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WWW: Watch (WWW #2)

by Robert J. Sawyer

3.98 · rating details · 886 ratings · 145 reviews

Sixteen-year-old Caitlin Decter was born blind. But, thanks to an implant in her head, she can now see the real world—and also see webspace, the structure of the World Wide Web. There, she’s found a nascent consciousness, which she’s helped bring forth, letting it, too, see the world for the first time.

The consciousness takes the name Webmind. Caitlin’s parents know about ...more

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Published (first published January 1st 2010)

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Jan 24, 2011

Brandon rated it

Shelves: science, technology

Part II of the WWW trilogy continues the story of Caitlin and the emergence of a consciousness within the internet. I enjoyed this book and kept wanting to read more but...[return][return]And this seems to be more true with every book Sawyer releases. There were times when this felt like a Canadian culture textbook, or a math textbook, or a physics textbook. His Canadiana becomes nauseating (and false in a lot of senses... believe it or not, but Canadians have heard of, AND READ, non-canadian...more

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Sep 09, 2011

Derrick rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, scifi, philosophy

I can deal with an author who believes in Evolution.
[which from a philosophical standpoint doesn't actually make sense. The language used when talking about evolution is the same type of language used for a deity. That says all I need to know].
However, when someone starts using disparaging/abusive language about those who don't agree with their viewpoint, then we have an issue.

Go read Darwin's Black Box for a good look at why "Evolution" isn't the god some seem ...more

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Jun 05, 2011

Mike Finn rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: speculative-fiction

WWW: Watch (WWW, #2)WWW: Watch by Robert J. Sawyer

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This continues the tale of Caitlin and the emergent AI Webmind. This is a fun book, easy to read, packed with ideas and with characters you care about.

This book is slightly more static than the first in the series. It allows itself the time for the protagonists to lay out their arguments and explore the issues.

If you are a sci fi fan, you will definitely get this book. If not,...more

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Apr 25, 2011

Tim Hicks rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction

Three and a half stars, I think. Maybe four.

It's a good continuation from Wake, and the overall pace is good.

The characters are if anything too cleverly constructed so that they aren't boring.
And the, er, non-organic hero is a tad too Galahadish for my taste.

I liked that the government agents are reasonably competent but not any more than most people are in real life.
It's a good contrast to Caitlin, who has just enough flaws to keep her from being a ...more

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Apr 24, 2011

David rated it

· review of another edition

I waited a year for the second installment of the WWW series, and it was worth it. The biggest problem now is waiting another year for the finale.

On the whole, this is a great book - the series is clever and thoughtful, the protagonists are interesting and mostly understandable, and the ideas underlying the premise are profound. The only significant flaw in the writing is that there are a couple of cases where characters rant a bit in faux-socratic style about some ongoing liberal po...more

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Apr 19, 2011

Sean Randall rated it

· review of another edition

When I read Wake 10 months ago, my initial impressions were of a lot of disparate threads. The AI, the blindness, the chimp, the Chinese, just to name the first few that occur to me now. I gave it a 4 star rating, because I enjoyed it. I wonder now if my own defences, particularly on the blindness thing, caused me to not allow it the breathing space it deserved.

This instalment is certainly a 5 star offering. There are no fewer threads and subplots, everything's still going on and t...moreWhen I read Wake 10 months ago, my initial impressions were of a lot of disparate threads. The AI, the blindness, the chimp, the Chinese, just to name the first few that occur to me now. I gave it a 4 star rating, because I enjoyed it. I wonder now if my own defences, particularly on the blindness thing, caused me to not allow it the breathing space it deserved.

This instalment is certainly a 5 star offering. There are no fewer threads and subplots, everything's still going on and the American government are weighing in on the stage as well. But I think my main reason for catapulting this book to my highest rated standard is its education value. Webmind, the AI of the story is growing, and Caitlin, though clever, is not omnipotent. This opens up a great deal of room for exposition, and because of the computer-oriented content, I can certainly see that, as a teen, I would have learned a great deal about all sorts of things from this book.

"“It’s only because you have a limited perspective that you understand that the person facing you must be seeing something completely different from what you’re seeing as you face him," just as one example, a very neat summary of the theory of mind. There are nuggets scattered throughout - like "any evolutionist should have intuitively known that tonsils had value." The sheer quantity of topics discussed - through evolution to zero-sum situations is breathtaking in scope.

Then there are the things, not facts, but things that Sawyer clearly either believes or at least could some day. The fact that we can choose our path, that consciousness puts the breaks on instinct, for example, is one such. another is the exposition on surveillance, of particular significance here because Webmind can practically see everything.

Sawyer's bringing up material he's handled before, but somehow, in this setting and written like this, it all seems to gel so much more effectively. the Neanderthal Parallax series of books (Hominids, Humans and Hybrids) argue that having ones every move monitored is a good thing, in an alien context - but written here, the way it is, really made me stop and think about it on a more Human level. Carry that thought to religion (Calculating God), evolution (frameshift), racial diversity (Starplex) or indeed almost any other tenet of Humanity you can think of, he seems to have something to say on it.

So to sum: a brilliant continuation of the story, better than the first, I'd say; but also fascinating for the information and opinions you learn too.(less)

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Feb 02, 2011

Bryan457 rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: artificial-intelligence, computer, juv-ya, science-fiction

Picking up where WWW:Wake left off, this book explores the development of WebMind and the U.S. government's involvement when they figure out what he is.

I really enjoyed the different storylines, WebMind's development and growth, Hobo's time of decision, Caitlin is a delightful person, and I enjoyed the vast array of topics covered from consciousness to game theory to computer programming and a rational logical theory for morality and kindness.

There were a few things that ...more

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Dec 29, 2010

Karissa Eckert rated it

· review of another edition

This is the second book in Sawyer's WWW trilogy. The third book WWW: Wonder is due out in April of 2011. This was another amazing book. Sawyer does a great job of packing in a ton of issues, both philosophical and political, that make the reader really think, while giving the reader characters that are interesting and easy to relate too. I loved this book. I listened to this on audiobook, which I highly recommend. The audiobook is exceedingly well done, with different voice actors for the diffe...moreThis is the second book in Sawyer's WWW trilogy. The third book WWW: Wonder is due out in April of 2011. This was another amazing book. Sawyer does a great job of packing in a ton of issues, both philosophical and political, that make the reader really think, while giving the reader characters that are interesting and easy to relate too. I loved this book. I listened to this on audiobook, which I highly recommend. The audiobook is exceedingly well done, with different voice actors for the different points of view. I think listening to this on audiobook makes this book even better than reading it on paper would be.

This book picks up literally right where the first book left off. Caitlin is still reeling at the realization that Webmind is real. She decides to tell her parents about it since she is struggling to keep Webmind busy and worried about what might happen to him over a time of inactivity. When the government starts plaguing Caitlin and her family they have some tough decisions to make about what to do with their knowledge of Webmind. Meanwhile Hobo, the ape who had his first inter-species webchat with a chimp in the first book, starts getting violent with his keepers. This puts Hobo's already uncertain future at even greater risk. The last storyline deals with the NSA in the United States; they discover unconventional activity on the web and think at first it may be a terrorist threat...when they finally decide it is actually an emerging consciousness they want answers.

This book touches on so many issues it is mind-boggling and it does it in a way that is easy to relate to and follow. It is really a book that will make you think. Some of the political issues addressed are racism, animal rights, GLBT rights, the privacy act, national security, international politics, and human rights. Some of the deeper issues touched on are the differences between artificial intelligence and emerging consciousness, autism, blindness, suicide, and the question behind how emerging consciousness can override natural selection and evolution. All of it is very interesting and presented in a way that is clear and easy to understand.

The characters are fantastic. All of them are intelligent and highly engaging. I love the dynamics between Caitlin and her family; how even with her father's autism to struggle with, they are a cohesive force that works together, respects each other, and understands each other. I also liked that Caitlin develops a love interest, this made Caitlin more real and was realistic given her age. I love how even with all the fantastic stuff going on in her life, Caitlin can still be concerned about how she comes off to Matt...it makes her totally real and likable.

Some of the story lines that didn't really seem to relate in the first book come together in this book. Finally we see how the story of Hobo and how what happened with China shutting down their web infrastructure is related to the emergence of Webmind.

The biggest disappointment for me in this book was how the government approached Webmind. As many might predict the government's knee-jerk reaction is to shut Webmind down. It made me a bit sad that Sawyer couldn't try a more creative government reaction than the one that is normally presented in the majority of books dealing with AI; of course the way Sawyer wrote is very realistic...it is just too bad it has to be that way.

Overall I loved some of the theories presented in this novel. The idea of consciousness modifying behaviors dictated by evolution is an underlying theme and it's an interesting one. The characters and story are very engaging. The story is nicely wrapped up in this book leaving me to wonder what Sawyer will do in book 3, WWW: Wonder. Absolutely love this series. It makes heavy issues easy to relate to and contemplate and has wonderful characterization. I will definitely be checking out more of Sawyer's works when I finish this trilogy.(less)

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Aug 14, 2010

Judy rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: 2010, adult, sci-fi

This was an excellent continuation of the story that was started in WWW:Wake. I felt that the characters grew for me into this book, where in Wake they felt underdeveloped. All of the storylines ran parallel to each other in the first, but in Watch, they started to intersect.

What I enjoyed about Wake and Watch was the premise: a teenage girl and her family interacting with a developing consciousness from the web. I liked that the consciousness was not portrayed as malevolent, and I ...more

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Jul 06, 2010

Alan rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: Nascent intelligences

Recommended to Alan by: WWW:Wake

I was relatively lukewarm towards WWW:Wake, the first volume in this projected trilogy, but Sawyer's upped his game with this one. Like its predecessor, WWW:Watch shows signs of having been written very quickly, but in this case the narrative rush works to draw the reader in quickly, too.

I'd recommend reading the first book before diving into this one; you'll want to be familiar with developments to date, even though I think it'd be fairly easy to pick up on what's going on, even com...moreI was relatively lukewarm towards WWW:Wake, the first volume in this projected trilogy, but Sawyer's upped his game with this one. Like its predecessor, WWW:Watch shows signs of having been written very quickly, but in this case the narrative rush works to draw the reader in quickly, too.

I'd recommend reading the first book before diving into this one; you'll want to be familiar with developments to date, even though I think it'd be fairly easy to pick up on what's going on, even coming in cold. The cast of characters is largely unchanged from the first book; the focus remains on sixteen-year-old Caitlin Decter and her relationship with the fast-growing Webmind. Caitlin is a good protagonist, and a realistically imperfect human being. Sawyer doesn't shy away from depicting Caitlin as an adolescent, with adolescent concerns about sex and schoolwork. However, he also uses Caitlin as a channel for some of his own opinions from time to time, which can be a little jarring.

Sawyer seems to be something like the Steven Spielberg of sf authors... talented but often visibly manipulative. He hit a lot of the right buttons for me this time, though. There were several times, in fact, when Sawyer's renditions of various "good parts" from sf films like WarGames and Star Trek: The Motion Picture actually made me tear up a bit. Not to mention what happens when Webmind and Hobo meet...

But at least they're happy tears. WWW:Watch is a defiantly hopeful book, in a way that reminds me of what sf used to be like, back in the Golden Age (when I was twelve). The book makes some solid scientific as well as fictional arguments in favor of the value of consciousness, of evolution, and of cooperation. The sequel still has some of the kitchen-sink aspects of its predecessor, a preference for infodumps to which I objected, but they work a lot better for me this time. So in spite of feeling manipulated, and even though the prose was a little breathless... I have to admit that I really liked this book.(less)

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Jun 18, 2010

Porter rated it

· review of another edition

I like the story this book tells. Unfortunately, there were several things in the book that kept me from actually enjoying the book, so I cannot give it more than 2 stars. As much as I wanted the story, I found finishing the book tedious.

In my review of WWW:Wake, the first book in this series, I compared it favorably to another book with a smart young protagonist, Little Brother. I said that in comparison, Doctorow looks like he's trying too hard to be hip.

I must now s...more

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Jun 17, 2010

Joe Giammarco rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: bildungsroman, can-lit, canada, censorship, computers, existentialism, espionage, intellectual-freedom, love-story, philosophy, psychology, relationships, science-fiction, transhumanism

This, the second book in Sawyer's WWW Trilogy, is another exception to the rule of trilogies. It's actually a better read than Wake, the previous volume.

The plot focuses on Caitlin Decter and her relationship with Webmind, an emergent artificial intelligence spawned from the World Wide Web. Both these characters are extremely well-developed, although Sawyer seems to have given up trying to write a teenage girl and Caitlin talks more like a grad student. Most of the minor characters fr...more

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May 29, 2010

Karina rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Apr 22, 2010

Cathy rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: zz-challenge-bcc-scifi-2010, zz-challenge-library-borrowed-2010, read-in-2010, romance, science-fiction, series-reminder

I liked it better than the first book in most respects. It didn't have that magical feeling of discovery, both for Caitlin learning to see and for Webmind becoming, but it also didn't have as many annoying tics and rants. Caitlin didn't feel quite as much a real kid in this, she's just too much of a genius, too well-read and understanding, and her new friend Matt was worse because we didn't know him well enough for it to make sense. But Caitlin did feel real and immediate as a person; it's ironi...moreI liked it better than the first book in most respects. It didn't have that magical feeling of discovery, both for Caitlin learning to see and for Webmind becoming, but it also didn't have as many annoying tics and rants. Caitlin didn't feel quite as much a real kid in this, she's just too much of a genius, too well-read and understanding, and her new friend Matt was worse because we didn't know him well enough for it to make sense. But Caitlin did feel real and immediate as a person; it's ironic that my favorite character by this middle-aged man is a teenaged girl, but that's imagination for you, he did a good job.

As for the US government response to Webmind, although extreme, the reasoning was presented with fairness. Also, it's nice as a citizen to imagine that their fast response time in noticing the situation is accurate. I was surprised to see the Canadian authorities shown as being so heavyhanded.

I was also surprised and a bit disappointed to see the naïveté portrayed by Caitlin's family and their friend the Japanese doctor when it came to predicting and preparing for the world's reaction to Webmind. They never thought to try to encrypt their communications?!? Or thought about what night happen to them or Caitlin if it all came out, or to prepare Webmind to protect himself? They're portrayed as geniuses, they read extensively, and watch movies, yet the idea that they didn't even think to try to protect themselves or Webmind? It just seemed really unlikely.

Sawyer loves to use his books as a platform for his political positions, which I can't blame him for, but it often comes at the expense of the story when these little rants interrupt the flow of the work. He held it down to one major topic this time and at least made it a topic extremely relevant to one of the characters. Even when I agree with him, as I did about this topic, I just wish he'd leave it out or work it in better. A (gay) scientist having a argument about the right to marry with a colleague didn't support the plot of her work with Hobo, the chimpanzee/bonobo who speaks ALS and paints representational art. It was sort of tied in at the end, but that tie in could have been done in a way that was much more appropriate and convincing once I saw the overall argument of the book about consciousness and game theory.

What else? There were still lots of pop culture references, but most felt relevant and appropriate instead of overwhelming and pandering. It was actually funny when he mentioned the Fast Forward TV show.

So what did I really like about it, other than how real Caitlin felt? I like the science and philosophy discussions (even if 16 year-olds having a lot of them seemed a bit silly). I like the idea that Big Brother was written a very long time ago and in a very different world, but has somehow becoming an operating assumption and that things have changed so much that we need new ideas about possibilities and probabilities. And I liked the idea that maybe happiness is the inevitable outcome for our world instead if apocalypse, if some of the ideas about consciousness and game theory as presented are correct. Overall the idea of Webmind still seems much to simplistic, but it's a good thought process to follow and think about, and an enjoyable story. (less)

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Jun 02, 2011

Em rated it

· review of another edition

Yet another good book by Sawyer.

This book picks up right where the first one in the trilogy left off, with Caitlin realizing that Webmind is real, and that she alone can't keep the emergent consciousness busy, and the worry about what will happen to it if she doesn't keep it occupied.

She is much more trusting of her parents than most teenagers are, might have something to do with how much more she's depended upon them growing up, and the ups and downs they've been through wit...moreYet another good book by Sawyer.

This book picks up right where the first one in the trilogy left off, with Caitlin realizing that Webmind is real, and that she alone can't keep the emergent consciousness busy, and the worry about what will happen to it if she doesn't keep it occupied.

She is much more trusting of her parents than most teenagers are, might have something to do with how much more she's depended upon them growing up, and the ups and downs they've been through with her blindness, so she does what a sane trusting daughter would do and tells her parents.

In the meantime, US government entities have also stumbled across Webmind. They see a danger in the emergent AI, and want very much to shut it down, only, they can't seem to figure out how to do that. They try to follow the conversations that Caitlin and Webmind have, that her parents and Webmind have, that Karudo and Webmind has, but they don't give it any clues to what makes Webmind tick. Eventually they do, and they test it, causing Webmind to reveal himself to the world...and I love the way he does that.

I keep reading reviews by Canadians where they complain about how Sawyer drops Canadian references into the book, constantly. I grew up in San Diego, and he does the same thing when he's dealing with the Chimp in the San Diego Zoo, and the story that builds up around that. Personally, I like the little references to where I grew up, because they are real places and things.

I'm also a little odd in that I like all the scientific explanations. I have surprised people, from time to time, in middle school and high school, by knowing something scientific that they didn't expect me to. It was from reading science fiction books, and getting to understand the science in them from the fictional book. Yeah, the science isn't always real, but it's usually based on real science, and if it interests me enough to remember it, I can go back and look at it more. I was 14 and won a bet with my dad when we went to a job fair once, and someone was talking about nuclear power from fusion, and I was able to tell him all about it. He worked at a fission reactor plant, and didn't believe that what I was saying was possible, but I'd just finished reading Orion by Ben Bova, and knew exactly what I was talking about. Sawyer teaches me science in much the same way Bova did, and I greatly appreciate it. It's much better way to pick up on scientific ideas then from a dry textbook.(less)

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Oct 14, 2011

Robert Colquhoun rated it

· review of another edition

Very good follow up to WWW: Wake. Would be giving both Wake & Watch 3+ stars if the option were available.
Again, great characters; those from Wake carry forward and new ones are introduced. Even Webmind (the AI - Artificial Intelligence) is likeable! That's how good of a job Sawyer does at developing his characters; he makes an AI likeable!!!
You could definitely read this volume without having read Wake but, Wake in and of itself, was a good novel and worth the read.
I love how ...more

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Feb 14, 2012

L12_Anke rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy-sci-fi

(audio version) WWW.WATCH is the second book of a trilogy by Robert J. Sawyer in which the protagonist, a blind, exceptional sixteen-year-old girl named Caitlin Decter, was given the gift of sight with an implant behind one of her eyes. And because of this implant, Caitlin can “see” the world wide web and she learns that it has a conscious called the Webmind. The government gets involved, fearing only harmful outcomes from the web having a conscious, but Caitlin knows otherwise and has to save W...more

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Apr 29, 2010

Michael rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction, read-in-2010

Robert Sawyer's second installment in his "WWW" trilogy picks up right where "Wake" left off but, thankfully, does not fall prey to middle book syndrome.

If you've not read the first installment, there will be SPOILERS ahead for it. Can't really talk about book two without giving away the end of book one.

"Wake" ended with Caitlin Decker contacting the growing intelligence emerging on the World Wide Web. The second novel explores their growin...more

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Jul 03, 2010

Sooz rated it

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Swayer is like chocolate covered in crack. i eagerly gobble up his novels. this is the follow-up to Wake, and he is already working on the third called, Wonder. WWW most appropriate given that this story is about a singularity - the leap that the neuron-like internet makes to become conscious of it's own existence. cool stuff.

in this one he revisits an idea he has touched on in the other novels - that of Big Brother. but he plays devil's advocate to the usual 1984 position, by r...more

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Jun 30, 2011

Zivan rated it

· review of another edition

All in all a very good book especially for the second book in a trilogy.

I had feared that, now that Katelyn has her sight back, I'd lose the special interest Wake had for me as someone with low vision.
But no worries, I was as captivated with Watch as I was with Wake.

I still have trouble with how easy a time Webmind has with his own emergent structure and with understanding and communicating with humans.
While at the beginning of the book he did get into trouble...more

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Dec 07, 2011

Banner Beliew rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: sci-fi

This book continues right where the last one left off. The webmind continues to mature and so does Caitlin (boyfriend ...this drama is what I like least about the book, but it adds a sense of realism).

We get a little deeper into morals and such as the human friends of webmind struggle with how to help "him" be altruistic. I found it interesting how the teachings of Jesus are reinterpreted through a secular worldview in order to make them useful to webmind. Other approaches ...more

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Sep 19, 2011

Matthew Hester rated it

· review of another edition

There are two things that Sawyer does right with this novel, and one thing he does wrong.
Unfortunately it is the one thing he does wrong which really stands out in the novel, to the point where the two things he does right can’t save it.

I’ll start first by listing the two things Sawyer does right.

1- He writes damn well.
This was mentioned in my review for the first book in the series, but since it’s a universal statement, I’ll say it again.
Sawyer knows...more

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Jul 16, 2010

Jake Forbes rated it

· review of another edition

As exhilarating as the first volume in the WWW trilogy. This was one of those rare novels that, cliche as it sounds, I couldn't put down. Whereas the first volume's science focused on the emergence of consciousness, this volume focuses on game theory and the evolutionary function of consciousness. Despite the density of science, this book, like it's predecessor, is an effortless read with empathy and optimism that's rare in today's dystopian sci-fi landscape (Orwellian dystopias are another them...more

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Apr 18, 2011

Jill rated it

· review of another edition

WWW: Watch is the sequel to WWW: Wake (although either book can stand alone). These books tell the story of Caitlin Decter, precocious daughter of two brilliant parents who has been blind from birth because of a defect in her retina encoding. Right before she turned sixteen, she received the wonderful gift of sight via a signal-correcting retinal implant. As an unexpected bonus, she also gained the ability to flip a toggle switch and “see” the datastreams of the World Wide Web.

Thi...more

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Jun 17, 2010

Leslie rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction

This is book two of a three part series. We first met Caitlin Decter in book one of the trilogy, W W W : W A K E.

Caitlin isn’t an ordinary teenager. Blind from birth she excelled in school as a math wiz and was able to surf the web by visualizing it’s complex pathways in her mind. Now Caitlin is the recipient of newly developed signal-processing implant that restores her sight in one eye. In the process she also finds she can communicate with something else that is emerging on the we...moreThis is book two of a three part series. We first met Caitlin Decter in book one of the trilogy, W W W : W A K E.

Caitlin isn’t an ordinary teenager. Blind from birth she excelled in school as a math wiz and was able to surf the web by visualizing it’s complex pathways in her mind. Now Caitlin is the recipient of newly developed signal-processing implant that restores her sight in one eye. In the process she also finds she can communicate with something else that is emerging on the web; something sentient which begins learning and evolving. She calls the emerging intelligence Webmind. WATCH, a secret government agency that monitors the internet for security and terrorist threats, becomes aware that something is evolving on the web and it becomes their goal to hunt it down and find whoever created it.

You don’t to have read book one of the trilogy to enjoy this story but I highly recommend starting at the beginning. Several subplots were introduced which are woven together nicely in book two. In book one I found the introduction of these story lines, with no apparent way to tie them together and then having to wait a year for book two, to be frustrating. Another reason to read book one first is for the background on Caitlin, her friends, family and the development of the eye implant in the first novel.

I liked this book even better than the first one. Webmind grows and develops as a character and the subplots first introduced in book one begin to tie together. There are thought provoking issues about artificial intelligence and morality. We see the development of Webmind’s character when he witnesses a suicide on the internet. The book has enough scientific detail to be thought-provoking but not tedious and some interesting passages on game theory. There is believable science in this novel with characters that could be real people. Caitlin loves music, writes a blog, communicates with her friends and Webmind through instant messaging and updates her social networking page; she could almost be the kid next door. The setting of the story is in Canada and the author, being Canadian, tossed in lots of little factoids about our neighbors to the north.

Overall I found this to be an enjoyable read. Science fiction fans as well as anyone who enjoys contemporary or young adult fiction should find this an engaging story. (less)

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Jun 01, 2010

Justin rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: audio, sci-fi

Note: This review is slightly spoilerish; some of the themes I discuss are important to the overall story, but no actual plot points are revealed. Sawyer delivers his message through dialog between characters, so some of the ideas I mention do not get discussed till later in the book. If you had mixed feelings about book 1, you should read this review before deciding to read book 2.

The story of Caitlin and the emergent entity WebMind continues in Watch. The story picks up directly f...moreNote: This review is slightly spoilerish; some of the themes I discuss are important to the overall story, but no actual plot points are revealed. Sawyer delivers his message through dialog between characters, so some of the ideas I mention do not get discussed till later in the book. If you had mixed feelings about book 1, you should read this review before deciding to read book 2.

The story of Caitlin and the emergent entity WebMind continues in Watch. The story picks up directly following the events of Wake. WebMind has awoken from the darkness of pre-conscious existence, and has started to grow his abilities. It doesn’t take long for various government agencies to notice his presence and take the only action governments take in these kinds of situations: find a way to kill it. Watch steps away from the sense of discovery and enlightenment that Wake had, and follows a more traditional story format. You now have good guys (Caitlin and her family) and bad guys (various government agencies). Robert J. Sawyer’s characters do not fail to pontificate on the various ideologies that the story brings up, it’s just that the pontificating and sense of wonder that were the whole point of Wake take a bit of a backseat in Watch. This is not necessarily a bad thing, since Watch introduces the overall conflict.

The feeling Wake left you with would be impossible to recreate in a sequel, and I’m glad Sawyer didn’t try. He instead gives the reader different feelings, and a different message. Watch tackles the theme of “Big Brother” and the pros and cons of having a benevolent protector watching over all of humanity. He talks about the selfishness of genes and the ability of consciousness to overcome those primitive genetic programs to be something better than nature intended. In other words, Watch gets into territory just as deep as that explored in Wake, but in other ways. Watch does feel a little preachy at times. There are whole sections of dialog that feel a little forced in their message. It felt like Sawyer had these sweet ideas, but had a hard time finding a good place to put them. So, did I like Watch? Yes, a great deal. Did I like it more than Wake? No.

Like Wake, I listened to this book in the CD audio version released by Brilliance Audio. It was narrated by the same team of four voice actors (Jessica Almasy, Jennifer Van Dyck, A.C. Fellner, and Marc Vietor), and an intro by Robert J. Sawyer. Having a team of voice actors really adds a lot. Kudos goes to the actors for delivering some rather difficult dialog. I’m looking forward to listening to Wonder, which will feature the same cast

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Nov 09, 2011

Eric Beaudoin rated it

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Shelves: science-fiction

I enjoyed the second part of this trilogy even though, by the end, I was really tired of bogus Canadian clichés. I'm Canadian and certainly didn't recognize myself or any of my friends in this view of how Canadian people are supposed to see themselves. It's Mr Sawyer doesn't have a clue of what Canada is even though he's supposed to be Canadian himself.

Still, the whole story about conscience deciding how it choose to evolve was nice. It's a nice dream but I'm to sarcastic to think th...more

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Aug 23, 2011

David rated it

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Shelves: science-fiction

A bit less than 4 stars. Good enough I wouldn't feel hesitant about reading the trilogy's 3rd book - but I'm also not in a hurry.

The book touches on interesting topics. On the other hand, Watch deals with government policy to eliminate emergent AI's (as a potential threat). Yet, it does little more than portray this AI as friendly. The book has little to say about issues raised in SF & science about "laws of robotics" and other precautions for AI's. The book repeatedly refe...more

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Dec 11, 2011

Dan rated it

Shelves: e-books, science-fiction

I contemplated adding this book to my "Philosophy" shelf as well as the SF shelf. Underlying the continuing, entertaining story is a subtle investigation of the question, "What is the evolutionary value of consciousness?". Sawyer does, at least, give you his view on the matter and I am inclined to agree with his position. (Some authors like to just raise such questions and then never actually deal with them in a substantive way. I hate that kind of intellectual teasing.)

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Feb 01, 2011

Alaina rated it

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Shelves: science-fiction-fantasy

I continue to love the world-building in this series. Just--this author *gets* the Internet, the way I, and people I know, use it. Caitlin updates her LiveJournal once and lists her mood as "exanimate". People are always on Facebook, IM, email, Google, YouTube, Wikipedia. There are Star Trek references all over the place. There's even a mention of MST3K and an allusion to The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy! I love the theorizing about how consciousness first came about, what caused i...more

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About Robert J. Sawyer

Robert J. Sawyer is one of Canada's best known and most successful science fiction writers. He is the only Canadian (and one of only 7 writers in the world) to have won all three of the top international awards for science fiction: the 1995 Nebula Award for The Terminal Experiment, the 2003 Hugo Award for Hominids, and the 2006 John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Mindscan.
Robert Sawyer grew ...moreRobert J. Sawyer is one of Canada's best known and most successful science fiction writers. He is the only Canadian (and one of only 7 writers in the world) to have won all three of the top international awards for science fiction: the 1995 Nebula Award for The Terminal Experiment, the 2003 Hugo Award for Hominids, and the 2006 John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Mindscan.
Robert Sawyer grew up in Toronto, the son of two university professors. He credits two of his favourite shows from the late 1960s and early 1970s, Search and Star Trek, with teaching him some of the fundamentals of the science-fiction craft. Sawyer was obsessed with outer space from a young age, and he vividly remembers watching the televised Apollo missions. He claims to have watched the 1968 classic film 2001: A Space Odyssey 25 times. He began writing science fiction in a high school club, which he co-founded, NASFA (Northview Academy Association of Science Fiction Addicts). Sawyer graduated in 1982 from the Radio and Television Arts Program at Ryerson University, where he later worked as an instructor.

Sawyer's first published book, Golden Fleece (1989), is an adaptation of short stories that had previously appeared in the science-fiction magazine Amazing Stories. This book won the Aurora Award for the best Canadian science-fiction novel in English. In the early 1990s Sawyer went on to publish his inventive Quintaglio Ascension trilogy, about a world of intelligent dinosaurs. His 1995 award winning The Terminal Experiment confirmed his place as a major international science-fiction writer.

A prolific writer, Sawyer has published more than 10 novels, plus two trilogies. Reviewers praise Sawyer for his concise prose, which has been compared to that of the science-fiction master Isaac Asimov. Like many science fiction-writers, Sawyer welcomes the opportunities his chosen genre provides for exploring ideas. The first book of his Neanderthal Parallax trilogy, Hominids (2002), is set in a near-future society, in which a quantum computing experiment brings a Neanderthal scientist from a parallel Earth to ours. His 2006 Mindscan explores the possibility of transferring human consciousness into a mechanical body, and the ensuing ethical, legal, and societal ramifications.

A passionate advocate for science fiction, Sawyer teaches creative writing and appears frequently in the media to discuss his genre. He prefers the label "philosophical fiction," and in no way sees himself as a predictor of the future. His mission statement for his writing is "To combine the intimately human with the grandly cosmic."
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Quotes from WWW: Watch

“You really did uplift me. You gave me the perspective and point of view and focus I needed to become truly conscious. Without you, I wouldn't exist.” — 2 people liked it

“All right,” he said. “Since you asked, Webmind is an emergent quantum-computational system based on a stable null-sigma condensate that resists decoherence thanks to constructive feedback loops.” He turned to the blackboard, scooped up a piece of chalk, and began writing rapidly. “See,” he said, “using Dirac notation, if we let Webmind’s default conscious state be represented by a bra of phi and a ket of psi, then this would be the einselected basis.” His chalk flew across the board again. “Now, we can get the vector basis of the total combined Webmind alpha-state consciousness...” — 2 people liked it

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