Books I read in August 2025

Here's what nobody told you in school: the Luddites weren't technophobes smashing machines because they feared progress. They were organized workers who only destroyed machines being used to degrade working conditions and produce lower quality goods while preserving traditional tools. They weren't opposing technology—they were opposing a specific use of it that concentrated power and capital while degrading human labor.

Sergio's August book review centers on Brian Merchant's "Blood in the Machine," which documents the first instance of workers organizing to fight for fair conditions during the Industrial Revolution. General Ned Ludd was a mythical figure fronting a disciplined movement against what they called "exploitation, not technology." These workers even lobbied legislators for gradual automation reforms that would benefit everyone. The parallel to today's AI companies using artists' and writers' work to replace them with cheap automation isn't subtle.

The kicker that hits differently: pre-industrial craftsmen worked 4-6 hours a day and spent the rest with family and community. We have the most sophisticated machinery ever invented and we're working more than them. The promise of automation keeps failing to deliver the lifestyle it sells. One can be both a technologist and a Luddite—the contradiction only exists because of successful efforts to dismiss the movement.

The review also covers two French fiction books: Carrère's "Un Roman Russe" mixing family history with documentary work in Russia, and Lebel's detective novel "L'Heure des Fous" packed with literary references to Victor Hugo.