_{Feature photo above by Gabrielle Henderson on Unsplash}

City Girl Reads #6 – No Filter by Sarah Frier

Genres: Technology, Social Media, Business
Year: 2020

---

No Filter was one of my top reads last year. After I finished it, so much of what I learned from the book stuck with me for a long time after and I keep recommending this book to others. Instagram is an app I use every single day, not obsessively, but regularly. I felt that it was important and interesting to understand more about something that is so much part of our lives today.

This book tells the inside story of Instagram, the biggest app of our generation. I’m sure we’re already well aware how significant this app can be in our lives, but it’s also easy to just use the app without thinking too much about it.

The author, Sarah Frier, a senior technology reporter for Bloomberg News, did such an amazing job with this book! The book traces Instagram’s start from the very beginning, and follows the story of how it developed, its acquisition by Facebook, how it changed and how an app transformed businesses, the idea of online celebrities, influencer culture and so much more. It was extremely insightful and informative and I’ve gladly added this book to my list of favourites and a copy to my bookshelf.

I found this book under the Business or Technology sections of bookstores here in Singapore, but I just want to share that even as someone who hardly ever reads business or tech books, this one was surprisingly easy to get into! In fact, I found that the book actually focused on the stories and experiences from the people the author spoke to, bringing a personal touch along with the business/tech related stuff, which I really enjoyed!

Definitely recommending this book for everyone who uses Instagram and keen to look a little further into this powerful social media platform.

Each month, more than 1 billion of us use Instagram. We take photos and videos of our food, our faces, our favourite scenery, our families, and our interests and share them, hoping that they reflect something about who we are or who we aspire to be. We interact with these posts and each other, aiming to forge deeper relationships, stronger networks, or personal brands. It’s just the way modern life works. Rarely do we have the chance to reflect on how we got here and what it means. But we should.

No Filter by Sarah Frier

Bookish Links
– Follow my bookstagram!
– Add this book to Goodreads
– Author’s instagram

⭐ Follow me on Instagram and Facebook for day-to-day updates and my bookstagram for bookish posts! ⭐