Rating: 
Summary: Like nothing you've ever read.
Review: I know it's been four years, a Hugo, and enough reviews to fill a book twice as long as the work in question, but I felt I had to pay my respects to a true monument in science fiction literature--in literature, period. If you only ever read one science fiction book, toss a coin between "Ender's Game" and "The Diamond Age." This book changed the way I look at things. Not only is the technology well-researched, but it's also described with style and beauty, just like in "Snow Crash," but in a wholly different era. Whereas "Snow Crash" was so memorable because of the present-tense narrative and dead-pan, gritty serio-satire, "The Diamond Age" is distinguished by being a futuristic story written to parody Victorian style (read the book to find out why). The author explores core concepts of the effects of culture and society on the individual. In a world with technology that would seem like magic today, where machines literally permeate almost everything, the human spirit is still the driving force of all things the world over. Read this book; get it from Amazon, from a used bookstore, from a new bookstore, from a library, from a friend, it doesn't matter. Just read it at least once!
Rating:
Summary: very interesting
Review: It was a fantastic read; very intriguing ideas, plus interesting characters. The book gives a glimpse into a possible future that is fascinating and frightenening at the same time. I also recommend SNOW CRASH, also by Neal Stephenson.
Rating: 
Summary: Dissapointngly pointless
Review: I find it almost unbelivable how the author who wrote Snow Crash, which is one of the greatest books I ever read, could also write something like this. The sole explanation that I can find is that it seems that authors, like programmers, often fail miserably with their second project, as they loose the focus on what is important and what not in their writing. This is what I think happened here. The characters are schematic, the action also schematic, the plot inexistent. Nothing really happens in this book. The focus is on the effects of nanotechnology on the world - but in my opinion a single-sided boring view (for example, in the whole book there are no computers or AIs). The author makes some presumtions about the future which seem very wrong - but this would not be a problem if the book wasn't so badly written!
Rating:
Summary: Profound work of Sci-Fi
Review: Move over Arthur C. Clarke. There is a new kid on the block, and his name is Neal Stephenson. Great book! I can't wait to read Snow Crash and Zodiac.
Rating:
Summary: Read this book
Review: That's my recommendation -- read this book. Stephenson is one of the best writers today. His style is hip, but it's the content of his books that really shines. At first, I thought this book was not as good as Snow Crash, but by the time I finished, I felt it was even better. Read it, and it will expand your mind in many ways! While you're at it, check out Zodiac and Snow Crash. The three tackle different subjects, but are all amazing books. In my opinion, these are among the most compelling fiction (not just science fiction) books on the market today!
Rating:
Summary: Though Criticized, Diamond Age is still a gem
Review: Crtics of this book, most notably Kirkus Reviews, have cited the "vainglorius" style and labyrnithine plot as negative aspects of an otherwise compelling book. I would describe them rather as assets; I found the style flexible and usually appropriate, both reflecting the sensibilities of the Neo-Victorian protagonists of the novel and providing the reader with gorgeous imagery and metaphor. The plot, though complex and ambigous, is compelling; as Constable Moore says to Nell towards the end of the tale, the ability to deal with this ambivalence is a mark of intelligence. Must the author do everything for us? I think that the open ended, freely interpretable nature of this book is one of its greatest strengths.
Rating:
Summary: Move over Ian Banks the competition has arrived.
Review: This book is truly amazing. No one has Neal Stephenson's grasp on the future. If you like serious science fiction or are fond of Ian Banks culture novels you must read this book.. nuff said
Rating: 
Summary: Piecemeal? Wonderful! As a whole? Disappointing!
Review: This book, like "Snow Crash," shows Stephenson's astonishing -- no, shocking -- originality on almost every page. I greatly enjoyed both books. But I feel that the comment from "Kirkus Reviews," above, is right on. The book's plot is circuitous and hopelessly convoluted, but page by page it is unputdownable. Almost every paragraph will reach out, grab you, demand your attention, and reward you for your efforts. The ending of the book is a mess, as the author tries to tie off innumerable loose ends in a few pages. Nevertheless, as soon as I completed the book, I felt like starting it again, hoping to pick up some of the zingers I had doubtless missed. And, who knows? -- The second time through I might even grasp the plot.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Name Choice...
Review: This book is truly a diamond novel of a diamond age. It's beautiful and entrancing, but don't look too far beyond the surface. Like the omnipresent sheets of synthetic diamond used in Stephenson's world, this novel gives the impression of strength with astonishing actual fragility. For a sheet of diamond would be an absurdly brittle thing. Enjoy the book, but don't think too hard about it.
Rating:
Summary: Doesn't live up to its potential
Review: The story moved rather nicely for the first half. Set in a great milleau, the plot went one way and I went the other and was left thinking, "Uh, what exactly is going on here and how did I miss it?" If only there was a way to have the author redo the latter half, the book might have lived up to the potential so evident in its beginning. Not a waste of time, but frustrating in its failures.
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