Review of The Neonaissance

[Melisa Jane]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Neonaissance" by Peter Weddle.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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Americans have conquered almost every challenge they've come across. Reading through their history, one will realize that they have been through the darkest places. These include colonization, slavery, and political assassinations. Thankfully, they conquered all these to become the world superpower. Keenly examining their current cultural, political, and economic climate, are they headed in the right direction? Is there something they should change to maintain their greatness? The Neonaissance: The New Birth of a Noble Democracy in America and the Two Mega-Crises We Must Overcome for It to Happen by Peter Weddle is a non-fictional book that examines the current state of America, and try to project what it will be like in the future.

This book has three hundred and thirty-four pages. It is divided into seven chapters. After the end of the seventh chapter, there are three additional sections: Afterword, End Notes, and About the Author. In this review, I'll only summarize the first two chapters.

The first chapter, Fire in the Hole, talks about how beautiful America is. The author wants Americans to always appreciate how lucky they are to be living in such an amazing country. The author talks about certain attributes Americans share, such as loyalty and kindness. Although Americans have their shortcomings, the author expresses his confidence that they'll be victorious, just like they have in the past. The author ends this chapter by discussing the kind of future Americans should expect. The second chapter, The Technological Singularity, talks about the possibility of creating super-natural beings that are more intelligent than human beings. The author argues that, with the exponential growth in technology, the creation of these super-intelligent beings is inevitable, and that it'll start in 2061 or earlier. The chapter ends with the author comparing Maslow's hierarchy of needs to the ethical hierarchy of AI using a diagram.

I liked several things about this book. First, the author provides three ways to read this book, depending on the reader's preferences. This will appeal to most readers because everyone will enjoy reading it, depending on individual preferences. I also liked the overall structure of the book. The author did well in arranging the chapters so that lighter ideas are found within the first few chapters, while heavier and more complex ideas are found within the last few chapters. This enabled me to grow and adapt to the ideas of the author. Since I didn't find any grammatical errors while reading, this book was exceptionally edited.

Although I enjoyed reading this book, it has some flaws. First, almost half of the book is about speculating what the future of America will be like. The book projects too far into the future to an extent that I started doubting its accuracy. Second, Wikipedia has been cited several times in this book. This is not a very reliable source since its contents can be modified by anyone.

In conclusion, although I found a few flaws in the book, it was an excellent read. I, therefore, rate it 4 out of 4 stars. This is because these are minor flaws that didn't affect my reading at all. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys American history and would like to see what the future holds. This is neither a light read nor an entertaining novel. If you're looking for a nice weekend read, you may have to pass it.

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The Neonaissance
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[Rishi_reviews]

America is a first world country and I think all other countries adapts the things that America does. I'll really like to know how it will all turn out. Thanks for the wonderful review.

[Astral Magi]

Anyone siting Wikipedia is simply too lazy to do proper research. Thanks for a great review.