Rating: 
Summary: ...
Review: I'm rating this 5 stars mostly because that's what I gave Snow Crash and Cryptonomicon, while I consider The Diamond Age to be an improvement over them. Stylistically it seems a lot more natural and confident than either, it's wit and humor are also less forced. It's a bit less raucious than Snow Crash, but maintains a similar level of energy, and is... well... shorter and more efficient than the overly biblical Cryptonomicon. The Sci-fi elements are well realized, and, unlike the virutal reality bit in Snow Crash, are described more fluidly rather than as outcroppings that seem more like 'added features' than part of the concept. My only complaint with Diamond Age is that it's ending isn't quite satisfying, as I'm the type who likes loose ends well knoted.I can't give a strong enough recommendation for The Diamond Age... it's massively entertaining and fairly intelligent fiction, and has me salivating to get my hands on Zodiac and Quicksilver.
Rating: 
Summary: Merely OK Stephenson
Review: The concepts in the book were great - from the nanotechnology to the Primer. However, it took me a good 100 pages or so to get into it. Stephenson introduces characters in the beginning of the book that don't really serve any purpose but to introduce other characters later, and these initial characters are pretty much never mentioned at all once they're out of the picture. The middle of the book was great, but then I started to lose interest at the end! I think it may have gotten just too wacky for me in the last 50-70 pages.
Rating:
Summary: Annoying Authors
Review: Neal Stephenson (NS), the author of THE DIAMOND AGE, will go into my personal bibliography of annoying authors. He far outdoes Greg Bear, author of DARWIN'S RADIO and DARWIN'S CHILDREN. Bear introduces several new characters in each scene, without indicating who will be turning up again, as the scenes shift to new locales. Stephenson, in contrast, keeps a fairly tight rein on his characters, except for the boyfriends of the heroine's mother. Once or twice he reintroduces one of these men that he's mentioned before, usually to play a slightly different role in the children's lives. It isn't necessary to reintroduce someone just to keep the characterization tight; Stephenson already has us believing in the interchangeability of the mother's relationships with men. Each man is a little different, stays longer or disappears more quickly, and is more or less aware of the children, more or less brutal in his treatment of the family of mother, son, and daughter. As far as I can tell, about half way through The Diamond Age, NS balances characters and scenes fairly well. Unlike Bear, however, NS is atrocious at self-editing his material. Clearly he has used a spell checker. It appears he also has gotten high on the power of the integrated thesaurus to elevate his language. Occasionally, the precise word is needed to convey a meaning that is a soupcon more accurate than the term that is commonly used. But such accuracy is at war with familiarity. If you want a larger vocabulary, circle every unfamiliar word and look it up! My own preference is to read for narrative flow; stopping to look up a word impedes the page-turning speed that NS's narrative demands. That is not the worst of the annoyances found in NS's book. Judging from the results, which I assume are from the manuscript that the author submitted to the publisher, no one has gone over the final copy. Why do I say this? There are such easily spotted problems as sentences that begin with "It," where there is either no antecedent in the previous sentence or paragraph, or else there are at least two possible antecedents. The reader has to pause to decide how to understand the pronoun "it." A further problem occurs when our view of the sf world that NS has created is jarred by a casual reference to a television set; previously we have been wooed by descriptions of nanotechnology applied to communication, and the omnipresent screens of information. Screens are available to present "ractives" or interactive dramas; NS doesn't tell us that television survives, and when he mentions a television set offhandedly, we find the lack of explanation odd. This lack of explanation for television's presence means that our willing suspension of disbelief has been challenged. Another challenge is to get through the scenes where some of the parameters get mixed, without a storyline accounting for them. For example, Nell's toy Dinosaur transforms into a real Tyranosaurus Rex at night, and reverts to a toy at dawn. One time when this happens, NS notes the change from dino to toy, and then talks about people not being around "in the wee hours." Shortly thereafter, without shifting scenes, he uses the term "tonight." I'm accustomed to reading consistent Aristotelian narrative, with unities of time, place, and person. So I stop and say "What th'? Is this really so confused, or am I just misreading it?" So, once more I stop and check what I've just read. Such interruptions are frequent, so far. I am assuming that NS can write, and would recognize most of these errors himself, upon rereading his book. He is an inventive writer, but I will not be reading any more books that NS has written, unless a review convinces me that his work has been thoroughly edited and proofread.
Rating:
Summary: Only one of Neal's several great books
Review: I loved this book as much as I loved Cryptonomicon, and that's saying a lot! It's a fairy tale for the ages. I recommend The Diamond Age to anyone who feels wishy-washy about science fiction, but who admits to enjoying Dickens or Mrs. Gaskell. After all, it is set in the time of the (neo)Victorians.
The parallel storylines of a most bodacious heroine -actually, several - seeking justice, involving tons of other fascinating characters and inventions, it is a truly fulfilling read.
By reading Neal Stephenson's books, I feel I am borrowing his imagination for a time. How lucky is that?
Rating:
Summary: Overly long, but still a great sci-fi adventure
Review: Little Nell's copy of the Young Lady's Illustrated Primer impacts both its owner and the world in this tale of the not-too-distant future. A revolution in nanotechnology has prompted amazing developments, such as mass converters, surgical implants, and the Primer itself, which is an interactive combination of teaching tool and video game. Living in a straight-laced Neo-Victorian culture, Equity Lord Finkle-McGraw commissions the unscrupulous programmer John Hackworth to create the Primer, which will help his young niece grow up to be a strong, independent woman, capable of someday being a leader. The Primer is a very appealing concept, particularly in its more subversive aspects, as it teaches girls to rise above the prejudices of their cultural environment. Hackworth, dissatisfied with his own lot, pirates a copy of the Primer for his beloved daughter, hoping that she can have a better life. His plans go awry when he is mugged by a street gang, and the Primer ends up in the hands of Little Nell, a delightful, innocent tot who desperately needs to get out of her disintegrating home. Can the Primer save Nell from a life of poverty and woe? While less self-consciously hip than Stephenson's groundbreaking Snow Crash, this is another exquisite jewel of a book, despite some minor flaws. The author once again demonstrates his mastery of dark humor in a tantalizing adventure that keeps you turning the pages. Nell is eminently lovable, and even her brother Harv has his good points, so one can't help but root for the kids when we see the awful conditions they live in. Sympathy for the plight of oppressed girls everywhere is a powerful theme in this book; one can't help but love the Mouse Army, comprised of cast-off victims of Asia's sexual discrimination. As Nell grows up, it becomes clear that she, at least, will never be a second-class citizen. There's a fair amount of action and plenty of suspense in this novel, but some readers will find the extreme length both daunting and unnecessary. The section about the Drummers seems to contribute nothing to the story - it's just a bizarre idea that Stephenson wanted to include to spice things up a bit. And the ending section where Nell labors through a long series of programming problems (without even allowing readers the opportunity to solve the puzzles themselves), seems to prolong the book needlessly. This tome is a little much for younger readers, although it seems to be aimed at adolescent girls (and those who care about them). Teenage boys may find themselves entranced by the brutal action of the opening scenes (focusing on Nell's father), but this pace doesn't continue, and they probably won't see the book through to the long fight sequence at the end. Adult readers may find this book overlong, but the story is worth the effort.
Rating:
Summary: Diamond are Forever
Review: I am not going to be long winded or reveal the high points and plot, I just want to say Neal Stephenson did it again, not a sequel to Snow Crash but the same insane vain of wonderful, future world Sci-Fi. The basic tone of the book speaks volume of today socio-political environment and a very possible outcome. The plot and charters wind and copulate like few authors can manage. I enjoyed the way some of the side thoughts and charters were left as a statement unto them selves and not overly exploited or beat to pulp. This book will leave you thinking in a better vein and remembering bits and pieces for a time to come.
Rating:
Summary: Promising story that ultimately fails to deliver
Review: I eagerly paid [money] for this book upon the recommendation of the one person whose opinion I most respect in the whole wide world -- my brother. I'm sorry to say he let me down. This book does have several things going for it. First, its storyline either consciously or inadvertently mimics that of Lewis Padgett's classic "Mimsy Were the Borogoves," which is one of the finest sci-fi short stories ever written. Also, the future world it envisions is internally consistent, logical and interesting. The most important character, Nell, is fully developed. Some other reviewers have critiqued the characters as two-dimensional, and to a certain extent they're correct, but the principle character was written confidently and well. The book also avoids most of the faux-60s self-affected hippie language/lifestyle and bewildering stream-of-consciousness rambling that unfortunately identifies its particular sub-genre, notwithstanding the first couple of chapters. But...the book doesn't really go anywhere or say anything clearly. That's its main failure. The author has something to say about ethnicity and culture, and he says it, but his message is curiously muddled (if humanity is to break down by ethnicity, as opposed to territoriality, then why are the Fists so intent on reclaiming the historical territory of China?). Is the author merely attempting to fast-forward the Boxer Rebellion by 150 years? An interesting concept, but one that seems curiously disconnected to the other events in the book. The Fists don't even show up for real until the last 50 pages. Is Stephenson attempting to discuss the relationship of culture and technology? Another interesting concept, but while he states that theme clearly in several places throughout the book (e.g., Finkle-McGraw's observations on the Rodney King riots), he seems to be implying that the McGuffin of the Seed technology, which supposedly will vault the Han Chinese ahead of other ethnicities, can be essentially imported from the West (i.e., from Hackworth and the Drummers/CryptNet). How is that different from the quotidian status quo? The only level that this book "worked" on for me was that of self-actualization. That's the same reason I loved "Mimsy Were the Borogoves." But that theme is somewhat lost in the rest of the book.
Rating:
Summary: Great Beginings, Unresolved endings
Review: I really liked 95% of Snow Crash and 85% of Diamond Age but his endings are terrible. Things are left unexplained and unresolved. I won't read another of his books unless he learns to write an ending.
Rating:
Summary: A Look Inside the Illustrated Primmer
Review: This book is in part about the struggle of the lower class wanted their children to become something more then what the world said they could be. The world has changed, and your social class determines your place in the world, and where in the world your children will be. This book starts out with a scientist who works for the upper class. He invents a book called the Illustrated primmer, and its function is to help educate the daughter of the man he works for. But he wants to steal a copy for his child, so she can become something more. The book is stolen and an abused young girl gets it, and we follow what happens to her and the other characters that are linked to her and the book's creation. This book is excellent, and shows how a simple event and the idea that you can be more then what others say you where born to be.
Rating:
Summary: An Intriguing Neo-Frankenstein Story
Review: Remember Mary Shelley's signature work about a man whose ultimate knowledge of technology seemingly gives him control over even life and death only to realize that his creation is not only out of control but to be his own undoing? Think of The Diamond Age as a neo-Frankenstein story reflecting the same themes: the Victorian idea of total control through technology (here, nanomachines that can build or modify nearly any structure) verses the ultimate trimuph of chaos and Nature over that control (again, the nanomachines as a vector unseen of ultimate loss of control). In Diamond Age, Stephenson presents a more mature work than his very entertaining "pizza mafia" book, Snow Crash, with complex themes of man verses nature and a reflection of the Victorian-era ideas of Frankenstein. One example is a local toughguy who uses technology to build up his muscles even while he sleeps but is done in by "cookie cutters," nanoexplosives that basically shred his body into pieces without his even knowing they were there. The story mainly centers on two characters, one a brilliant nanoengineer stifled by the neo-Victorian society within which he lives who finds himself put in contact with the kind of dirty life that is anethema to his culture; the other is a young, underprivilidged girl who comes by his creation, a powerful nanotechnological book to serve as a primer, through which she learns and grows and even raises her own army of sorts taught by the same book. At the same time, tensions in the Middle Kingdom (that's China, by the way) threaten an agrarian revolt and invasion akin to what happened in Cambodia, yet another facet of the nature/chaos vs. technology/order storyline. The Diamond Age is a tougher read than Snow Crash but yet a more fulfilling one, indicative of Stephenson's growing mastery of his writing talent. Casual readers may have some difficulty penetrating the text and find themselves skimming ahead at first (as I did when I first picked up the book), but most will also find themselves drawn back into the book as the pace picks up and the plot thickens.
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