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A review by lory_enterenchanted
Doppelganger: A Trip Into the Mirror World by Naomi Klein
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
4.0
I came to this book because a podcast I sometimes listen to discussed Naomi Wolf's Jesus experience. I was curious to learn more, and boy, did I -- between this book and a number of other sources. It's a helluva weird story, and I still don't know what to think about that vision of Jesus, nor about the podcasters I used to respect but seemed to have no idea what a Pandora's box they had gotten into.
Naomi Klein does not particularly go into that experience, but she does grapple (from a rationalist point of view) with the current crisis of alternative realities springing up. She's frustrated, angry, and disturbed by the confusion spread at her "double," but is also trying to be both logical and fair, including her own feelings and personal experience along with research. She makes excellent points about the cruelty and selfishness that underlies much "wellness" culture, and in general helps to pull the curtain aside from a lot of things we don't want to know about.
It's not easy to read, but there is a gleam of hope at the end when Klein offers an image of caring for a "disabled" planet. I thought of the amazing, unsung caregivers I know and thought, "Yes, we human beings do know how to do that." Even if we often fail at our task.
One thing I would note is that Klein seems reluctant to engage directly with those on the other side of the "mirror", drawing her conclusions from observing them in their online spaces and in brief encounters, but not from extended conversation or relationship. I don't know whether she tried and they refused (as Wolf did). But I find it a weakness that she didn't manage to meet them as humans.
I am still thinking about doubles and mirroring and how we can see through the confusion to the reality that unites us, somewhere behind the shadows. It will be a long journey.
Naomi Klein does not particularly go into that experience, but she does grapple (from a rationalist point of view) with the current crisis of alternative realities springing up. She's frustrated, angry, and disturbed by the confusion spread at her "double," but is also trying to be both logical and fair, including her own feelings and personal experience along with research. She makes excellent points about the cruelty and selfishness that underlies much "wellness" culture, and in general helps to pull the curtain aside from a lot of things we don't want to know about.
It's not easy to read, but there is a gleam of hope at the end when Klein offers an image of caring for a "disabled" planet. I thought of the amazing, unsung caregivers I know and thought, "Yes, we human beings do know how to do that." Even if we often fail at our task.
One thing I would note is that Klein seems reluctant to engage directly with those on the other side of the "mirror", drawing her conclusions from observing them in their online spaces and in brief encounters, but not from extended conversation or relationship. I don't know whether she tried and they refused (as Wolf did). But I find it a weakness that she didn't manage to meet them as humans.
I am still thinking about doubles and mirroring and how we can see through the confusion to the reality that unites us, somewhere behind the shadows. It will be a long journey.