Simon Pont

Meet Samuel Grant, he works in advertising in London in the 90's. He rubs shoulders with the rich and famous but feels like there's no point to his life after his break up with Sarah, but as the new millennium approaches Sam parties like it's 1999.

Sam is, in my opinion, a male Bridget Jones as we relive the last few months of 1999. Indeed Ms Jones gets a mention in the book. Through Sam, we get to experience the inner workings of a man's mind - is it really all tits and arses?

I didn't think I would enjoy this when I first started reading as Sam seemed very materialistic, mentioning the designers of his furniture as if we should be impressed - I'm afraid I'd never even heard of them! Then, through the style of Simon Pont's writing, I felt I got to know Sam and even began to like him a little bit. He's struggling after his break up, drinking vast quantities of alcohol and trying to do as little work as possible. You just know he's going to snap at some point!

There are some really funny moments in the book - my favourites being tube and suede shoe related. Please do be mindful of the gap and don't climb up any bridge railings in slippy shoes.

This is a book for both men and women. Sam Grant - men will want to be him and women will want to meet him.… (mere)

“The internet changes everything” could be an opening slide for a typical technology-driven consultancy presentation. How, when and where are the questions that motivated Simon Pont to interview and gather people from over various backgrounds. They share their opinions and commentaries in Digital State. What is the digital state? An always-on mentality? Ubiquitous computing? The internet of things? Big Brother from Orwell’s 1984? The follow-up of the current nations and states? In Digital State you hear the voice of mainly Digital Immigrants (in 1994 21 and older): surprised by the speed of change, embracing possibilities of all things online, but cautious as well regarding privacy and possible future developments. Like myself, they remember vividly the efforts to create the first internet pages (brochureware), consequences of the Dot-com Bubble and viral marketing campaigns in 2008 and 2012 US presidential elections, Super Bowl matches and the reluctance to post everything everywhere anytime.
Contributions from interviews, essays and observations are written in the first person, making it easier to relate with. The opinions come from marketing, advertising, information technology, legal and media research and strategy and include veterans as well as young talents like Faris Yakob (Chief Innovation Officer at MDC Partners New York), Bettina Sherick (SVP, Digital Strategic Marketing, 20th Century Fox International) and Christian Johnsen (Communication Strategy Director, Aegis Media).… (mere)