0.4

I enjoyed this. It's a very fast, entertaining read, and I actually found myself, several times, with a feeling I used to get as a kid watching the Friday night Creature Feature. That is to say, with a kind of shivery anticipatory fear at what was going to happen next. I haven't had the experience in awhile and it found it enjoyable to feel it again. 0.4 is a cool, modern tech twist on an old theme. I loved the little 'footnotes' sprinkled throughout and the novel way the story was presented. Yes, it's YA, but I'm 48 and quite enjoyed the ride, so don't let that stop you from reading it.

Exciting read!

It's a brave new world. `My name is Kyle Straker. And I don't exist anymore.' So begins the story of Kyle Straker, recorded on to old audio tapes. You might think these tapes are a hoax. But perhaps they contain the history of a past world...If what the tapes say are true, it means that everything we think we know is a lie. And if everything we know is a lie does that mean that we are, too?So, firstly I'd love to tell you why this book is clever, but that would spoil it. But keep that in mind. Its clever.Secondly this is a complete story. It works well as a complete story. You only really need this one tale. BUT there is a sequel - 1.4 - and I for one am extremely pleased about that. Because its clever. And I'm thinking it might get even more so...we'll see. Fairly soon I imagine.I very much enjoyed reading this, following Kyle's story as he gets caught up in extraordinary events with a strangely ordinary feel to them. This works brilliantly - its kind of matter of fact. Kyle has a story to tell and has found a way to tell it. And you will be right there. The next time you see something out of the corner of your eye you may wonder what it is that you saw...I'm being vague. I know it. So how about this - do you like John Wyndham? If you do, you may appreciate 0.4. Now I'm sure that Mr Lancaster will not mind one bit if I say he's not up (yet) to the standards of Mr Wyndham's writing but while I was reading this I was nostalgic for those days when I emerged wide eyed from such novels as Chocky and The Midwich Cuckoo's, wondering if such things were possible. For today's generation of young readers this could fill a gap...and as an adult you will certainly appreciate the humerous asides about such things as the Teletubbies. This book is kind of like one of those movies you see with your children where its aimed at the younger audience and yet there is plenty there to appease the adult sensibilities.All in all a great little read - and whilst I hope for more from this world I am equally intrigued with what other strange and wonderful imaginings the author may have in store for us.Happy Reading Folks!

(Source: I own a copy of this book.)This is the story of 15-year-old Kyle Straker, and the events that occurred to make him (in some ways) not exist.The story is told by Kyle, and is split into 6 parts - the six sides of analogue cassette tapes that Kyle recorded his version of events onto.Kyle's story starts at the talent show in his small village in Cambridgeshire, when something goes drastically wrong during a hypnosis act, and the four volunteers all awake to find the rest of the people of the village totally frozen. They try not to panic, and are relieved when after 1 hours everybody starts moving again. Only problem is, the people are not the same people they were before the event, and the people know that Kyle and his 3 fellow volunteers are now not the same as them.This was an interesting idea, although the book itself seemed to be aimed at a younger teenage audience. The main character was 15, and the writing itself was fairly simple, so I'd say this was probably aimed at teens under 15.I like dystopians, but this just didn't quite have the right dystopian feel for me. There was a bit of panic, the story was interesting, but it just wasn't of the same calibre as other dystopians I've read recently. Whether this was because it was aimed at a younger audience I don't know, maybe it was just that because nobody was trying to kill anybody, it lacked a certain element of danger and suspense. I have to say that this is probably the first dystopian I have read where there is no imminent threat of death from the `changed' masses.The story was written as a story printed from Kyles story that he has recorded onto old cassette tapes. This was slightly annoying in that at the end of each cassette part of the story is lost where `the tape ran out', and there are also little boxes of information relating to certain things that Kyle says, and certain people's opinion of what Kyle means at times, which seemed to be trying to be witted, but didn't succeed.I also had a couple of issues with the storyline - if the `changed' or 1.0 people took away all the electrical devices, how does Kyle use a cassette recorder? Why don't the 1.0 people try to get rid of the 0.4 people instead of simply ignoring them? And mainly - seeing as this is written as if it has happened in the past, and the intended audience is supposed to be 1.0 people, why are these 1.0 people not more like us? It just doesn't quite sit right that in actuality we are much more like the 0.4's than the 1.0's, another quirk that just falls a bit flat for me.Overall; a `light' dystopian, obviously aimed at a younger teen audience.6.5 out of 10.

There is some title confusion. This book also appears under the name "Human.4" and for some reason BOTH editions are being sold, and even have slightly different prices. The sequel is also listed under two different titles ("The Future We Left Behind" and "1.4") ... maybe they decided the strictly numeric names were too difficult for people to find ...As to how I really felt about this book. It started off great, interesting concept. It was a quick read, but as it neared the end I really felt there were so many things unexplained, inconsistencies that I just couldn't quite figure out. Maybe I need to reread ...As I wobble between a 3 and 4 rating ... I did like it, but really thought it was just ok. Too many unanswered, unaddressed questions. But then, I find myself thinking about the book, reflecting on things brought up that would be great for discussion and debate, I found several "quotable" sections to save, and that does make me want to bump it up a bit.

It's a brave new world. `My name is Kyle Straker. And I don't exist anymore.' So begins the story of Kyle Straker, recorded on to old audio tapes. You might think these tapes are a hoax. But perhaps they contain the history of a past world...If what the tapes say are true, it means that everything we think we know is a lie. And if everything we know is a lie does that mean that we are, too?So, firstly I'd love to tell you why this book is clever, but that would spoil it. But keep that in mind. Its clever.Secondly this is a complete story. It works well as a complete story. You only really need this one tale. BUT there is a sequel - 1.4 - and I for one am extremely pleased about that. Because its clever. And I'm thinking it might get even more so...we'll see. Fairly soon I imagine.I very much enjoyed reading this, following Kyle's story as he gets caught up in extraordinary events with a strangely ordinary feel to them. This works brilliantly - its kind of matter of fact. Kyle has a story to tell and has found a way to tell it. And you will be right there. The next time you see something out of the corner of your eye you may wonder what it is that you saw...I'm being vague. I know it. So how about this - do you like John Wyndham? If you do, you may appreciate 0.4. Now I'm sure that Mr Lancaster will not mind one bit if I say he's not up (yet) to the standards of Mr Wyndham's writing but while I was reading this I was nostalgic for those days when I emerged wide eyed from such novels as Chocky and The Midwich Cuckoo's, wondering if such things were possible. For today's generation of young readers this could fill a gap...and as an adult you will certainly appreciate the humerous asides about such things as the Teletubbies. This book is kind of like one of those movies you see with your children where its aimed at the younger audience and yet there is plenty there to appease the adult sensibilities.All in all a great little read - and whilst I hope for more from this world I am equally intrigued with what other strange and wonderful imaginings the author may have in store for us.Happy Reading Folks!

I always enjoy stories about the end of the world, or post-apocalyptic stories, or stories with a dystopian future. This book is probably aimed at a younger audience than me, but as they didn't have great stories like this when I was younger, I say that's reason enough for me to read them now!The book is offered to the reader as a "rudimentary" "data storage unit" - transcribed from tape recordings made by Kyle Straker, and found by accident, the narrative tells of a time from an apparent long ago time - footnotes in the story make it clear that at the time of the current editing of the story many of what we know now in the twenty-first century is not clear to the people now in possession of these tapes - they are unfamiliar with terms, ideas, sayings and current idioms that we use all the time. So the reader becomes aware that time has passed since Kyle made his recordings - how much time? And what happened in the interim? The narrative by Kyle is well portrayed - short, chopped sentences, as they would be if they were transcribed from a verbal recording. The build-up to the unknown is good; and the reader, as they come to understand what Kyle believes is happening, feels the same horror as him at the unfolding scenario.This is a great sci-fi story - it reminded me a bit of the old tv series about The Tripods; on the strength of which I have just brought the books so I can read them - I only recall the BBC series from what seems like quite a few years ago now, which I absolutely loved.I believe there is a sequel to this, 1.4 - I shall definitely be reading it!

Set in the future where life and humankind as we know it has changed drastically. A set of cassette tapes with the recording of a diary have been found and are the basis of the story. The diary belongs to Kyle Straker, a teenage boy who lived in the early 21st century. The diaries have been reproduced in book format, which in itself is very unusual in this future world, as nobody actually reads any more, and throughout the diary the unknown editor adds his own explanatory notes to the text. These notes add a touch of humour, and also a touch of cynicism.Kyle Straker was an average teenager, living in small village, hanging out with his mates, listening to music and fancying the local girls. It's the day of the annual village talent show and Kyle and three others volunteer to be hypnotised as part of one of the acts. This is where life becomes very very strange, when the four volunteers wake up, the rest of the village are standing stock still and are silent. The phones are dead, the internet is cut off. When the other villagers wake up and start to go about their business, Kyle and the other three soon realise that something catastrophic has happened - and they have been left behind.To say any more would give too much away, but be assured that what follows is an intelligent and fast-paced story, sometimes very scary and often very insightful. I was totally and utterly transfixed by the story and the writing, the characters and the premise.

0.4 - Mike Lancaster"My name is Kyle Straker and I don't exist anymore"And so begins the life of Kyle Straker recorded onto old audio tapes. Set in an unknown point in our future, the tapes reveal they contain the history of a past world. But as the novel progresses it is revealed that everything as we know it is a lie, but if what these tapes say are true, doesn't that mean that we are as well?This new generation sci fi is absolutely chilling, the whole concept and layout of the persona' s narrative is surprisingly well executed. The novel's plot is haunting and keeps the reader constantly on edge throughout each line and chapter. As it progresses there are so many questions that come to mind as this novel is entirely thought provoking and makes you question, wonder and hope. 0.4 (or Human.4 as it sometimes known) is complex and addictive, it is weird in the best possible way and quite simply brilliant. Lancaster's novel is wholly unique and was the book that made me fall in love with the science fiction genre all those years ago. Not only does it has the typical conventions of its genre, but it also subverts it and turns it entirely inside out. The novel is a transcript of the audio tapes and has annotations to the futuristic `audience' and intelligently comments on present day topics. This is not only entertaining for us as readers and even sometimes creates humour. The plot twists are surprising and are entirely unexpected providing a terrifying psychological horror as the characters become more frantic and as Lancaster develops the narrative. All of these ideas combine excellently and this is one of the main reasons why I love this novel. This sophisticated plot is also heightened by the characters who are realistic and three dimensional, allowing us to sympathise with these characters in their desperate plight for answers. Their fears, hopes and anxieties are both vividly and believably drawn by Mike Lancaster. The desperate voices are engaging and wholly believable, every character was a pleasure to meet and become involved with particularly the protagonist of Kyle Straker. His voice resonant and completely sets the tone and emotions of the novel.Overall this novel was complex and weirdly wonderful in the best possible way. The multiple layers completely balance each other and fit together brilliantly creating an eerie yet enthralling read.Rating: Four StarsFor the original and other book reviews, check out my website https://emsview.wordpress.com/

If the same story were to be re-written with added depth for an adult audience, I have no doubt I would give it 5 stars; the slight shallowness of the style lets it down a little, but otherwise, it is truly spot on: creepy, suspenseful, reasonably original and frankly unputdownable.Well done, first-time author... looking forward to the rumoured sequel!