Book Review: LIKE by Bart Hopkins

Straight from our social media life, in Like, author Bart Hopkins brings us to Austin, Texas, the most connected and most tech-friendly city in the Lone Star state.

Meet Greg, Paul, Martin and Rose, four different people from four different walks of life who all have an online presence. In the tradition of Frigyes Karinthy’s “six degrees of separation” theory, all of them meet in cyberspace and in real life, though not necessarily in that order, to create a community that is totally unforeseen and unexpected.

It is hard to imagine that 10 years ago, no one has ever heard of Facebook or Twitter; that the term social media was not even invented and the word “selfie” would be in the dictionary. Today, checking your Facebook account is as ubiquitous as watching television.

And from that commonplace occurrence, Bart Hopkins crafted a story that surprisingly is so believable that it can be a true story so that after reading it, I had to remind myself that it is a work of fiction.

This is the third book by Bart Hopkins that I have read. Beginning with “Fluke” (co-written with David Elliot), “Texas Jack” and now “Like”, I’ve finally discerned that Mr. Hopkin’s talent lies in making everyday life book worthy!

A very easy read, it is very easy to like “Like” (no pun intended). It’s short and sweet and a good book to have in your bedside while waiting for Santa to arrive.

“Like” is Rated T for Teens due to some violence. There are no sex scenes in this book.

DESCRIPTION

LIKE is a selfie of modern times that takes you on a journey through the lives of normal people—the new normal—fully connected in an electronic age.

You’ll meet Greg, a realtor whose success stems from his Internet savvy. His tweets are re-tweeted a hundred times and thousands follow his blog.

Then there’s Paul, who stumbles on an old crush while Facebooking. Through research of her online habits, he arranges a “chance” meeting so they can fall in Like with each other.

Martin is a cancer survivor with renewed purpose in life thanks to a supportive social media family.

It’s a tapestry of people and events woven together with this era’s most abundant thread: social media.

“With one Like I can say hi to a friend, support them during a crisis, share in a joke, make someone happy, or reinforce a person’s self esteem. I make myself part of their world. It’s like I stopped by for coffee. But, by Liking, I can also avoid talking to all the people I don’t want to waste time on. Or I can check to see what my ex girlfriend is doing seven or eight times an hour. It’s a double-edged mouse click.”
– Anonymous

Fluke

Dead Ends

Texas Jack

Like