Douglas Rushkoff: Bull

By MICHAEL LARSON

I had an earth-shatteringly brilliant new technology to pitch. TeslaNet. A communications infrastructure based on the electrical charge of the earth itself. It could blow the lid off everything. And it was invented by the kids from the neighbourhood." This statement from Jamie Cohen, the likeable high-flier at the centre of this searing satire on corporate America, captures perfectly his ethos, and the constant crises of conscience that he faces.

Yes, he has his hand on this amazing technology but does he sell out his old hacker friends to guarantee himself a stake in corporate history? Does he use sneaky mind-reading software to help his father to win reinstatement as Rabbi of the local synagogue?

Should he sleep with Carla because he likes her, or because it will help him to the top?

Bull charts Jamie's rapid rise from geeky but intellectually brilliant hacker, to his lofty position at a powerful brokerage firm. He is there to develop technology, and initially relishes the opportunity to see his ideas become influential. But when the firm starts to blackmail the head of the Federal Reserve, a situation in which Jamie is deeply involved, it starts a spiralling loss of control and the onset of huge moral dilemmas.

Things just get worse when he uncovers a company that has a dangerous program to unleash. Jamie's paranoia means people start to look like bulls, a sci-fi-type scenario that edges toward farce. But the story holds its own, largely because it isn't that far-fetched. Or at least Rushkoff makes it believable.

Rushkoff has a background in media journalism and is technology savvy, so his dissection of the internet throws up some intriguing questions and frightening scenarios. There is plenty of humour, which serves the narrative well, and his journalistic pace keeps it from getting bogged down in detail.

The book reads as if it were a manuscript discovered in 2010, so there are footnotes to explain to readers things they might not understand. When Jamie mentions a popular gameshow, the footnote reads: "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire was still just a television show and website, and hadn't yet grown into a church." The only fault is that Rushkoff wants to pack in so much, it's hard to know how to approach it.

An attack on corporate greed? A flaky sci-fi novel? Lessons in Jewish Law 101? Perhaps all of the above, with twists, turns and in-jokes. It is humorous and easy to get through. A touch different, a little touched, but worth a peek, especially if you're interested in, er, synaptic algorithms. Quite.

Sceptre

$34.95