#MMBBR #Review #Touch by @cmaum @PutnamBooks #FirstLine

TOUCH by Courtney Maum

On Sale May 30, 2017 | G. P. Putnam’s Sons | Hardcover ISBN: 978-0-735-21212-1| Price: $26.00 

"Sweet and funny. . . A sharp yet feeling satire, Touch bristles with insights into the longing for warm, messy, inefficient, and imperfect human life buried in our increasingly streamlined, disembodied now."—Interview

"A satirical but sincere look at our thirst for 'in-personism.”—Departures

”[A] trenchant satirical novel . . . Maum has such an incisive grasp of where tech and culture meet that she could add sociologist to her resume . . . A perceptive, thought-provoking read.”

—Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

“With a weirdly nurturing driverless car, a family emergency, a sexy art director, and wrenching and hilarious confrontations and meltdowns, Maum’s incisive, charming, and funny novel ebulliently champions the healing powers of touch, the living world, and love in all its crazy risks, surprises, and sustaining radiance.” —Booklist, Starred Review

"Maum perfectly captures the zeitgeist of our era as technology battles with humanity. Her thought-provoking, humorous book will inspire readers to forgo the electronics and get back to basics as simple as human touch."—Library Journal

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QUICK TAKE ON THE BOOK

Sloane Jacobsen is a leading trend forecaster. Fashion, lifestyle, tech, and other global companies pay to hear her opinions on the future of everything from clothes to gadgets, food and families. But not far into her current contract with the tech-giant Mammoth, she finds herself wanting to overturn her own predications. Sloane begins to sense a growing movement against electronics that will see people embracing compassion, empathy, and "in-personism" again. While hopelessly out of sync with her employer's mission (and her partner’s opinion), Sloane becomes convinced that her instincts are the right ones, and goes on a quest to bring humanism and compassion to others, while finally allowing the love and connectedness she's long been denying herself. TOUCH is a poignant reminder to keep our heads up and our hearts open in our modern lives – and is a thoughtful, of-the-moment exploration of real-life concerns that explores prescient issues of technology, family, and artificial intelligence with Courtney Maum’s signature biting wit and keen eye.

Courtney Maum is the author of the novel I Am Having So Much Fun Here Without You and the chapbook “Notes from Mexico.” Her short fiction, book reviews, and essays on the writing life have been widely published in outlets such as The New York Times, Tin House, Electric Literature, and Buzzfeed, and she has co-written films that have debuted at Sundance and won awards at Cannes. At various points in her life, she has been a trend forecaster, a fashion publicist, and a party promoter for Corona Extra. She currently works as a product namer for M·A·C cosmetics from her home in Litchfield County, CT.

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#FirstLine Sloane Jacobson was living in a world without peanuts.

One of those reads that makes you think, which makes Touch a book worth reading.  Allowing the reader to take stock in what is important in life, knowing that techonology should not be the center of life, but rather people should be.  An impressive book with a big message that is both fun to read and so very thought provoking!  Not to be missed!

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