This is a good overview of the issues surrounding Facebook and, more broadly, online social media and the addictive nature of this type of media. I expected something more academic in nature and this is more of a broad overview for readers unfamiliar with the topic. It's a good starting point but if you already have an understanding of how social media works, it might be too basic a read.

I knew that social media has a huge impact on people today, but I learned even more from this book. Everyone should read this book, including older students who will be greatly impacted by the increasing use of social media everywhere.

Fascinating! Energising! Will need bringing up to date frequently as things are changing so fast - but the first thoughts here will retain their validity for those fresh to the scene.

This is such an insightful book uncovering our social media habits. I felt the book was well researched, full of honest and helpful case studies while the author probed deeper into the psychology behind our addictive behaviour on facebook. I would recommend this to everyone who uses facebook as it will challenge our online habits and behaviours while providing resources to help the reader overcome those addictions.

Dr Susana Flores's book vindicated the worst fears of this reviewer. Social interaction is good and healthy in real life. But is it the same when it happens in a virtual medium? Every sane person will and should have doubts. So, it is inexplicable how so many of us get addicted to their virtual lives and virtual identities. Yet that's a reality now, perhaps that virtual existence is more real than our real lives? If you think otherwise, read this book.
Most of the activities that make us humans and help to separate us from other animals are to be done solitarily -- in silence. You can't play the violin, write a novel or paint a picture while interacting with your Facebook friends. You can't be a John Gielgud and act on stage while your eyes remain glued to the screen of your ipad or smartphone. So, if you are on Facebook, voluntarily limit the time you spend there. If you don't have an account, you are saved! That's what Dr Flores seems to mean here.
Although Facehooked deals specifically with the problem of addictive behaviour generated by Facebook and the fallout of such addictions, much of what It says about the negative effect of Facebook applies to other social media. Being an addiction psychiatrist, Dr Flores is in her own domain when she skillfully analyses the many negative effects use of social media may have on the human mind and behaviour. She quotes comments from real Facebook posts to authentically and convincingly illustrate the points she makes. The loss of privacy, constant distraction, lack of awareness about the consequence of our online conduct, loss of concentration, the blurring of the public-private divide and so on are all here. She even details various kinds of criminal behaviour that uses Facebook as a medium, events that should scare many a naïve user. This book should be compulsory reading for every Facebook user but more so for the parents of teenagers with Facebook accounts.
This reviewer, having never used Facebook and having been born many decades before the birth of Facebook, found reading the book somewhat tedious. But, that may have stemmed from his ignorance of social media or his utter contempt for the disruptive capabilities of modern technology. But that, in no way, diminishes the value of this book because it is written for those readers who are active users of Facebook. The real life story narrated in the book of how a few photographs can make a teenage girl unable to escape her past and her online stalker and how her story ends in a suicide is scary indeed! As far as this reviewer is concerned, his only ray of hope lies in these words of the author: "Many people are becoming bored with their Facebook friends or Facebook itself"! Dr Flores, if there is even some truth in that statement, we are blessed!
For the wise users of Facebook, who are adept at drinking the honey without suffering the sting, Facehooked have words of encouragement too. The book also records the positive effects virtual social interaction may have on your professional and personal lives. But that's a separate domain and this book has not been written with those users in mind.
The reviewer is obligated to let the readers know that he received a free electronic copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

This is very interesting book, and needless to say I can relate to some of the case studies. It starts with some Facebookers experience (unhappy ones), it might be too extreme but I can just about imagine these happening in real world (more of it now).

It's funny how much this social media is integrated in our life.

It is a must read for parents (who want to understand more about social media), and I am sure anyone interested in digital communication/marketing or just a curious mind like myself will enjoy this book.

Thank you Netgalley for this book

When I first started reading this it took a little bit of getting into it. I had just finished reading 'The Church of Facebook' and was expecting it to be very similar. It really was not, but like that book, it took some getting into it for me, but for opposite reasons. Church of Facebook seems to tell stories that had nothing to do with the subject but in the end had everything to do with it. Fachooked started out with stories but went right into the why of them.
It was interesting in that the author started with the light fare and when you got far enough in, the subjects became a little darker. And that is the way it should be. If she had started with the scary stuff first people might not read it at all. That was a good call on her part. If that is not what she had planned it still was a good move on her part. I feel that just the right amount of time was spent on each subject, although for me and what I know (I work in IT and am familiar with a lot of this) some seemed to drag on. I can not object to that because not everyone has the same level of knowledge and what drags for me might be not enough for you.
In all, I think it was a good read and would recommend it to anyone that has interest in the subject matter.

Facehooked by Dr. Suzana Flores is a thorough book that confirms all that I’ve come to believe about Facebook. Using data and experience from the science community and from her own psychiatry practice, Flores explains how Facebook has changed the landscape of communication and personal interaction, how it affects different age groups and genders, the extreme situations that can come about due to the (dare I say) overuse of Facebook, as well as how to use Facebook safely.

I found myself nodding in agreement often while reading this book, feeling a bit ashamed at my own textbook case of Facebook dependence. What struck me as most interesting was that the author explained that Facebook use can become a crutch for social interaction, and whether our personalities are introverted or extroverted, we can end up becoming near (or complete) recluses by relying too much on Facebook. Don’t want to go out? Chat on Facebook, comment on a few of your “friends'” posts, post a photo of what you’re having for dinner. We feel somewhat fulfilled by that. But, along with that fulfillment comes a lack of true human interaction, which can end up making us feel lonely and alone, causing us to compare ourselves (and our dinner) to others, and even causing us to create a unrealistic image of ourselves to others. We may not even realize the stylized and filtered photos and statements we post aren’t quite real life.

The author does not say that Facebook is bad, or that it’s causing us to wither away as a society. In fact, she devotes a great deal of the book to how to use Facebook safely. She particularly sees the vulnerability that teens can face on social media, and provides a good number of tips for both teens and their parents on using Facebook safely.

The book is definitely worth the read. Even if you think, as I did, that you know all there is to know about social media and what it’s going to us as a culture, I still strongly recommend the book. It’s a quick, fascinating read with a great deal of useful information.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a free electronic version of the book for me to read. I was NOT required to provide a review in exchange for the book, and the opinions stated here are my own.

This was interesting to read about the way in which Facebook effects people in mostly a bad way and how a lot of people now doctor there lives to "show" what they want to appear as in social media and how that doesn't always reflect the true person in real life. Perfect husband/wife, best car, great job etc etc and how that can lower other people's self worth just by comparing them self to others. Maybe for younger people it's worse too as you always want to show your best side as a teenager. An interesting book but I didn't learn anything new to what I would assume is basic psychology.