Radicalized by Cory Doctorow

Last updated: 11 November 2026

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The Pitch

Radicalized asks what pushes an ordinary person into fighting back. Each story takes a real American problem of the late 2010s and pushes it until somebody snaps. The targets are locked-down gadgets, police racism, health insurance and the very rich preparing for collapse.

Doctorow is a Canadian-born writer and campaigner who works with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the US digital rights charity. So the technology in these stories comes from the arguments he makes in his journalism. The book reads quickly, because each story is roughly novella length and moves straight to its premise.

Buy from Bookshop.org, RRP £9.99Buy from Amazon, RRP £9.99

Why It Still Matters

Doctorow coined "enshittification" for the way online platforms get worse once users are hooked. The American Dialect Society made it its word of the year for 2023. Verso published his book Enshittification in the UK in October 2025. It then won the 2026 Locus Award for non-fiction. Radicalized is the fiction that sits behind those arguments.

The first story is also heading for a new audience. First Second is turning Unauthorized Bread into a graphic novel for readers aged 12 to 17. It is due in the US on 20 April 2027.

What's In It

Unauthorized Bread. Salima came to the US as a refugee and now lives in subsidised housing. Her toaster only accepts the maker's own bread. When it goes offline, she teaches herself to hack its software. Soon her neighbours are hacking their appliances too, and the companies behind them fight back. Locus called it a good and inviting opener.

Model Minority. The American Eagle, a superhero modelled on Superman, sees police beating a Black man and steps in. It is the first time in his long career he has done so. His help goes wrong and he ends up doing more harm than good. Doctorow told CBC Books: "You only get so far punching racism before you have to address the actual structural problem."

Radicalized. Joe Gorman's wife has terminal breast cancer. His insurer will not pay the $1.5 million for an experimental treatment. So he ends up on an anonymous forum where people in the same position plot revenge. Then the talk turns into real attacks.

The Masque of the Red Death. Martin Mars is a rich, arrogant financier. He plans to sit out the collapse of society in an Arizona stronghold with 30 chosen companions. The title borrows from Edgar Allan Poe's 1842 story of a prince who hides from a plague.

Who Should Read It

It suits a reader who likes Black Mirror but wants the politics followed through, not a twist ending. It also suits readers of Doctorow's non-fiction who want the same ideas told as stories.

The title story deals with terminal cancer and revenge attacks. That makes it a heavy read for anyone with a serious illness in the family. The book also leans hard on its argument. Paul Di Filippo, reviewing it for Locus, said the stories "walk a razor's edge between literature and propaganda". He found Model Minority the least successful of the four. Superhero comics have covered the same ground many times, so he felt it added no fresh insight.

The Edition We Recommend

The UK edition in the shops is the Head of Zeus paperback.

The Head of Zeus paperback: our pick

Head of Zeus, 12 December 2019, 304 pages, ISBN 9781789544947. It measures 12.9cm by 19.9cm, a standard paperback size. The red cover has four white circles, one for each story. The RRP is £9.99, and both Bookshop.org and Amazon UK sell it.

Buy it: Bookshop.org or Amazon UK

There is also an ebook edition. The unabridged Macmillan Audio audiobook runs 8 hours 53 minutes. Each story has its own narrator: Lameece Issaq, Mirron Willis, Wil Wheaton and Stefan Rudnicki. Doctorow does not sell his audiobooks on Audible, because he refuses to release them with copy protection.

Quick Facts

Author	Cory Doctorow, born 17 July 1971 in Toronto
First published	19 March 2019, by Tor in the US
Contents	Four novellas: Unauthorized Bread, Model Minority, Radicalized and The Masque of the Red Death
Pages	304 in the UK paperback
Our pick	Head of Zeus paperback, 12 December 2019, ISBN 9781789544947
RRP	£9.99
Audiobook	Unabridged, Macmillan Audio, 8 hours 53 minutes, four narrators
Prize	Finalist, Canada Reads 2020
Coming next	Unauthorized Bread graphic novel, First Second, due in the US on 20 April 2027
Reader rating	4.02 out of 5 on Goodreads, from 8,746 ratings

Browse Our Full Collection

Radicalized is our Book of the Month for November 2026. Every pick in the series is on the Book of the Month hub. For more books to give, start with our gifts for bookworms. Doctorow's own page for the book, with his notes and extracts, is on his site, craphound.com.

FAQs

How much is Radicalized by Cory Doctorow in the UK?

The Head of Zeus paperback has an RRP of £9.99. Bookshop.org and Amazon UK sometimes sell it for a little less, so check both before you buy.

What are the four stories in Radicalized?

Unauthorized Bread, about a refugee who jailbreaks her kitchen appliances. Model Minority, about a superhero who takes on police racism. Radicalized, about a man drawn into violence against health insurers. The Masque of the Red Death, about a billionaire hiding in a bunker.

Did Radicalized win Canada Reads?

No. It was a finalist for Canada Reads 2020, defended by Akil Augustine. It was voted off on the first day.

Is there a Radicalized audiobook?

Yes. Macmillan Audio published an unabridged reading in April 2019. It lasts 8 hours 53 minutes, with a different narrator for each story. Wil Wheaton reads the title story. It is not on Audible, because Doctorow keeps his audiobooks free of copy protection.

Is Radicalized suitable for teenagers?

Unauthorized Bread suits a teenage reader. First Second's graphic novel version is aimed at ages 12 to 17. The title story deals with terminal cancer and revenge attacks, so the full book suits readers from about 16.

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RRP and stock last checked on 11 November 2026.

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