The End of Absence

Michael Harris’s book deals with the fact that soon, no-one will remember what life was like before the Internet.

For those who have lived with and without the connectivity offered through online life, this is a rare opportunity to find out what this might mean to a certain generation, given that those who remember a Before and an After may be more self-conscious about reaching for the phone in a carefree manner.

To research this “loss of lack”, Michael Harris tried spending one month without any access to the Internet. Michael Harris lives in Vancouver, Canada, and is the author of another book, Solitude: In Pursuit of a Singular Life in a Crowded World. He writes about media, civil rights and art for various publications, including The Washington Post, Wired, Salon, The Huffington Post and The Globe & Mail. His work was a finalist for the RBC Taylor Prize, the BC National Canadian Non-Fiction Award, the Chautauqua Prize, the CBC Bookie Awards