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A New You
A New You is a dark dystopia, a Brave New World for the Prozac/Botox/iPod era. It's about surveillance and self-mutilation, abstract art and concrete longings. It's about what happens when we spend our lives interacting with images instead of people. It's the story of a young artist who gets a corporate grant to stay inside a locked room for a year and project her work onto the web. We follow her obsessive voice from an enthusiastic beginning to a horrific end, through an ill-fated romance and a progression of physical transformations that turns her into a fantasy object as she gradually slips into madness.
- GenresDystopia
296 pages, Paperback
First published April 22, 2007
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13 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 30, 2018
"It suddenly hit her that there was nothing more to him than what she could imagine. She had fallen in love with an image. An image that was dead inside."
I feel like many of the themes explored in A New You - vanity and femininity, technology and intimacy, art and its relationship to the artist, technohumanism and the "modern condition", etc. - have been explored elsewhere and with more nuance and maybe with sharper insights, but the breezy pacing and cadence of Bromberg's writing kept me reading. What I really enjoyed was the look into modern art and technology: what we expect from each, what we project onto our interactions with them, and the ways in which they can be two sides of the same coin. That's all kind of vague and flouncy sounding, but if you allow the book to marinate past the face-value of its passages (some of which are a little on the nose in their commentary (but maybe that's part of the point?)), there's a lot to chew on here. Granted, I'd say this book serves as more of a jumping off point to think about these themes rather than a unique commentary on them, but since these are all topics I generally have rattling around in my head at one point or another I'd recommend this to anyone who feels similarly.
I feel like many of the themes explored in A New You - vanity and femininity, technology and intimacy, art and its relationship to the artist, technohumanism and the "modern condition", etc. - have been explored elsewhere and with more nuance and maybe with sharper insights, but the breezy pacing and cadence of Bromberg's writing kept me reading. What I really enjoyed was the look into modern art and technology: what we expect from each, what we project onto our interactions with them, and the ways in which they can be two sides of the same coin. That's all kind of vague and flouncy sounding, but if you allow the book to marinate past the face-value of its passages (some of which are a little on the nose in their commentary (but maybe that's part of the point?)), there's a lot to chew on here. Granted, I'd say this book serves as more of a jumping off point to think about these themes rather than a unique commentary on them, but since these are all topics I generally have rattling around in my head at one point or another I'd recommend this to anyone who feels similarly.
November 29, 2010
Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about isolation and at the same time over-communication. While many people spend time on the web in the name of “connection”, I’m wondering if we’re doing more connecting or more isolating. Ironically (or maybe not so ironically) I purchased and downloaded a new book on my nook -- Bromberg's A New You.
While I don’t want to spoil the plot or outcome, I will give you the premise and a few issues the book touches on. An unnamed female artist, age 21, receives a lofty grant to produce art in a room for a year. The strings? She cannot leave the room, and cameras (without sound) will be streaming her live on her website continuously. In the center of the room there’s a cube for privacy (with a “soft place”, a computer, a sink, a tub, a toilet and many mirrors), and the artist can order whatever her whim decides on the grant people’s dollar. The only physical interaction she has is with robots, whom she orders to perform services such as manicures, hair cuts, etc. I don’t want to delve too deeply into that here, but there were some great moments during these scenes where the artist is desperate for interaction and the robots — who are remotely controlled by real humans in a poverty-stricken country — remain mostly cold and perfunctory.
The book is separated by each month, and the narration is rambling, hypnotic and haunting. I will admit that first I didn’t care for the voice, but it grew on me until I began to care for it, and like it. I can also tell now, since I just put my nook to rest, that the prose style is sneaking into my head, which I personally really like after reading a book. Why read a book if you don’t want it stay with you?
But let’s get back to A New You. The main character takes readers through her vulnerability, her insecurities, her strengths, and her quest to find herself with so many eyes upon her. As the months roll by, the artist begins to treat herself harshly, spending more time in an attempt to achieve “perfection” of the body than creating art on the walls around her. Make-up, plastic surgery and clothing are examined from different perspectives. The artist’s emotions are not easily hid, and the simplest gesture can make her extremely giddy or cause intense self-loathing.
And now, since my heart of hearts SO loves discussing books, I will post some discussion questions. Please feel free to respond to them here, even if you have not read the book. Those that have read the book are especially welcomed to discuss!
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. Do most artists create for themselves or for others?
2. Do you think isolation would make you more or less free to create? Would your answer change if your art and your process were under constant surveillance?
3. Is the instant gratification that comes with the ease of online ordering/home shipping harmful?
4. How will the next generation — who will grow up in front of computer screens, cell phones, iPads and other rapidly advancing technology — deal with constant connection? Will the future generation ever be alone, or feel confident and free in their solitude?
5. Do you know someone that wants to listen to music, surf the web, chat with people and play a video game all at once? What is that sort of multitasking accomplishing?
6. Has society’s image of beauty affected you or a friend? If so, how?
While I don’t want to spoil the plot or outcome, I will give you the premise and a few issues the book touches on. An unnamed female artist, age 21, receives a lofty grant to produce art in a room for a year. The strings? She cannot leave the room, and cameras (without sound) will be streaming her live on her website continuously. In the center of the room there’s a cube for privacy (with a “soft place”, a computer, a sink, a tub, a toilet and many mirrors), and the artist can order whatever her whim decides on the grant people’s dollar. The only physical interaction she has is with robots, whom she orders to perform services such as manicures, hair cuts, etc. I don’t want to delve too deeply into that here, but there were some great moments during these scenes where the artist is desperate for interaction and the robots — who are remotely controlled by real humans in a poverty-stricken country — remain mostly cold and perfunctory.
The book is separated by each month, and the narration is rambling, hypnotic and haunting. I will admit that first I didn’t care for the voice, but it grew on me until I began to care for it, and like it. I can also tell now, since I just put my nook to rest, that the prose style is sneaking into my head, which I personally really like after reading a book. Why read a book if you don’t want it stay with you?
But let’s get back to A New You. The main character takes readers through her vulnerability, her insecurities, her strengths, and her quest to find herself with so many eyes upon her. As the months roll by, the artist begins to treat herself harshly, spending more time in an attempt to achieve “perfection” of the body than creating art on the walls around her. Make-up, plastic surgery and clothing are examined from different perspectives. The artist’s emotions are not easily hid, and the simplest gesture can make her extremely giddy or cause intense self-loathing.
And now, since my heart of hearts SO loves discussing books, I will post some discussion questions. Please feel free to respond to them here, even if you have not read the book. Those that have read the book are especially welcomed to discuss!
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. Do most artists create for themselves or for others?
2. Do you think isolation would make you more or less free to create? Would your answer change if your art and your process were under constant surveillance?
3. Is the instant gratification that comes with the ease of online ordering/home shipping harmful?
4. How will the next generation — who will grow up in front of computer screens, cell phones, iPads and other rapidly advancing technology — deal with constant connection? Will the future generation ever be alone, or feel confident and free in their solitude?
5. Do you know someone that wants to listen to music, surf the web, chat with people and play a video game all at once? What is that sort of multitasking accomplishing?
6. Has society’s image of beauty affected you or a friend? If so, how?
December 13, 2014
The premise of "A New You" seemed unique and refreshing. A young artist agrees to spend one whole year living in isolation as she creates art in front of a live web feed viewed by millions. She can buy anything she wants, courtesy of her corporate sponsors, and have it delivered almost instantaneously. But before long the main character starts to unravel and obsess due to mounting pressures from her sponsors, her admirers, her haters, and herself.
Bromberg's novel draws obvious attention to the notions of interacting with ideas of people created by an online environment as opposed to real people themselves, the reality of body dysmorphia created by the inundation of unrealistic ideas of beauty, and the despair of loneliness in a media infused society. Unfortunately all of these points are so obvious, there's no subtlety or undercurrent which leaves the novel lacking depth. All the while as the story progress and the characters mental state weakens, the clarity lessens as well. By the end neither the reader nor the artist know what is going on, which leads to an incomprehensible "conclusion" with nothing conclusive about it.
Bromberg's novel draws obvious attention to the notions of interacting with ideas of people created by an online environment as opposed to real people themselves, the reality of body dysmorphia created by the inundation of unrealistic ideas of beauty, and the despair of loneliness in a media infused society. Unfortunately all of these points are so obvious, there's no subtlety or undercurrent which leaves the novel lacking depth. All the while as the story progress and the characters mental state weakens, the clarity lessens as well. By the end neither the reader nor the artist know what is going on, which leads to an incomprehensible "conclusion" with nothing conclusive about it.
March 4, 2010
This book gets the "Most Unusual Book I've Ever Read" Award!
It was interesting to start but soon became so bizzar that I had a hard time following what was going on. I still don't know exactly what was happening, even at the end. It was a little long and repetative, but of course, this was part of the story line. The woman slowly loses her mind after voluntarily being locked in a room for a year with no contact with the outside world except through her computer. I only gave it three stars because I can appreciate the artistic value of this novel. Too bad I couldn't have just skipped to the last chapter and probably could have gotten the jist of the entire book much easier. Overall, I'm glad I read it. But I'm glad I'm done with it.
It was interesting to start but soon became so bizzar that I had a hard time following what was going on. I still don't know exactly what was happening, even at the end. It was a little long and repetative, but of course, this was part of the story line. The woman slowly loses her mind after voluntarily being locked in a room for a year with no contact with the outside world except through her computer. I only gave it three stars because I can appreciate the artistic value of this novel. Too bad I couldn't have just skipped to the last chapter and probably could have gotten the jist of the entire book much easier. Overall, I'm glad I read it. But I'm glad I'm done with it.
September 4, 2011
I stumbled across Hilary Bromberg's A New You by accident and I have to admit I'm so glad that I did. What I found utterly interesting is that most of the dystopian novels I've read show the horror of the world around the characters. And while the unknown narrator has a world to deal with, it's nothing more than a room. For me it was the breakdown of self that was truly amazing. Reality warps as the novel goes on and while it was hard to tell what was going on in the narrator's mind and what was actually happening. I found it to be a marvelous take on what beauty is, what art is, and definitely what women do to themselves for the sake of those things. Brilliantly write and definitely should be read.
June 12, 2019
I have an obsession with this book. In the same way that I have reread a handful of my favorites like 1984 and Hitchhiker’s Guide, I have read this about six times in two years. It’s dark and painful at times, but hopeful and funny at others. It’s a smart read with insightful commentary on our digital lives.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews