Bogost is adept at pinpointing the losses that come with the digital ease of Amazon, Uber Eats, and Netflix ... Bogost has often taken on the role of counterintuitive curmudgeon, arguing against whatever the dominant opinions of tech are; hence, his critiques in The Small Stuff sometimes ring hollow ... Much of The Small Stuff boils down to the idea that we should pay more attention to ordinary objects and encounters with the physical world, even as digital technology encourages us to ignore or avoid them. Bogost intentionally does not posit a larger purpose beyond cultivating 'a more gratifying life,' as the book’s subtitle puts it. In that sense, it’s less radical than some of his previous works.
Makes a convincing case for reclaiming 'the lost joy of everyday interactions' with the sensory world ... Persuasively highlights what’s lost when people drift away from 'the equipment that runs their daily lives.' Readers will want to stop and smell the roses.
