Is there a particular book you would suggest I begin with, to discover Paolo Freire?

Paulo Freire's books 'Education as the Practice of Freedom' and 'Pedagogy of the Oppressed' were both hugely influential. He was concerned that conventional education was ineffective except towards an already privileged class and that it was largely wasted on the poor in it's commonest form.

He was a major influence on Everett Reimer (School is Dead) and Ivan D Illich (Deschooling Society).

But you ask about convivial technologies. This is the subject of Illich's book 'Tools for Conviviality'. I strongly recommend this book.

I have reviewed it already on hubpages, and invite you to look at my hub where I discuss it in some detail: paraglider.hubpages.com/hub/Conviviality-Iv.

I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.