Lexicon by Max Barry

Max Barry is an odd writer. By that, I mean his odd numbered books have been fantastic! I liked Syrup, his debut novel. I then loved Company, his third. And now I’ll add Lexicon, his 5th, to that list. A fun, fast-paced, intelligent read that incorporates some of my favorite things, including witty introspection, languages and the study of them, academia, challenging power structures, and the classic boy meets girl who could destroy the world with a word.

Barry explores a world were words are deployed to persuade individuals and groups to do something they might not normally do. This is, in fact, what words do normally. Barry takes it to the next level, as a form of mind/body control. But he keeps it grounded, making you want to believe that words do have these powers, as they do “carry meaning” and cause biological and chemical reactions in our minds and bodies. He explores personality types, extended to the extreme where one’s type (out of several hundred), indicates which words can be deployed to control your mind.

His book is perfect for today, especially in the surveillance world we are confronted with and the social networking we have embraced. For all the Organization does in the book to study people and figure out what type they are, Barry deftly shows how much about ourselves we give away for free:

Everyone's making pages for themselves. Imagine a hundred million people clicking polls and typing in their favorite TV shows and products and political leanings, day after day. It's the biggest data profile ever. And it's voluntary. That's the funny part. People resist a census, but give them a profile page and they'll spend all day telling you who they are (p.128).

Max Barry hits it out of the park with this book. Fast, fun, intelligent, and timely. You can't ask for much more. Give it a look!