Book Review: Hacker’s Diary
After the poem series Dubai Diaries, it is the turn of another diary — ‘Hacker’s Diary’ by Adam Prockstem Smith.
His book reminds me of the peaceful times in Israel. It is hard to ignore the timing of this review. My heart is with the innocent victims of this gruesome war.
Here is a background:
Adam sent me this book in August and I received it in September 2020, when the COVID-19 first wave was dying down. It took almost a month for the book to reach me; then I promised Adam that I would write a review of this book that November. Now, I read this book again almost three years later, again. The book reads differently because I have grown as an author in the three years, and my reviewing skills are improving all the time.
This book is a running diary of daily events in the life of a 22-year-old ex-IDF soldier taking up a temporary job as a cashier in the duty-free zone of the Tel Aviv Airport. In the process of chasing his dream, he discovers and then plans for his future dream — to become an attorney.
The Cover:
A dark color cover, with a human skull made of ones and zeros, the bits of a digital computer, with the prominently displayed title makes for a good cover. The cover belies the innocence of the writing and the vivacity of the contents. Never judge this book by its cover.
Inside the Cover:
The post-soldier life of a young Israeli with high ambitions to become an attorney in the form of a daily journal, as he goes about finding a new job is the essence of the novel.
Adam’s writing is simple and livid — he goes into the mind of his protagonist, Adi Cohen, a 22-year-old veteran of the IDF, looking to build a life outside the army. He takes up a temporary job as a cashier in the duty-free zone of the Tel Aviv Airport. He lives alone in a condo, looks out for himself, shops and cooks, and occasionally meets women for flirtatious one-time trysts. He takes a bus to work.
The story arc is about how Adi Cohen dreams, observes, and plans the hacking of the credit card system through the cashier’s computer. He figures out with his past computer knowledge the steps — searching the dark web, installing the dark web browser, examining crypto, building the code for the Trojan Horse, and finally, understanding the credit card system of the duty-free zone.
While he is slowly evolving his plan, we travel with him through his daily routine, his mental monologues, his thoughts, and his action routines. There is a sense of innocence in the writing, but there are times when Adi turns into a profound thinker, and a focused individual and his fine ambition comes through.
I saw Adi’s human side more than his hacker side, especially the last part — where the entire act of plugging in the USB stick into the computer and then quickly quitting his job, and then his emergence in Canada in a sleek suit. There is huge potential for Adam Smith as an author, and he left us a little short on expectations, especially around the climax. But if the author’s intent was to showcase the protagonist’s human side through the diary, then it is quite a success.
My Take:
I thank Adam for sharing this beautiful paperback with me. I am going to keep it for another read. There are a few folks asking for it, and I told them to buy them online.
‘Hacker’s Diary’ is a very human tale and it is worth picking a copy.
~ Ashok Subramanian © 2023
