Review – Outraged by Ashley ‘Dotty’ Charles

9th July 2020

outraged - Ramblings: Reflections & Observations

Why Everyone is Shouting and No One is Talking

Advance Review Copy Details

Title: Outraged
Author: Ashley ‘Dotty’ Charles
Genre: Non Fiction,
Source: Netgalley
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication Date: 09 Jul 2020
Format: Kindle
Number of Pages: 176

So to get it out of the way, I listen to 1Xtra almost daily and generally would have caught some or all of Dotty’s Breakfast show*. There you have it – I wouldn’t call myself a super fan but I probably know more about Ashley ‘Dotty’ Charles than I do most authors I read.

I enjoyed Outraged. I wasn’t sure what I was getting and probably only read it because Dotty mentioned it on her radio show but it was a solid read. It was a succinct overview of how outrage is expressed and escalated on and by social media. Dotty illustrated her points with notable cases that you were likely to have heard of. I’ll leave you to enjoy being reminded of those.

I don’t know why I was mildly surprised but this was a well researched book for it’s category – General Fiction, informative and also entertaining. It wasn’t off the cuff – she is good at riffing, nor did she as is colloquially known ‘half ass it’. Thought, direction and research had gone into this book which made it lightweight enough that it covered broad points but not as detailed to make you think that you were studying the topic for a qualification.

People are so intent on projecting a self-serving image of morality that they now piggyback any prominent cause that might help position themselves as ethical and compassionate
Ashley ‘Dotty’ Charles

People, that is you, me and others, take their interests, anger, frustration, sadness and even joy, express it in real life/on social media and it is the reaction to that, which is sometimes out of proportion to the original expression. The original intent/slurs/’ism’s/bad behaviour, etc is almost lost in the noise of the pile on of responses.

Collecting moral Brownie points by pointing out even the slightest of improprieties..
Ashley ‘Dotty’ Charles

We – that is human beings – have forgotten what to be upset about as – it is as if we see a snippet of an argument or story and are immediately swayed into support or opposition. Our starting point is 100% and increasingly ramps up, until we are a foaming, vibrating megaphone of opinion. Is our opinion based in fact or the number of times we’ve heard that story?

True outrage v misplaced outrage
Ashley ‘Dotty’ Charles

What I took from this was that everyone has a right to their opinions and likewise everyone has the right to disagree with said opinion, but disagree from your informed point of view and not the prevailing one aka the one with most likes or retweets. It isn’t about picking your battles so much as being proportionate in your outrage and doing something with your vocal displeasure. Words should translate into actions

We don’t need to care less; we just need to care better.
Ashley ‘Dotty’ Charles

Outraged, exceeded my expectations and entertained with too many quotes for one review.

And I will leave the last word to Dotty as she sums it up perfectly.

…we need to transfer our resistance from the Internet to the real world and reignite the purposeful outrage that drove society forward in the offline era.
Ashley ‘Dotty’ Charles

My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for an eArc in exchange for a candid review.

3 Stars – Liked It