Touch (Maum)

Touch 
Courtney Maum, 2017
Penguin Random
320 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780735212121


Summary
From the author of the I Am Having So Much Fun Here Without You, a satirical and moving novel in the spirit of Maria Semple and Jess Walter about a New York City trend forecaster who finds herself wanting to overturn her own predictions, move away from technology, and reclaim her heart.
 
Sloane Jacobsen is one of the world's most powerful trend forecasters (she was the foreseer of “the swipe”), and global fashion, lifestyle, and tech companies pay to hear her opinions about the future.

Her recent forecasts on the family are unwavering: the world is over-populated, and with unemployment, college costs, and food prices all on the rise, having children is an extravagant indulgence.
 
So it’s no surprise when the tech giant Mammoth hires Sloane to lead their groundbreaking annual conference, celebrating the voluntarily childless. But not far into her contract, Sloane begins to sense the undeniable signs of a movement against electronics that will see people embracing compassion, empathy, and “in-personism” again.

She’s struggling with the fact that her predictions are hopelessly out of sync with her employer's mission and that her closest personal relationship is with her self-driving car when her partner, the French “neo-sensualist” Roman Bellard, reveals that he is about to publish an op-ed on the death of penetrative sex—a post-sexual treatise that instantly goes viral.

Despite the risks to her professional reputation, Sloane is nevertheless convinced that her instincts are the right ones, and goes on a quest to defend real life human interaction, while finally allowing in the love and connectedness she's long been denying herself.
           
A poignant and amusing call to arms that showcases her signature biting wit and keen eye, celebrated novelist Courtney Maum’s new book is a moving investigation into what it means to be an individual in a globalized world. (From the publisher.)

Author Bio
Courtney Maum is the author of the novels Touch (2017) and I Am Having So Much Fun Here Without You (2014), and the chapbook "Notes from Mexico."

Her short fiction, book reviews, and essays on the writing life have been widely published in outlets such as The New York Times, O Magazine, Tin House, Electric Literature, and Buzzfeed, and she has co-written films that have debuted at Sundance and won awards at Cannes.

Maum graduated from Brown University with a degree in Comparative Literature. She spent several yeaars as a trend forecaster, a fashion publicist, and a party promoter for Corona Extra. Part of that time (five years) she lived in France. She currently works as a product namer for M·A·C cosmetics and other companies from her home in Litchfield County, CT, where she founded the multidisciplinary creative retreat, #TheCabins. (From the publisher.)

Book Reviews
Maum's writing is easy, eager and colloquial…Maum shines when she writes about creativity, the slow burn and then sudden rush of ideas that lead Sloane to change her life. Having new ideas feels like love. We use the same liquid, luminous metaphors for both: lightning, fire, magma, light bulbs. But while love stories are almost mandatory parts of novels (including this one), good writing about creativity is rare. Maum captures that fragile, gratifying, urgent process.
Annalisa Quinn - New York Times Book Review


Touch is an interesting take on what life would be like if we just put down our phones and stepped away from the computer. Maum reminds us to not forget about those who are living and breathing right around us. Because a loving hug, tight squeeze, or simple touch is so much more fulfilling than a text.
Associated Press


At the heart of Maum’s smart, playful, satirical novel is the clash between technology and human interaction. . . . As she demonstrated so well in her previous novel, [Maum] brings astute social observations to relationships, whether workplace or romantic.
National Book Review


A sharp, poignant take on our digitally dependent lives.
Marie Claire


A hilarious workplace send-up and warm-hearted tale of a woman reconfiguring her priorities.
O Magazine


(Starred review.) Maum’s trenchant satirical novel is about the intersection of modern technology and human interaction.… [As] an incisive grasp of where tech and culture meet…[t]he book also captures the mid-life crisis of a woman at the top of her game…perceptive, thought-provoking .
Publishers Weekly


Maum perfectly captures the zeitgeist of our era as technology battles with humanity. Her thought-provoking, humorous book will inspire readers to forgo the electronics and get back to basics as simple as human touch. —Catherine Coyne, Mansfield P.L., MA
Library Journal


(Starred review.) In a work of zealous social critique laced with sexy romantic comedy…Maum’s incisive, charming, and funny novel ebulliently champions the healing powers of touch, the living world, and love in all its crazy risks, surprises, and sustaining radiance.
Booklist


Leave it to a work of fiction—Courtney Maum’s razor-sharp Touch—to bring this vexing issue into focus with compassion and wit.… Maum deftly manipulates [her] tantalizing setup…an entertaining frame for what will continue to be a lively debate.
BookPage


A trend forecaster foresees a solution to the loneliness of this hyperconnected world.… An uncomplicated novel about the complicated relationship between humans and the tech-heavy world.
Kirkus Reviews

Discussion Questions
1. The theme of premonition—whether through trend forecasting, dreams, or uncanny visions—is central in Touch. Do you believe in the ability to predict the future? If you were a trend forecaster, what predictions would you make?

2. Why does Anastasia become so important to Sloane? What does their relationship say about Sloane’s ability to form connections?

3. Do you think that Sloane’s predictions about the future of human contact are correct? In what ways have you seen (or not seen) a movement against technology in favor of face-to-face interactions in society?

4. How does the death of Sloane’s father inform her decisions in life? Why was she ultimately able to move past his death and connect with her family again?

5. The relationship between Sloane and her sister, Leila, is complex. Discuss its up and downs. Did you find Sloane’s apology to Leila satisfying? What do you think their relationship will be like going forward?

6. What, in your mind, drew Sloane to Roman? Why did they stay together for so long? In what ways did he help—or hinder—Sloane’s career? Did you find him to be a likable character?

7. Why did Roman’s article about the death of penetrative sex prove to be so divisive? Are there ways in which augmented virtual reality can benefit society? In what ways is it frightening?

8. The title of the novel is somewhat open-ended: what does it mean to the different characters? What does the idea of touch embody within the context of the book?

9. The New York City setting is an important element of Touch. How do setting and location affect the characters? Could Sloane’s transformation have occurred in another place? Compare and contrast Sloane’s actions and decisions in her two different home countries.

10. Discuss the final confrontation between Sloane and Dax. What are the pros and cons of each of their arguments? Do you see tech and touch as a dichotomy?

11. Many of the main characters in Touch are mothers—Sloane’s mother, Jin’s mother, and Leila—and Sloane is initially defined by her opposition to parenthood. Discuss the various representations of motherhood in Touch. How do they compare with your own relationships or opinions about parenting?
(Questions issued by publisher.)

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