Escape: How a generation shaped, destroyed and survived the internet

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'Fifteen years ago, the internet felt like a special place my friends and I had built for each other; by 2020, we were standing on its ruins, wondering if we'd played a part in its destruction.'

Journalist Marie Le Conte was born in 1991, the same year the World Wide Web was invented. She had her first blog at 12, a successful music website at 15, a Wikipedia page at 17 and now, at 29, over 78,000 followers on Twitter. From MSN, Tumblr and MySpace, to chat rooms, forums and blogs; Marie is part of the millennial generation that grew up while the internet was growing up with them.

The generation that entered a new reality.
The generation that saw it all.
The generation who are now witnessing its collapse.

Where did it go all wrong How did the internet go from a place where you went to escape real life to where real life is shaped A place where you could be yourself and find like-minded people to a world of filters and ads A place where everything you post is open to scrutiny A place we are all now desperately trying to escape from

Escape is a fascinating exploration on the birth and death of the internet. It's a look back on the platforms, the people and the online places. It's an analysis of the lessons being online has taught us, how the internet has changed us - and a celebration of the tools it gives us to feel less alone. The online generation have forever altered the world we live in, but the internet is no longer a place for the people that shaped it.

Reviews

'Marie Le Conte is one of the most compelling thinkers we have on the internet age and what it's doing to us. She's truly lived it, and her scars are memorably and fascinatingly described in Escape.' -- WILL STORR
'A great dissection of how the internet fundamentally messed up the generations.' -- MOLLIE GOODFELLOW
'A sharply intelligent, funny and necessary look at how the internet is affecting us all. Whether you're extremely online or hate Twitter (or both), this is a fascinating read.' -- STEVIE MARTIN
'Marie Le Conte is the voice of the generation. Escape is exposing, enthralling and deeply personal reading for all of us who grew up online. Capturing the joy and pain of teenage angst against the freedom and horror of the World Wide Web, this book is urgent reading for anyone trying to understand their own past, and the internet's future.' -- FERN RIDDELL
'An enjoyable book that hits on an interesting question.' * Financial Times *
'A thoughtful book' * New Scientist *
'[Escape] reads like a long and clever email from a friend' * The Canberra Times *
'Escape is a smart and funny analysis of a very modern phenomenon.' * New Humanist *

Author Bio

Marie Le Conte is a French-Moroccan journalist living in London. She previously was the Evening Standard's political diarist, BuzzFeed News' media and politics correspondent and went freelance in June 2017.

Since then, she has written for the Sunday Times, Guardian, New Statesman, Prospect Magazine, Stylist and many more. She has also appeared on, among others, the Today programme, Newsnight, Victoria Derbyshire and Any Questions, as well as speaking at Chatham House, Sciences Po Paris, the House of Commons, and the Foreign Policy Centre.

She was named one of MHP's 30 To Watch, Portland's Rising Stars in 2016 and Forbes 30 Under 30 in 2018.