Wonderland: How Play Made the Modern World
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.49 (661 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 039918449X |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 336 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2015-06-21 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
sien said A good read with an oversold thesis that isn't quite up to par for a fine writer. Wonderland : How Play Made the Modern World ("A good read with an oversold thesis that isn't quite up to par for a fine writer" according to sien. Wonderland : How Play Made the Modern World (2016) by Steven Johnson is an interesting read about the impact of how luxuries and amusements have had on history. Johnson wrote a superb book called ‘How we got to now’ that had a limited number of key inventions that he says lead to the modern world. Wonderland is similarly constructed.The book looks at shopping, music, taste, illusion, games and public space. The chapter on shopping looks at how the development of shopping. 016) by Steven Johnson is an interesting read about the impact of how luxuries and amusements have had on history. Johnson wrote a superb book called ‘How we got to now’ that had a limited number of key inventions that he says lead to the modern world. Wonderland is similarly constructed.The book looks at shopping, music, taste, illusion, games and public space. The chapter on shopping looks at how the development of shopping. Be prepared to think about PLAY in new ways Mary-Anne J. Boyce This book puts a whole new spin on the concept of "play"- taking it well beyond childhood or leisure games. As in Johnson's other books, this book guides the reader on wonderful journeys through history - social, political, technological - and you end up in some surprising locations. This book got me thinking about "play" in many different ways - and the outcomes that "play" had for our present and may have for our future. This is my third book by Mr. Johnson-- all are well written,. Well-written and enjoyable, but not a book about play This is the first book I've read by Steven Johnson, and I enjoyed the way he traced the development of major technological and cultural innovations back to roots which were less utilitarian and more aesthetic or even hedonistic. But with the possible exception of the chapter on games, most of the book is not about the role of play in shaping society, so much as the impact of the human appetite for novel, surprising, and pleasurable sensory experiences (e.g., the visual displays of u
Johnson lives in Marin County, California, and Brooklyn, New York, with his wife and three sons.From the Hardcover edition.. The founder of a variety of influential websites, he is the host and co-creator of the PBS and BBC series How We Got to Now. Steven Johnson is the bestselling author of ten books, including How We Got to Now, Where Good Ideas Come From, The
“A house of wonders itself. Wonderland inspires grins and well-what-d'ya-knows” —The New York Times Book ReviewFrom the New York Times–bestselling author of How We Got to Now and Where Good Ideas Come From, a look at the world-changing innovations we made while keeping ourselves entertained. This lushly illustrated history of popular entertainment takes a long-zoom approach, contending that the pursuit of novelty and wonder is a powerful driver of world-shaping technological change. You’ll find the future wherever people are having the most fun.. Steven Johnson argues that, throughout history, the cutting edge of innovation lies wherever people are working the hardest to keep themselves and others amused. Johnson’s storytelling is just as delightful as the inventions he describes, full of surprising stops along the journey from simple concepts to complex modern systems. He introduces us to the colorful innovators of leisure: the explorers, proprietors, showmen, and artists who changed the trajectory of history with their luxurious wares, exotic meals, taverns, gambling tables, and magic shows. In Wonderland, Johnson compellingly argues that observers of technological
Our illogical, enduring fascination with play remains one of life’s great mysteries. Johnson’s narrative is crammed with elegantly told vignettes from the history of ideas. The book is full of excellent facts.” —The Wall Street Journal“Johnson provides a compelling counterintuitive argument that the Industrial Revolution, democracy, and the computer age were all driven by diversions and appetites that historians too often ignore.” —Kirkus (starred review)“In an entertaining and accessible style, he takes tangents that arrive at sometimes st