The Boy Who Could Change the World

October 5, 2015
This thought-provoking collection of essays, lectures, and blog posts by the late Swartz, an Internet “hacktivist” and computer programmer who took his own life in 2013, shares his thoughts about a number of topics, covering everything from the inner workings of Wikipedia to the dirty secrets of political maneuvering. Selections have been arranged by theme: politics, media, books and culture, computers, free culture, and unschool (a subset of homeschooling). Swartz’s writings are passionate, intelligent, and esoteric, representing a depth of knowledge and wide variety of interests, but the level of accessibility ranges considerably, from the beginner-level introduction to some intensely technical and niche pieces. Swartz’s activism “went hand in hand with a deep commitment to the intellect and to figuring out the world through argument,” writes Henry Farrell, a professor of political science at George Washington University, in a postscript to the politics section; the selections contained throughout, written over the course of a decade, represent an intellect in a constant state of change and growth. Reading some of these essays is like peeking at the secret history of the modern Internet and having the curtain pulled back in the political arena; some topics may be dated, but there’s still value in Swartz’s thoughts and explorations.

October 15, 2015
Collected writings of Aaron Swartz (1986-2013), prescient programmer and technology critic. Swartz remains a beloved figure, due in part to the unfortunate circumstances of his death. In 2013, he committed suicide following an arguably overzealous federal prosecution for downloading large quantities of scholarly articles while at MIT. This approachable anthology allows his ideas and general philosophy regarding the importance of transparency to further speak to his legacy. The large volume of Swartz's writings has been organized into sections, with notes by writers and scholars, including Cory Doctorow, David Segal, Lawrence Lessig, and Astra Taylor. Lessig provides the introduction. "In the essays collected here," he writes, "you can watch a boy working on many problems at the same time....Few of us will ever come close to the influence this boy had." The organizational focus on such diverse topics as "Free Culture," computers, politics, "Unschool," and books (in his spare time, Swartz wrote enthusiastic reviews from his prolific reading, promoting the work of like-minded thinkers) reveals the broad nature of Swartz's worldview. In his own words, he wanted to counter "a social norm that how much we discuss something should be roughly proportional to its importance." His writing is ideally suited to longer, discursive essays on prickly social issues--much like his professed idol, David Foster Wallace--shown here in sharp, funny pieces on the capture of the political process by special interests and on the creativity-killing nature of contemporary public education. Much of Swartz's work originally appeared online, and some essays discuss his work on projects like Wikipedia and the RSS web format. Swartz seems clearheaded and generous in his discussion of technology while always emphasizing collaboration and open access: "I often think that the world needs to be a lot more organized." While his conceptual and argumentative brilliance is certainly present, there's also a youthful naivete here, which makes for a wistful reading experience. An important record of forward-looking thought cut short.

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October 1, 2015

In 2013, Swartz took his own life at the age of 26. He had been highly regarded as a programmer and activist, having participated in the creation of RSS, Creative Commons, reddit, and a host of projects devoted to open access, free speech, and political reform. Swartz was a prolific writer, blogger, and author of various speeches, papers, and book projects. In this selection of writings from 2001 to 2012, he opines on open access, Wikipedia, SOPA/PIPA, programming culture, copyright law, political corruption, media bias, and the American educational system. He shows himself to be profoundly curious, constantly interrogating systems and questioning cultural assumptions. This book is organized around key themes with introductory remarks supplied by Swartz's closest collaborators and peers in technology and open-culture advocacy, including Lawrence Lessig and Cory Doctorow. Each speaks to Swartz's particular genius for identifying systemic problems, suggesting solutions, and inspiring others to create something better. VERDICT Swartz is a clear writer, but some sections require relatively high-level knowledge of programming language and concepts. Recommended for readers with an interest in information technology and political and educational philosophy.--Talea Anderson, College Place, WA

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from December 1, 2015
Aaron Swartz was a shy computer prodigy who couldn't bear to be constrained by institutional hierarchies. As a teen, he was already an independent thinker, programmer, writer, and activist deeply concerned with free and open access to information for the public good. Raised in a moneyed Chicago suburb, he came of age during the vehement first battles over music downloading, the canary in the Internet mine. Swartz's tragically shortened lifehe committed suicide at age 26, was defined by the clash between his idealistic beliefs about free culture and the ever-morphing laws governing intellectual property. The Boy Who Could Change the World is a remarkably substantial collection of writings given the terrible brevity of Swartz's intellectually daring life, from his geeky ardor for code to his collaborative, web-driven dreams of saving the world. Swartz's mentor and friend, Lawrence Lessig, a professor of law at Harvard and former U.S. presidential candidate, introduces the collection, in which Swartz reveals himself to be ardently inquisitive, self-deprecating, funny, brilliant, radical, and quixotic. The book organizes his writings according to his primary fascinations: computers, politics, and free culture, the last a concept rooted in the belief that access to knowledge and the ability to use it constitute the way to empowerment and justice. Swartz's multifaceted activism included orchestrating massive online petitions protesting copyright and antipiracy bills. Swartz also wrote passionately about books (Kafka and David Foster Wallace were particular favorites), magazines, movies, music, and education. Each section is preceded by an illuminating essay by Swartz's associates, including science fiction writer Cory Doctorow, Slate columnist David Auerbach, and David Segal, with whom Swartz cofounded the activism organization, Demand Progress.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)