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How to Do Nothing

Resisting the Attention Economy

Audiobook
0 of 1 copy available
0 of 1 copy available
A galvanizing critique of the forces vying for our attention-and our personal information-that redefines what we think of as productivity, reconnects us with the environment, and reveals all that we've been too distracted to see about ourselves and our world Nothing is harder to do these days than nothing. But in a world where our value is determined by our 24/7 data productivity . . . doing nothing may be our most important form of resistance. So argues artist and critic Jenny Odell in this field guide to doing nothing (at least as capitalism defines it). Odell sees our attention as the most precious-and overdrawn-resource we have. Once we can start paying a new kind of attention, she writes, we can undertake bolder forms of political action, reimagine humankind's role in the environment, and arrive at more meaningful understandings of happiness and progress. Far from the simple anti-technology screed, or the back-to-nature meditation we hear so often, How to do Nothing is an action plan for thinking outside of capitalist narratives of efficiency and techno-determinism. Provocative, timely, and utterly persuasive, this book is a four-course meal in the age of Soylent.
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    • AudioFile Magazine
      Listeners expecting instruction on the art of doing nothing (especially those who hope to unplug, listen, and return to work refreshed and productive) will be surprised: This audiobook is less about HOW to do nothing than WHY to do nothing--it illuminates what we gain by doing less and unplugging from the "cult of productivity." Narrator Rebecca Gibel offers a spirited sense of company as she unfolds this extended essay. Odell invokes Montaigne's definition--the work is more open-ended exploration than argument. Gibel's insight and guidance are especially useful in highlighting Odell's sometimes circuitous questioning of the nature of productivity and the way that our current social-media-driven culture asks us to curate our lives. A provocative invitation to reconsider the nature--and benefits--of paying attention. J.C.G. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine

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