Reviews

Uncanny Valley by Anna Wiener

kkuhn97's review against another edition

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informative reflective fast-paced

5.0

hilary_weckstein's review against another edition

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3.0

Didn’t really enjoy this or get much out of it but there were a few funny jokes and it entertained me on a few runs. The sarcasm was too much in parts. 2.5 ⭐️ ⭐️

jess_mango's review against another edition

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3.0

I am torn on how to rate this one, honestly. The first half-ish was a strong 4 for me but the 2nd half didn't connect with me as much.

This memoir is about a millennial woman who leaves her job as a publishing assistant in NYC to work for tech start ups. In her off-handed, cynical way Wiener shares her experience joining this young "boys club", where most founders/CEO's are younger than her (even though she is only 25) and they are all about getting the $$ and dominating the market. In a sense, I've been there, done that, since I spent over a decade of my life working in high tech though for most of the time for a company much bigger than the ones Wiener worked for. It is definitely mostly a boys club so I connected with her sentiments in that regard.

purplepierogi's review against another edition

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5.0

idk what it was but I actually loved this. yes, abrupt ending and probably redundant for ppl in tech and there is a distancing (not a programmer, speaks as if a naive outsider) etc etc, but I really enjoyed reading it and found myself compulsively k*ndle highlighting (a good thing)

djmikeylikes's review against another edition

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informative fast-paced

3.25

nicolenhart's review against another edition

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reflective medium-paced

3.5

ashleyeller's review against another edition

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informative reflective medium-paced

3.0

metalgeartofu's review against another edition

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adventurous informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

msilkwolfe's review against another edition

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5.0

Loved this one!! I was riveted. I knew very little about Silicon Valley before reading the book, and so this was so fascinating to me. The writing was wonderful, too. She is so perceptive, and describes situations, people, and complicated worlds so well.

Also, I listened to it on audio, and I think the audio narrator was the best audio narrator I’ve ever listened to. She was amazing!!

laurenmarietta's review against another edition

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5.0

Devastatingly honest. Beyond just a memoir of a woman in tech, I'd call it a takedown of Big Tech's veneer of sincerity, a detailed look into the dehumanizing and self-deceiving worldviews of those who build and benefit from today's internet, and perhaps a mirror for those who use it.