After reading "Little Brother" I was expecting another great novel, but I was quite dissapointed.

At first I though maybe it had to do with my lack of interest in economics, but after lending it to a few friends [most of which became so bored that they did not bother finishing it], I decided that it wasn't me -this book is just inferior to "Little Brother". I tried to get into the story, but I believe my expectations were just too high. Though some parts were interesting I did have trouble finishing this book simply because it could not hold my interest once captured.

I remember in high school, there was one particular science teacher. He seemed like a good enough teacher, and the subject was interesting, but I always used to feel irritated by him because his whole technique seemed to be to try and be "cool" --to be one of the students, to "speak our language." I think I ended up with a B in science that year --mostly because that class became something I wanted to get through rather than actually care about.

More on that in a moment.

Cory Doctorow's novel FOR THE WIN is a good book. It's a strong story, very well-thought out and detailed. The characters are great, and Doctorow draws them with such human dimensions that at times, I found myself moved to tears by what they experience. The subject matter is relevant --incredibly relevant, in a world moving more and more toward a globalized, technocratic capitalism gone mad-- and at times, Doctorow's writing is outstanding. He's able to touch nerves in a way that borders on the epic.

I think, though, that Doctorow is his own worst enemy. While the novel could've used some serious editing --it might've been a hundred pages shorter, with fewer descriptions of smoky, decrepit Internet cafes and their sketchy owners, and there were a few actual spelling/typing mistakes-- in the end its length or repetitive moments didn't take away from FOR THE WIN at all.

What does is Doctorow's narrative voice. At times he's outright heavy-handed, interrupting the narrative to give "econ 101" style lectures on how the world of finance works. These moments weren't that helpful, and I usually found myself wishing I could just get back to the story. But even this isn't the worst problem.

Where the book really falls flat is in Doctorow's use of base colloquialism. Using words like "crapalicious" and "redonkulous" (often within the econ 101 lectures), Doctorow rarely passes up a chance to describe body odour, the smell of urine after too many cheese sandwiches or other bodily realities. It feels cheap, sophomoric --as if the narrative voice is trying to be hip and modern and cool rather than unfold a really good story.

A lot like that science teacher back in high school.

And it's a pity, because this is actually a really good book. I think Cory Doctorow might become a writer of major importance if he is able to find a strong and sure voice to tell stories like this. FOR THE WIN could be major young adult literature. It deserves to be. Matthew, Jie, Ashok, Lu, Mala, Big Sister Nor and Wei Dong --especially Wei Dong-- are characters that will stay with me for a long, long time. They deserve to exist within an epic novel worthy of an A+ instead of a B.

Cory Doctorow is worth watching though. And this book, in the end, is well worth reading.

Each of the characters in this novel has something to do with the virtual economies of online gaming. The virtual economies interact with the real economy, which is kind of virtual anyway; all of the economies, virtual or not, have real workers; and all of the workers, no matter what economy, share similar concerns and issues. Since most of the characters in this novel are workers, the reader sees the same problems mirrored over and over. With me so far?

I'm making it sound confusing, but Cory Doctorow doesn't--he draws a very clear and fascinating picture of workers' place in the economy and what happens to people and societies when work is devalued and workers are unprotected. The dizzying number of similar characters does a lot, in this regard, because quite simply there are a dizzying number of workers around the world.

As a novel, though, it falls a bit flat; what distinguishes the characters from each other is mainly their ethnicities and locations, not their personalities. The plot drives some social change, but we don't see much in the way of personal change. I'm sympathetic to Doctorow's aims but the book feels too didactic to succeed as fiction. That said, Neal Stephenson writes the same kind of thing, only more so, and hasn't lost his audience yet either (including me...); it's hard not to be engaged by someone who's clearly so knowledgeable about a subject, and so passionate about the political ramifications.