100 Things We've Lost to the Internet
- Downloads：1135
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-12-31 09:52:29
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Pamela Paul
- ISBN：0593136772
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
The acclaimed editor of The New York Times Book Review takes readers on a nostalgic tour of the pre-Internet age， offering powerful insights into both the profound and the seemingly trivial things we've lost。
NAMED ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY CHICAGO TRIBUNE AND THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS - "A deft blend of nostalgia， humor and devastating insights。"--People
Remember all those ingrained habits， cherished ideas， beloved objects， and stubborn preferences from the pre-Internet age？ They're gone。
To some of those things we can say good riddance。 But many we miss terribly。 Whatever our emotional response to this departed realm， we are faced with the fact that nearly every aspect of modern life now takes place in filtered， isolated corners of cyberspace--a space that has slowly subsumed our physical habitats， replacing or transforming the office， our local library， a favorite bar， the movie theater， and the coffee shop where people met one another's gaze from across the room。 Even as we've gained the ability to gather without leaving our house， many of the fundamentally human experiences that have sustained us have disappeared。
In one hundred glimpses of that pre-Internet world， Pamela Paul， editor of The New York Times Book Review， presents a captivating record， enlivened with illustrations， of the world before cyberspace--from voicemails to blind dates to punctuation to civility。 There are the small losses: postcards， the blessings of an adolescence largely spared of documentation， the Rolodex， and the genuine surprises at high school reunions。 But there are larger repercussions， too: weaker memories， the inability to entertain oneself， and the utter demolition of privacy。
100 Things We've Lost to the Internet is at once an evocative swan song for a disappearing era and， perhaps， a guide to reclaiming just a little bit more of the world IRL。
NAMED ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY CHICAGO TRIBUNE AND THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS - "A deft blend of nostalgia， humor and devastating insights。"--People
Remember all those ingrained habits， cherished ideas， beloved objects， and stubborn preferences from the pre-Internet age？ They're gone。
To some of those things we can say good riddance。 But many we miss terribly。 Whatever our emotional response to this departed realm， we are faced with the fact that nearly every aspect of modern life now takes place in filtered， isolated corners of cyberspace--a space that has slowly subsumed our physical habitats， replacing or transforming the office， our local library， a favorite bar， the movie theater， and the coffee shop where people met one another's gaze from across the room。 Even as we've gained the ability to gather without leaving our house， many of the fundamentally human experiences that have sustained us have disappeared。
In one hundred glimpses of that pre-Internet world， Pamela Paul， editor of The New York Times Book Review， presents a captivating record， enlivened with illustrations， of the world before cyberspace--from voicemails to blind dates to punctuation to civility。 There are the small losses: postcards， the blessings of an adolescence largely spared of documentation， the Rolodex， and the genuine surprises at high school reunions。 But there are larger repercussions， too: weaker memories， the inability to entertain oneself， and the utter demolition of privacy。
100 Things We've Lost to the Internet is at once an evocative swan song for a disappearing era and， perhaps， a guide to reclaiming just a little bit more of the world IRL。
Reviews
StarMan
，
Passing grade， if you're into reminiscing about things lost （for better or worse）。 Passing grade， if you're into reminiscing about things lost （for better or worse）。 。。。more
H
，
A great deal of these examples were things we've lost to smart phones， and a great deal were things we've lost to。。。 growing up。 Nice light read， if curmudgeonly。 A great deal of these examples were things we've lost to smart phones， and a great deal were things we've lost to。。。 growing up。 Nice light read， if curmudgeonly。 。。。more
Jarrod Fischer
，
Concisily compiled， wittily reported。 This could have been a pedantic tome or a snarky piece of kitch。。。it was neither。 An editor and author， neither millennial nor boomer， Paul gives bite-sized examples of things irretrievably lost and those still phasing out。 Taken as a whole--and even in most of the vignettes， themselves--she gives proper context to the activity， product， or precept now obsolete， arriving with nuance at what each disappearance means for the individual and society， whether for Concisily compiled， wittily reported。 This could have been a pedantic tome or a snarky piece of kitch。。。it was neither。 An editor and author， neither millennial nor boomer， Paul gives bite-sized examples of things irretrievably lost and those still phasing out。 Taken as a whole--and even in most of the vignettes， themselves--she gives proper context to the activity， product， or precept now obsolete， arriving with nuance at what each disappearance means for the individual and society， whether for good， for ill， or for something in between。 Again， this book could have been a whimsical but ephemeral listicle or an exhaustive 500-page treatise。。。Thankfully， it was composed differently， with enough wistfulness for the lost， appreciation for the newly gained， and personal insight by an author who has a deft way with words。 。。。more
Jake Lloyd
，
It feels weird to write about this book on the Internet， so I'll stop here。 Just read it。 Nostalgia guaranteed for anyone over， say， 25。 It feels weird to write about this book on the Internet， so I'll stop here。 Just read it。 Nostalgia guaranteed for anyone over， say， 25。 。。。more
Sofia
，
en del -just det-moments
Victoria Blewer
，
Fun insightful book。 Refreshing look at what we done in the name of progress。
Chris
，
Again， deeply behind in my reviews here。 My apologies。 "100 Things We've Lost to the Internet" is moving， funny， astute， and awash in the Proustian Madeleines that anyone who recalls a world before the Internet will savor。 （And if you are too young to remember that world， then you will view this as a brilliant recreation of why your parents miss dittos， and the wonders of a childhood of benign neglect。） It's about things， yes， （the phone in the kitchen）， but what makes it such a beautiful and re Again， deeply behind in my reviews here。 My apologies。 "100 Things We've Lost to the Internet" is moving， funny， astute， and awash in the Proustian Madeleines that anyone who recalls a world before the Internet will savor。 （And if you are too young to remember that world， then you will view this as a brilliant recreation of why your parents miss dittos， and the wonders of a childhood of benign neglect。） It's about things， yes， （the phone in the kitchen）， but what makes it such a beautiful and remarkable book is the Pamela Paul uses those totems to remind us of emotions and sensations that are now either forever transformed or forever gone （the power that came with a thick rolodex， and what that first rolodex meant）。 I loved this book: all carefully curated 100 chapters。 Also？ It is not too late to grab copies for holiday gifts。 It is among the books I gave to multiple people in 2021。 。。。more
Cora Wilen
，
This book is exactly what it claims to be， a giant listicle that encompasses the expected range of nostalgia， cynicism， and appreciation for the conveniences and indignities of the internet。 100 items is a little long to hold the attention span of that format （although “attention span” is an entry， so maybe that’s just my internet-age immediate-gratification-trained brain talking）。
Sharon
，
An easy read and so relatable for people of my generation （X）。 I’m also a huge fan of the author who is that editor of the New York Times Book Review， my top resource on what to read。
Joanne
，
It appears I’m in the minority of readers who loved this book， but maybe I’m just the right age （Paul is about five years older than me） where her memories of “the before” are the same as mine， therefore inducing many nods and， “Uh-huhs” while reading these short takes。 This was a trip down my childhood memory lane。 While the internet surely has made life easier， there is a certain nostalgia for the past that Paul captured like grabbing a lightning bug in a jar on a humid summer night。 Do kids e It appears I’m in the minority of readers who loved this book， but maybe I’m just the right age （Paul is about five years older than me） where her memories of “the before” are the same as mine， therefore inducing many nods and， “Uh-huhs” while reading these short takes。 This was a trip down my childhood memory lane。 While the internet surely has made life easier， there is a certain nostalgia for the past that Paul captured like grabbing a lightning bug in a jar on a humid summer night。 Do kids even do that anymore？ Perhaps there are photos on insta documenting it。 For me， it is just a memory。 。。。more
Robin Martinez
，
Informative and extremely witty， not to mention well written。 It would make a great gift for family members and friends。
Gina
，
This book should have an index。
Patricia
，
Both the positive and negative are included on this list。
Julie
，
Pamela Paul is the editor of the NYT book review。 In short essays， she outlines some of the things that have been superseded by the internet- such as the morning paper， TV Guide， spelling， penmanship， school libraries， which have changed into tech centers， and magazines。 A light， yet though provoking book。
Michael
，
Paul's trip down recent memory lane is mostly a bore。 Paul's trip down recent memory lane is mostly a bore。 。。。more
kinsey
，
An interesting book that ended up being nothing like I thought it would be - in a good way。 My husband and I found this book to be a great conversation starter between us about how we interact with the Internet and how we hope our kids will interact with it as well。 The short chapters/sections can easily be read out loud （which we did） and make the book easy to pick up on a whim and put it down again in just a few minutes so if you're on a time crunch and you find this topic interesting it might An interesting book that ended up being nothing like I thought it would be - in a good way。 My husband and I found this book to be a great conversation starter between us about how we interact with the Internet and how we hope our kids will interact with it as well。 The short chapters/sections can easily be read out loud （which we did） and make the book easy to pick up on a whim and put it down again in just a few minutes so if you're on a time crunch and you find this topic interesting it might be a good choice for you。The author's sense of humor often went over my head or made me roll my eyes at the cheesiness and wasn't really for me。 However， she also brought several new thoughts to mind about different topics concerning the Internet I hadn't thought of before， which I always appreciate。3/5 stars。There are， of course， good and bad aspects to having broad and immediate access to such a huge and overwhelming pool of information and it's a daily choice that lies with each of us to decide how we allow it to affect our mental， emotional， spiritual and sometimes even physical lives。 I think it's always good to take a step back every so often and reevaluate how you spend your time online and this book helped me to do that in a less serious， but relatively effective way。 。。。more
Donna Collier
，
This book was interesting。 By turns， funny， nostalgic， sad， and downright terrifying， it illuminated many of the reasons that I have never used social media （besides Goodreads， of course） and continue to try to live not too attached or dependent on my phone。 When I started this book， I thought it would be mostly humorous and find the fun in the ways life has changed with the invention of the internet and smart phone。 But this was much more serious than that and discussed the possible long term e This book was interesting。 By turns， funny， nostalgic， sad， and downright terrifying， it illuminated many of the reasons that I have never used social media （besides Goodreads， of course） and continue to try to live not too attached or dependent on my phone。 When I started this book， I thought it would be mostly humorous and find the fun in the ways life has changed with the invention of the internet and smart phone。 But this was much more serious than that and discussed the possible long term effects of some of these changes。 Scary！ While this book did not surprise me much， I think it is important to examine how our culture is changing and the resulting effects。 Definitely time well spent reading this！ 。。。more
Rachel
，
This was a good read！ Pretty funny at times and sometimes true-all the the things that have changed with the internet and especially with smart phones！
Katie Killingsworth
，
Listened to this on audiobook， but I think I’d like to get my hands on a physical or Kindle version so I could go through it a bit more slowly so as to absorb some parts better。As I have a love/hate relationship with the internet， so， too， do I have a love/hate relationship with this book。 There were a number of parts that I listened to and thought， “YES， we are SO MUCH better off！” （Ex: No longer getting lost thanks to GPS。） And then there were parts where I thought， “No！ I am NOT okay with los Listened to this on audiobook， but I think I’d like to get my hands on a physical or Kindle version so I could go through it a bit more slowly so as to absorb some parts better。As I have a love/hate relationship with the internet， so， too， do I have a love/hate relationship with this book。 There were a number of parts that I listened to and thought， “YES， we are SO MUCH better off！” （Ex: No longer getting lost thanks to GPS。） And then there were parts where I thought， “No！ I am NOT okay with losing these things to the internet！” （Ex: Empathy， the ability to spell， enjoying the moment， using proper grammar and punctuation。） There were some statements the author made that I simply do not think are accurate nor do I agree with （Ex: Calling a person is rude， as is leaving a voicemail。）Overall， I appreciate this book。 I appreciate it taking me on a walk down memory lane。 I appreciate it reminding me how useful the internet can be。 I appreciate it warning me where the internet can take us in our lives if we’re not careful。 I am not okay with just turning our lives and our kids’ lives over to the internet and technology。 Yes， I appreciate it in a LOT of ways， but it doesn’t take the place of real human connection。 。。。more
Jenny Levine
，
3。5 stars
Lynda Mallory
，
What would seem to be elucidating observations to me seem fairly trite and presumptive 。
Josephine
，
Got some good chuckles out of this one， and some aww I miss that stuff， as well。 Also， some ugh why does it have to be this way now？ One of the 100 things we've lost to the internet is the meet-cute。 I love the meet-cute。 I notice that people in movies don't meet on dating apps， but I guess that having a movie where people only meet on dating apps wouldn't be as fun as randomly meeting and falling in love。 Then again， movies don't really portray reality。 Anyway， I had fun thinking about all the Got some good chuckles out of this one， and some aww I miss that stuff， as well。 Also， some ugh why does it have to be this way now？ One of the 100 things we've lost to the internet is the meet-cute。 I love the meet-cute。 I notice that people in movies don't meet on dating apps， but I guess that having a movie where people only meet on dating apps wouldn't be as fun as randomly meeting and falling in love。 Then again， movies don't really portray reality。 Anyway， I had fun thinking about all the ways these things do or don't exist still because I think some aren't completely gone。 Lots of reminiscing and/or thinking I'm glad that stuff is gone。 Thank you to NetGalley， the publisher， and the author for a free eARC in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
RE
，
I really liked the concept of this book。 It had a lot of potential for a profound discussion on the way in which the Internet has fundamentally changed our lives。 This book sometimes achieves that （Private Humiliation， Solitude， Unpopular Opinions， and so on）。 However， many of the others are either simply examples of things we lost because they were inefficient （Paperwork， Dittos， Old Tech， and so on） or things that we have not really lost at all， but are just slightly less prevalent （Maps， Movi I really liked the concept of this book。 It had a lot of potential for a profound discussion on the way in which the Internet has fundamentally changed our lives。 This book sometimes achieves that （Private Humiliation， Solitude， Unpopular Opinions， and so on）。 However， many of the others are either simply examples of things we lost because they were inefficient （Paperwork， Dittos， Old Tech， and so on） or things that we have not really lost at all， but are just slightly less prevalent （Maps， Movie Theatres， Bedtime Reading and so on）。 Overall， I was just a bit disappointed by the end product。 。。。more
Lauren
，
DNF at 25%One of the reviews I read said “bordering on fogeyism，” and that’s a perfect way to describe it。
Panda Incognito
，
This collection of short essays made me laugh out loud many times， and it is full of genuinely thoughtful insights。 There are a lot of ways that a book with this theme could go wrong， but Pamela Paul offers nostalgia without idealizing the past， acknowledges the benefits of digital technology， and includes amusing anecdotes from her experiences without letting her personal stories overpower her general observations。 There are cute black and white illustrations throughout the book， and I enjoyed This collection of short essays made me laugh out loud many times， and it is full of genuinely thoughtful insights。 There are a lot of ways that a book with this theme could go wrong， but Pamela Paul offers nostalgia without idealizing the past， acknowledges the benefits of digital technology， and includes amusing anecdotes from her experiences without letting her personal stories overpower her general observations。 There are cute black and white illustrations throughout the book， and I enjoyed the sense of whimsy that they add。 The book never becomes too serious， even when the author addresses complex issues related to social dysfunction， and she describes lots of past and present experiences in clever， amusing ways。 Her writing style is delightful， and because of her experience as a journalist， she is very concise and knows how to pack a lot of humor or emotion into a quick， unexpected turn of phrase。This book shares amusing anecdotes and descriptions of obsolete technologies and experiences。 Sometimes she mourns genuine losses， while at other times， she jokes about how difficult things were in days of yore， like when you had to get a gas station attendant to help you figure out your road atlas。 She also engages with more abstract things， such as the loss of private observances and the erosion of empathy and civility。 The different topics in her list of 100 range widely， and the book remained engaging to the end， without starting to feel repetitious to me。 Also， the author does an admirable job of writing about the breakdown of political discourse without pontificating about her own views or making snide and self-righteous comments。 That was a breath of fresh air。I would recommend this book to both teenagers and adults。 It serves as either a nostalgic journey or an intriguing field guide to unfamiliar technologies and experiences that younger readers have only heard of anecdotally， or have never heard of at all。 As a reader who was born in the mid-90s， I got a good balance of both， and it was all great。 This is a fun read for people who are interested in tech-related topics or just enjoy reflecting on their everyday lives， and it would make a very creative and interesting book club selection。 I'm sure it would start lots of interesting conversations！I received a temporary digital copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Rebecca
，
The author should take another stab at this when she’s older and wiser。
Jessica
，
I mostly read this book while the internet was off at school- amusingly enough。 I enjoy the NY Times Book Podcast so much that I picked up this book。 The illustrations are a delight， and the tone is cranky， but friendly。 A quick and enjoyable read- but not held together in a particularly meaningful way。 I found myself reading without remembering much。
Shawn Thrasher
，
I listened to this on Audible， and the narrator is very good。 I also listen to Pamela Paul every week on the New York Times Book Review Podcast， and honestly， I wish Paul herself had narrated the book！ Every person of a certain age who laments a bit （or a lot） for the past and who is suspicious of technology always starts out their jeremiad with “I’m not Luddite， but…”。 I’m not an exception， and quite frankly， neither is Paul （I’ve heard her say this）。 But she makes a great case here that the In I listened to this on Audible， and the narrator is very good。 I also listen to Pamela Paul every week on the New York Times Book Review Podcast， and honestly， I wish Paul herself had narrated the book！ Every person of a certain age who laments a bit （or a lot） for the past and who is suspicious of technology always starts out their jeremiad with “I’m not Luddite， but…”。 I’m not an exception， and quite frankly， neither is Paul （I’ve heard her say this）。 But she makes a great case here that the Internet is some of Frankenstein’s necessary evil monster。 The Internet has done much good， and also done much bad， and Paul sometimes humorously， sometimes sadly， and occasionally bitterly， explores this dichotomy。 Really: how can something so good for Us， be so damn bad for Us at the same time？ And yet， here we are。 Truly， Paul is not a Luddite （and neither am I） and she makes a great case for some things the Internet has successfully replaced - but mostly， this is a lament （although a witty one） on a past that will never be again， and a foreboding sense of “What the hell have we done to ourselves。” 。。。more
Sharron
，
I listened to Ayad Aktar’s very entertaining and informative interview with Pamela Paul about “100 Things” this past October。 As a result， I was primed to like it and it didn’t disappoint。 There wasn’t a single wrong note among the 100 things she listed and， in fact， a number of them are quite amusing。 An even greater number of them will cause readers to sit back and silently say， “Wow， that’s right on the money。” I suspect though that if you are under the age of 40 her fears about what the inte I listened to Ayad Aktar’s very entertaining and informative interview with Pamela Paul about “100 Things” this past October。 As a result， I was primed to like it and it didn’t disappoint。 There wasn’t a single wrong note among the 100 things she listed and， in fact， a number of them are quite amusing。 An even greater number of them will cause readers to sit back and silently say， “Wow， that’s right on the money。” I suspect though that if you are under the age of 40 her fears about what the internet has done to all of us will seem exaggerated or even meaningless。 But to my generation her insightful reflections are alarming。 As I closed the book， I realized how I’m relieved that I was born in the 1950s and most of my life predates the internet。My favorite quote， courtesy of Neil Gaiman， appears at page 57 in the chapter about school libraries - ‘Google can bring you back a hundred thousand answers。 A librarian can bring you back the right one。” 。。。more
Alexis
，