Tyranny of the Moment: Fast and Slow Time in the Information Age
E-mail, cellular telephones, voicemail, the Internet, and other  information technologies do not increase our efficiency, give us  more flexibility, or liberate us from drudgery. Instead, argues  Eriksen (social anthropology, Univ. of Oslo), they eat away at  our increasingly precious time, leaving us to wade through  useless and marginally useful information. Eriksen claims that  our new electronic modes of communication are partly to blame  for causing a host of contemporary social ills, including  decreased job security, blurred boundaries between work and  leisure, and the declining quality of family life. Eriksen's  critiques feel a little too familiar, and one is left with the  sense that it has all been said many times before. Still, this  book is written in an engaging and humorous manner and is  therefore suitable for public libraries. Andrew Brodie Smith,  Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Lib., Washington, DCCopyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.