“…the idea belongs to whoever develops it, and I will pretend I never had this idea of becoming a startupper.”
The book is a collection of stories (we can’t say whether they’re autobiographical or free reworkings of stories the author heard), some of which appeared as newspaper articles, others unpublished, written during his long stay in California. This long period allowed Masneri to gather life experiences and testimonies that help us understand the American world, which is very different from the European one.
Specifically, we think it’s an excellent snapshot of American society, in that corner of America like Silicon Valley or San Francisco, upon which a mystified narrative has been constructed over the years, thanks to the presence of characters elevated to myths (or false myths?), like the one mentioned in the title.
In its own way, the book reveals what lies behind the success stories of individuals and multinationals, how they have changed the customs of ordinary people, enslaved by algorithms—the only difference being that in the ancient world, slavery offered the possibility of achieving freedom.
Everything has now become a constant grading of those who offer us any kind of service. From the food delivery courier to the on-call driver to the roommate. A fake world, behind which we all become judges and judged, in a vortex that only leads to shared poverty. The sad fact is how in Europe we are trying to import this model that destroys the social fabric and true human relationships. Everyone is chasing the great American dream, unaware that they are the first to have stopped dreaming.
We really liked the writing style. Fresh, fast-paced, and not at all superficial. It gave us the feeling of notes jotted down quickly in a small notebook as events unfolded, only to be digested and reworked. In some ways, it reminded us of Mark Haddon’s style, and we felt perfectly immersed in the protagonist’s shoes.
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Michele Masneri, Steve Jobs non abita più qui, Adelphi, Milano, 2020