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For the last several weeks, while we’ve been at home, away from our friends and families and schools, most of us have relied on technology to keep us informed, educated, and connected. But while technology has its advantages, it also has its disadvantages—as one man learns in author Nick Spalding’s Logging Off.
The story makes a life-altering change with troubled graphic designer Andy Bellows. After an important pitch ends in disaster and embarrassment of a gastronomical variety, Andy is convinced that there’s something seriously wrong with him. His doctor agrees. Andy is seriously addicted to technology—and he needs a full detox. Andy can’t imagine his life without Instagram or Facebook or his favorite games, and when he reluctantly agrees to the detox, he finds that it’s even harder than he expected. But he also starts to feel a strange freedom as he learns about the offline world.
While many of us grew up without smart phones and Google and social media, it’s hard to imagine life without those things now. Most of us haven’t touched a map or a dictionary or perused a library card file in years. And when Andy unplugs, he finds himself struggling to get by without the Internet. He finds himself using a map to get to a meeting (and then getting horribly lost). He has to walk down the street to find restaurants—and he has to make decisions without Yelp reviews. He even attempts to find a date without swiping. His experiences often lead to some hilarious disasters and plenty of strange encounters, but they also force him to get out and explore the world around him. He discovers the joy of a road trip—or of talking to people in person. He explores places that he never would have visited and meets people he never would have met.
The story certainly has its laugh-out-loud moments, but it’s more than that. For those of us who have struggled to adapt to social distancing and sheltering in place, it’s a surprisingly timely story about dealing with change—and seeing the positive aspects of an uncomfortable, unfamiliar situation. It’s about getting out of your comfort zone and appreciating things you’ve never really noticed before. It’s a fun read—but in these crazy times, it might also make you stop and think.
Logging Off is an entertaining but also sometimes eye-opening novel about technology—and life beyond the screens. Will it make you start your own detox? Probably not. But it might make you set down your phone every once in a while to enjoy the offline world.
Listen to the review on Shelf Discovery:
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