Etched in Flesh

Ina Saltz

In Body Type, accomplished graphic designer and typographer Ina Saltz offers a glimpse into the diverse, imaginative, and deeply personal world of typographic tattoos. From nicknames and birth dates to poetry, song lyrics, mantras, and memorials, the written word takes on new meaning when etched in flesh, and the images captured in Saltz's book comprise a stunning (and admittedly voyeuristic) tribute to the angst, love, devotion,... (read more)
Recommended by Tove H.

Block City: How to Build Incredible Worlds in Minecraft

Kirsten Kearney and Yazur Strovoz

Block City is an excellent Minecraft how-to book for beginners as well as those looking for inspiration, with jaw-dropping examples from master builders all over the world! You'll find great tips for choosing a platform, tools, blocks, and mods. Witness the limitless lands of creative online architects who don't have the restrictions of gravity to hold them back!
Recommended by Kim T.

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