Book Review: A Year Unplugged

Book: A Year Unplugged: A Family's Life Without Technology by Sharael Kolberg

Source: Borrowed from Publisher/NetGalley for an honest review

Publication: Available now

Publisher: BookBuzz.net: Sharael Kolberg

Description:

In A Year Unplugged, Sharael Kolberg chronicles her family’s brave attempt to wean themselves from technology in an effort to reclaim quality family time. The Kolbergs decided to turn off their television, unplug their iPods, iPhones, laptops and digital cameras, and disconnect from e-mail, cell phones and the Internet. Not an easy task.

Sharael’s true-life tale explores how dependent we are on technology and the impact it has on interpersonal relationships and society. Through thought-provoking, humorous and heart-wrenching narrative, Sharael hopes to compel readers to open dialogue about the conscious use of technology.


Rating: 2 stars

Review:

What happens when a family decides to go unplugged for a year? When the author felt as if she and her husband Jeff and daughter Katelyn were becoming too dependent on cell phones, computers and other handheld gadgets she suggested they do something about it.

A Year Unplugged takes the reader through the family's ordeal as they try to deal with life away from the internet (unless it's work related), TV (they can only watch it away from home), cell phones (just for emergencies only) and other gadgets.

I can tell the author enjoyed the whole process of letting go but I wonder if she didn't work from home how enjoyable this really would have been. Especially when her husband didn't seem to be having the same appreciation for this experiment. Since they no longer had the internet he couldn't finish up his work at home and then would either have to stay later at work or go somewhere else to access the internet. However by the seventh month they did make a few modifications to their unplug project such as getting the internet back at home so Jeff could use it for work.

This was an interesting read with the family trying to live tech free and finding it difficult at times especially in a world that favors being connected. It was interesting to see because there are people who actually choose to go tech free as well as there are families who simply can't afford these items and this is how they deal with it on a daily basis.

I felt like this book was way longer than it should have been with the author giving nearly daily post of what the family had been doing for each month of the year. And there were many times when I found this to be a little too preachy or judgmental.

There was one incident that really annoyed me, the author wrote about how she signed up to foster animals from the Humane Society. She only had to care for two kittens for two weeks but once they became sick she ended up taking them back. It had become too much work for her. I was like, I can't believe she actually did this.

This wasn't a bad read but it was sometimes boring when the author included so much stuff that could have been left out. Many of the daily posts were long winded and definitely could have been condensed.

What have I learned from this book? Well, I don't think one necessarily has to go to this extreme of going tech free to become more appreciative and more aware. A little bit of moderation would be just as effective.