Larry Lessig's new book, Free Culture, is going to be released next week and the reviews are starting to come out. Unfortunately, Larry didn't see fit to send me a review copy (hint, hint) so you won't get my take on it until I have a chance to read the free online version when it is released (and reading books online is a pain). Ah, well. The first review was an extremely negative (and clueless one) from Forbes (reg. req.) (The Trouble With Larry). Larry responded here: Talkback: Manes. Now, the Washington Post (reg. req.) has a professional reviewer take on Larry's latest (Copyrights and Wrongs: Damming the Flow of 'Free' Information). This is a real book review and will help the decision-making process for those who, for budgetary or other reasons, aren't sure they want to buy it.
via JD Lasica, who promises his review within a week
Category: Big Thoughts
For those of you sufficiently intrigued by Ernie's link to the WP review, here's the bottom line:
The first two-thirds of "Free Culture" make this case quite patiently and effectively -- despite Lessig's occasional weakness for dramatic italics. Unfortunately, Lessig devotes much of the remainder of the book to a blow-by-blow account of Eldred v. Ashcroft, the test case he argued against the Bono act before the Supreme Court. Lessig lost the case, and he takes far too much time here pointing up his own flawed arguments and strategic miscues, while trying to map out an alternative winning strategy. Then again, it's hard to begrudge him a bit of obsessiveness in the wake of the Eldred setback: As the rest of "Free Culture" makes clear, the arcane ins and outs of today's copyright battles now mask a much deeper cultural struggle in which the stakes have grown unthinkably high.
Permalink to CommentI love that the author boldly steals the title of Siva Vaidhyanathan's book for his review.
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