Status
Available
Call number
Collection
Publication
Fourth Estate (2021), Edition: 01, 304 pages
Description
"In her mid-twenties, at the height of tech industry idealism, Anna Wiener -- stuck, broke, and looking for meaning in her work, like any good millennial -- left a job in book publishing for the promise of the new digital economy. She moved from New York to San Francisco, where she landed at a big-data startup in the heart of the Silicon Valley bubble: a world of surreal extravagance, dubious success, and fresh-faced entrepreneurs hell-bent on domination, glory, and, of course, progress. Anna arrived amidst a massive cultural shift, as the tech industry rapidly transformed into a locus of wealth and power rivaling Wall Street. But amid the company ski vacations and in-office speakeasies, boyish camaraderie and ride-or-die corporate fealty, a new Silicon Valley began to emerge: one in far over its head, one that enriched itself at the expense of the idyllic future it claimed to be building. Part coming-age-story, part portrait of an already-bygone era, Anna Wiener's memoir is a rare first-person glimpse into high-flying, reckless startup culture at a time of unchecked ambition, unregulated surveillance, wild fortune, and accelerating political power. With wit, candor, and heart, Anna deftly charts the tech industry's shift from self-appointed world savior to democracy-endangering liability, alongside a personal narrative of aspiration, ambivalence, and disillusionment. Unsparing and incisive, Uncanny Valley is a cautionary tale, and a revelatory interrogation of a world reckoning with consequences its unwitting designers are only beginning to understand."--… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member rivkat
Working at several tech startups in the last ten years, Wiener writes about the difficulties of being a highly educated but ultimately disposable cog, and a female one at that, trying to find a workplace to love while the owners never invest the same amount of care in their employees or users. As
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has often been reported, it’s striking how Wiener tries to avoid any proper names (so Facebook becomes, repeatedly, “the social network everyone hates”); I’m not sure it adds a lot to the book but it does tie into her point that she spent too much time looking for stories when she should have been asking about systems. Show Less
LibraryThing member pomo58
Uncanny Valley: A Memoir by Anna Wiener is a personal glimpse at the world of big tech when start ups were happening at what should have clearly been seen as an unsustainable rate.
First, for all the "bros" who are slamming this for being limited to what she experienced and for addressing how she
Wiener was definitely not the typical start-up employee, whether in gender or in training. As she made her way she had what I think any rational person would have, conflicting thoughts and feelings. Wow, these benefits are great, wow, these people are truly vile and juvenile. Wow, they could really do harm to a lot of people with their lack of either ethics or basic human compassion. But, again, wow, these perks are great. It is real easy to stand outside and pretend we would have either turned our back and walked away or, conversely, gone all in on the vile culture that has, indeed, helped to dismantle our democracy. Wiener lets us inside her head as she navigates her life.
Yes, this is written rather episodically, but I think for a memoir that is focusing on her experiences in a toxic environment it works. There is, to be sure, plenty of humor. But underneath everything is the foundational bro-culture that gave emotionally stunted boys far too much money and power and now we are all paying the price.
Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via Edelweiss.
First, for all the "bros" who are slamming this for being limited to what she experienced and for addressing how she
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felt about what was happening around her, this is a freakin' memoir. Look that word up. This isn't a research based expose, this is a memoir. Are you that stupid or that insecure? Okay, back to your regularly scheduled programming.Wiener was definitely not the typical start-up employee, whether in gender or in training. As she made her way she had what I think any rational person would have, conflicting thoughts and feelings. Wow, these benefits are great, wow, these people are truly vile and juvenile. Wow, they could really do harm to a lot of people with their lack of either ethics or basic human compassion. But, again, wow, these perks are great. It is real easy to stand outside and pretend we would have either turned our back and walked away or, conversely, gone all in on the vile culture that has, indeed, helped to dismantle our democracy. Wiener lets us inside her head as she navigates her life.
Yes, this is written rather episodically, but I think for a memoir that is focusing on her experiences in a toxic environment it works. There is, to be sure, plenty of humor. But underneath everything is the foundational bro-culture that gave emotionally stunted boys far too much money and power and now we are all paying the price.
Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via Edelweiss.
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LibraryThing member jillrhudy
The author's sojourn in Silicon Valley is simultaneously disturbing and banal, like an episode of "Black Mirror." Wiener works in customer service for two different tech firms, after starting her working life in publishing in New York City, then washing out of an e-book startup. When she tries to
When this creative soul is transplanted to Silicon Valley to work for young, hyper, tech dudes presiding over startup companies, rolling in millions in venture capital and crippled with Messiah complexes, Wiener must do customer service 7/365 on her own phone. She is obliged to go on weird corporate retreats. She feels devotedly loyal to the CEOs and tries to ignore the growing warning signs that all is not well, in San Francisco, in modern tech, and in her own soul. Her life evolves pretty much as expected and she experiences discrimination in this men's world. After all, women are "good at" customer service by nature, aren't they? It's not like she's writing code or anything. I feared that these egotistic males who wanted to "move fast and break things" would break Wiener as well, but, as one would guess from the fact that she has written a memoir, they didn't.
Some readers may observe that this memoir enumerates strictly first-world problems: poor baby, earning six figures.
I, however, was inspired to wonder, along with the author, why we let these young men take over our entire lives and invade our privacy to such a massive extent. Are they worth either the power or the billions that we have given them? Are their cool tools worth it? How much power do they really have? The new Twenties should mark the end of our dreamy infatuation with these companies, their products, and the men who get preposterously rich creating them. This insightful memoir could not be more timely.
I received an advanced readers copy of this book from the publisher and was encouraged to submit a review.
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bring her book-loving personality and natural talents to the e-book world, she intercepts a chat in which she is pilloried for "learning, not doing." This is actually viewed as a drawback.When this creative soul is transplanted to Silicon Valley to work for young, hyper, tech dudes presiding over startup companies, rolling in millions in venture capital and crippled with Messiah complexes, Wiener must do customer service 7/365 on her own phone. She is obliged to go on weird corporate retreats. She feels devotedly loyal to the CEOs and tries to ignore the growing warning signs that all is not well, in San Francisco, in modern tech, and in her own soul. Her life evolves pretty much as expected and she experiences discrimination in this men's world. After all, women are "good at" customer service by nature, aren't they? It's not like she's writing code or anything. I feared that these egotistic males who wanted to "move fast and break things" would break Wiener as well, but, as one would guess from the fact that she has written a memoir, they didn't.
Some readers may observe that this memoir enumerates strictly first-world problems: poor baby, earning six figures.
I, however, was inspired to wonder, along with the author, why we let these young men take over our entire lives and invade our privacy to such a massive extent. Are they worth either the power or the billions that we have given them? Are their cool tools worth it? How much power do they really have? The new Twenties should mark the end of our dreamy infatuation with these companies, their products, and the men who get preposterously rich creating them. This insightful memoir could not be more timely.
I received an advanced readers copy of this book from the publisher and was encouraged to submit a review.
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LibraryThing member JosephKing6602
Well-done ... enjoyable & really funny; it would have been better, ibelieve, if she had more character development. Overall, recommended
LibraryThing member chasidar
Not sure what all the fuss was about. It was okay but it didn't actually say anything.
LibraryThing member bobbieharv
I'd read her essay in I think it was the New Yorker, so much of this was familiar and the end seemed padded. An interesting perspective, however, about male power, especially in tech, and the resulting diminishing of women. I enjoyed the personal side about her relationships.
LibraryThing member aditkumar
The best I’ve read about this period in San Francisco to date, but it seems like the passage of time and expanding to book length diluted the bite of the n 1 essay
LibraryThing member bostonbibliophile
Interesting enough, well written but no big surprises. I read at least one book of California history each year and this counts. Recommended for people interested in the tech industry, San Francisco or womens' memoirs. Like I said no big surprises but worth your time. Very fish-out-of-water, NYCer
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tries on the West Coast. Spoiler alert: it doesn't work out. Show Less
LibraryThing member Tytania
It kept me reading. I liked the coy refusals to name any company, making us feel like we might be living in a similar but other world: the "social network everyone hated," the "search engine," the "litigious corporation based in Seattle." At one point she not-name-drops my favorite blogger, "a
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libertarian economist" and describes him in a not altogether flattering light. I wrote to tell him about it, and he responded, yes, "the book is fiction in a number of respects." She's not the only one who can be coy. My interest waned a bit when I realized that nothing was really going to happen. Show Less
LibraryThing member AKBouterse
Gosh I really enjoyed this book! I liked the writing style and elements that others didn't enjoy. I liked the fact that her sociology undergrad degree really seemed to shine through in the way she approached her thinking about tech and Silicon Valley. Wiener is clearly an excellent writer. The way
I was slightly nervous going into this even though I know I am very interested in the topic. I rarely read memoirs and when I have read books about Silicon Valley they usually focus on specific companies or the economic system that built them and were not as much about one persons individual work experience. Because the writing was so phenomenal, I fell write into it. I think there are some parts of Wiener's writing style that some people may find annoying like that fact that she does not name the companies but just describes them and leaves the reader to try to figure it out.
I think if you're a person like me who is somewhat obsessed with the machinations of Silicon Valley I think you'll enjoy getting to read from the perspective of someone who worked in that environment and has some critiques of how the whole system works. I would definitely recommend this book.
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she can craft a sentence is just technically and artistically very impressive and I would love to read some more of her writing for the New Yorker. I was slightly nervous going into this even though I know I am very interested in the topic. I rarely read memoirs and when I have read books about Silicon Valley they usually focus on specific companies or the economic system that built them and were not as much about one persons individual work experience. Because the writing was so phenomenal, I fell write into it. I think there are some parts of Wiener's writing style that some people may find annoying like that fact that she does not name the companies but just describes them and leaves the reader to try to figure it out.
I think if you're a person like me who is somewhat obsessed with the machinations of Silicon Valley I think you'll enjoy getting to read from the perspective of someone who worked in that environment and has some critiques of how the whole system works. I would definitely recommend this book.
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LibraryThing member kitlovestea
It was interesting to read the experiences of someone who had very little interest in technology outside of everyday use, as she navigated the innards of start-up culture. I definitely got the impression the book was talking to people who similarly didn't have any interest in or familiarity with
Recommended for anyone interested in the tech sector's cultural influence, but who may not necessarily be sure where to begin.
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the sector beforehand, though, and as such, I didn't really read anything new to me. It would be a pretty good introduction to the bizarre cultural bubble of that particular chunk (both in space and time) of start-up culture, though.Recommended for anyone interested in the tech sector's cultural influence, but who may not necessarily be sure where to begin.
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LibraryThing member BornAnalog
Wiener fleshes out some of the details of a story that most people are familiar with only in its broad outlines: the social and cultural damage wrought by a tech sector that has tried--often not very hard--to mask its hunger for profit behind a veneer of social utility. Many of the elements here
But the comparison with Zeisler occurred to me for another reason. One thing I want from a memoir is not simply to learn about the world or events that the memoir describes, but about the author. And this book leaves you with a lot to ponder about Wiener. The most problematic aspect for me was her claim to be a feminist. I have no doubt that in her own mind she considered herself to be so at the time. But it appears to be the kind of feminism that I see all the time in many of the students I teach: a vague individualized notion of inherent rights. Wiener is in fact a perfect illustration of what Zeisler describes as the emergence of consumer feminism that sells a notion of individual empowerment rather than collective action. When it comes to acting like a feminist, rather than just believing she is one, Wiener's actions are consistently at odds with her beliefs. As a reader, you can play a game where you count the number of times she uses some variant of the phrase "I waited for them to notice me; they never did" or list the instances where she otherwise passively waits for things to happen to her. Despite, by her own account, being subject to repeated victimization as a woman and seeing other women endure the same, there is little in the way of trying to build a collective response.
Also fascinating is the degree to which Wiener's narrative highlights some of the larger cultural ills of which the startup culture is just one facet. Chief among these is a truly extraordinary level of wasteful consumerism. Another fun game with this book is to count the number of times Wiener reports buying a service, device, or item of clothing that by her own account she never ends up using. One of her chief concerns is with the degree to which so much of our social media tech has become addictive mainly because it was deliberately designed to be so (the analytics firm she worked for rolled out a package that they called--with the complete lack of irony in which Silicon Valley specializes--Addiction). You would think, then, that she might have had cause to reflect on the extraordinary reliance on alcohol and cigarettes that fuels both the work and social scenes she inhabits.
Lastly, while she is legitimately and thoughtfully critical of the entitlement bubbles in which so many tech workers are encased, she doesn't seem particularly aware of the dynamics of the broader culture of which she is a part. She is a bicoastal denizen and the lives of she and her friends in New York and San Francisco have a lot in common: regular recreational drug use (Ecstasy, Acid, etc), artisanal this-that-and-the-other, chi-chi restaurants, services for entirely made-up problems, obscure bands, performance art, etc. I want to be very clear, that I don't myself have a problem with any of these things. But it only takes a little imagination to realize that there are large swathes of the country where someone would learn that, say, a guy has a job as a "cuddle therapist" providing emotional solace for older men, and think WTAF? One of the unintentional side-effects of this book, then (unless, I guess, you are a twenty-something living in the New York and San Fran fantasy worlds) is to help us see some of what divides us at the moment. The daily life that she describes, even the "healthy" version, is one that is so far removed from the reality of much of the US population as to be taking place on a different planet.
These may seem like criticisms, but they aren't really; hence the high star rating! It is Wiener's openness and honesty in describing her life that makes these issues visible. My only regret is that she herself doesn't seem to notice them and reflect on them which would have made for an even better book. While I think this book will remain valuable as an anthropological account of startup culture, I suspect its real value going forward will be its portrayal of a certain type of smart, compartmentalized, analytical but not terribly reflective twenty-something product of late US capitalism.
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have in fact been described in detail elsewhere: the toxic culture of bro-grammers, the treatment of women in tech, the messianic delusions of boy-king founders, the pernicious effects of venture capital throwing millions of dollars into the laps of people in their teens and early twenties who in many cases dropped out of college. Wiener's strength is her ability to weave all this into a prose that crackles; I haven't felt like a book would furnish me with this many dinner party one-liners since reading Zeisler's "We Were Feminists Once." Like Zeisler, Wiener is not emptily snarky; at regular intervals the humor will pause and moments of genuinely moving insight into our current human moment emerge.But the comparison with Zeisler occurred to me for another reason. One thing I want from a memoir is not simply to learn about the world or events that the memoir describes, but about the author. And this book leaves you with a lot to ponder about Wiener. The most problematic aspect for me was her claim to be a feminist. I have no doubt that in her own mind she considered herself to be so at the time. But it appears to be the kind of feminism that I see all the time in many of the students I teach: a vague individualized notion of inherent rights. Wiener is in fact a perfect illustration of what Zeisler describes as the emergence of consumer feminism that sells a notion of individual empowerment rather than collective action. When it comes to acting like a feminist, rather than just believing she is one, Wiener's actions are consistently at odds with her beliefs. As a reader, you can play a game where you count the number of times she uses some variant of the phrase "I waited for them to notice me; they never did" or list the instances where she otherwise passively waits for things to happen to her. Despite, by her own account, being subject to repeated victimization as a woman and seeing other women endure the same, there is little in the way of trying to build a collective response.
Also fascinating is the degree to which Wiener's narrative highlights some of the larger cultural ills of which the startup culture is just one facet. Chief among these is a truly extraordinary level of wasteful consumerism. Another fun game with this book is to count the number of times Wiener reports buying a service, device, or item of clothing that by her own account she never ends up using. One of her chief concerns is with the degree to which so much of our social media tech has become addictive mainly because it was deliberately designed to be so (the analytics firm she worked for rolled out a package that they called--with the complete lack of irony in which Silicon Valley specializes--Addiction). You would think, then, that she might have had cause to reflect on the extraordinary reliance on alcohol and cigarettes that fuels both the work and social scenes she inhabits.
Lastly, while she is legitimately and thoughtfully critical of the entitlement bubbles in which so many tech workers are encased, she doesn't seem particularly aware of the dynamics of the broader culture of which she is a part. She is a bicoastal denizen and the lives of she and her friends in New York and San Francisco have a lot in common: regular recreational drug use (Ecstasy, Acid, etc), artisanal this-that-and-the-other, chi-chi restaurants, services for entirely made-up problems, obscure bands, performance art, etc. I want to be very clear, that I don't myself have a problem with any of these things. But it only takes a little imagination to realize that there are large swathes of the country where someone would learn that, say, a guy has a job as a "cuddle therapist" providing emotional solace for older men, and think WTAF? One of the unintentional side-effects of this book, then (unless, I guess, you are a twenty-something living in the New York and San Fran fantasy worlds) is to help us see some of what divides us at the moment. The daily life that she describes, even the "healthy" version, is one that is so far removed from the reality of much of the US population as to be taking place on a different planet.
These may seem like criticisms, but they aren't really; hence the high star rating! It is Wiener's openness and honesty in describing her life that makes these issues visible. My only regret is that she herself doesn't seem to notice them and reflect on them which would have made for an even better book. While I think this book will remain valuable as an anthropological account of startup culture, I suspect its real value going forward will be its portrayal of a certain type of smart, compartmentalized, analytical but not terribly reflective twenty-something product of late US capitalism.
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LibraryThing member Castlelass
Anna Wiener’s memoir about her experiences in working for fledgling technology companies in Silicon Valley. She leaves a job in publishing in New York and moves to San Francisco for a job at a start-up in “big data” analytics. She also works for an open-source software development company.
The focus of the book is the shift in viewpoint from the idea that technology is contributing to progress to that of using data for marketing, sales, and mining personal information. Along the way, Weiner describes the male-dominated culture and the mindset that employees should be willing to sacrifice their personal lives for business goals. She is forthcoming about her own weaknesses and employs plenty of self-deprecating humor. Highly recommended to women in the tech industry and those interested in the current trends in data analytics.
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Weiner’s outlook changes significantly during her four years in Silicon Valley. She starts out somewhat naïve and optimistic but over time, she begins to see the downsides, which ultimately leads to a change in careers. The focus of the book is the shift in viewpoint from the idea that technology is contributing to progress to that of using data for marketing, sales, and mining personal information. Along the way, Weiner describes the male-dominated culture and the mindset that employees should be willing to sacrifice their personal lives for business goals. She is forthcoming about her own weaknesses and employs plenty of self-deprecating humor. Highly recommended to women in the tech industry and those interested in the current trends in data analytics.
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LibraryThing member bangerlm
Very well written, interesting, engaging and the audio version is well narrated. I can imagine it has been a bit frightening releasing this memoir. Stylistically some people complained about her use of aliases, but I liked it, and can see why legally it is probably prudent.
It is a bit of a coming
I had read Ellen Ullman's Life in Code last year, and it is interesting how somewhat parallel narratives look decades apart.
It is a bit of a coming
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of age story, and at the beginning, she is so optimistic, it made me question if I have wasted opportunity, haven't cashed in my B.S. in Computer Science for as much as I could have. But as her story progressed I felt more affirmed in the decisions I have made. I had read Ellen Ullman's Life in Code last year, and it is interesting how somewhat parallel narratives look decades apart.
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LibraryThing member unaluna
Wiener has an important perspective to share, but it is diminished by uneven writing. There is a fine line between navel gazing and good essay/memoir writing. This one, is unfortunately, is on the side of the former rather than the latter.
I can't help but think this was inadequately edited by
It's too bad because I had hopes for this book and the tale of the teenagers that run Silicon Valley - she makes very interesting and important points, and then tosses them aside rather than making links between them, exploring further.
An important and valuable perspective, but completely lost in a self-conscious delivery that is trying way too hard.
I can't help but think this was inadequately edited by
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someone with the same or similar background of the author: cisgender white middle class background and all of the biases that entails. Wiener is wishy washy at best and alternately performatively concerned or naive at worst. She is a writer, sure, but one who fails to understand that words are capable of multiple meanings and are also defined in relation to context. Whenever she has an opinion, she is smug rather than funny.It's too bad because I had hopes for this book and the tale of the teenagers that run Silicon Valley - she makes very interesting and important points, and then tosses them aside rather than making links between them, exploring further.
An important and valuable perspective, but completely lost in a self-conscious delivery that is trying way too hard.
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LibraryThing member bfister
Interesting insider account of working in a data analysis firm that supported Silicon Valley's obsession with surveillance and metrics and the rise and fall of glamor associated with Silicon Valley culture. Not as deeply informative as a book like Alice Marwick's Status Update but a lighter lift
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for those who aren't looking for scholarly depth. Show Less
LibraryThing member Anamie
After working in tech for several years, this book was an interesting read. I do not work in the bay area but it's interesting to see the lasting cultural influence it has on the entire tech workforce. The book had a lot of good build up but kind of cut off at the end. I am interested in learning
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more about the rising interest rates and tightening of venture capital, the patagonia vest recession and how San Francisco has responded to that. It needs some sort of sequel. It's interesting how she places these men in technology in a mystical enlightened visionary box through her vivid descriptions. The truth, as a woman software developer myself, is some of these developers are delusional and make collaboration difficult. Their conversations are just them enjoying listening to themselves. I dread coding with these people. She came close to that in concluding that it's all just business and luck but seemed rushed. Very enjoyable read. Show Less
Awards
Audie Award (Finalist — Autobiography/Memoir — 2021)
BookTube Prize (Octofinalist — Nonfiction — 2021)
NPR: Books We Love (2020)
Boston Globe Best Book (Nonfiction — 2020)
Original language
English
Original publication date
2020-01
Physical description
304 p.; 7.8 inches
ISBN
0008296863 / 9780008296865
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DDC/MDS
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