Cryptonomicon

Rating:
Summary: great tangents but the main plot slogs along
Review: This is a fun read IF you focus on Robertson's numerous asides that he sprinkles in everywhere. The actual main story arc of the book isn't all that interesting - certainly not worth the 900 or so pages spent on it. What I liked most about the book are the little, strange tangents that Robertson writes as he tries to talk about his characters. Some of the more scientific forays left me uninterested personally, it was more of the character-specific off-shoots that just sparked a lot of smiles on my part as a reader.

Robertson clearly stores a tremendous amount of knowledge on random and trivial things and lets these all come out through the book - I just wish the book's main story was more interesting.

Rating:
Summary: A Mess That Works
Review: This book is, structurally speaking, a bit chaotic. The storyline covers World War II and the present day simultaneously. Stephenson often goes off on tangents semirelated to the storyline, and metaphors or seemingly minor events an take up pages. It sounds unreadable, but Stephenson's skill makes it work. The book rarely becomes slow or hard to read. While grim in some places, it's humorous in others--I laughed out loud several times during this book, something I rarely do while reading. Cryptonomicon is a fascinating story that gives many insights into computing and cryptography. My only complaint with this book is the ending, which amplifies plot elements that Stephenson deemphasized before and leaves much of the plot unresolved. Fifty more pages would have been enough, but it feels like Stephenson's publisher forced him to finish. If computers bore you, or if you insist on a straightforward plot with no digressions, then avoid this book. If you don't mind a book that wanders, though, then by all means check this one out.

Rating:
Summary: This book will challenge your brain.
Review: I have read every book written by Neal, and I have yet to find one of his books that doesn't interest me.

This book is very well written, will keep your attention and at times will challenge your brain. I found some parts where I had to re-read it several times just to understand what Neal was writing about.

I would highly recommend this book it is a pleasure to read.

Rating:
Summary: Goes nowhere
Review: Whereas I found the premise interesting, Stephenson's novel falls apart due to implausible characters and a shaky plot. Instead of building a strong, convincing story in the 900+ page devoted to Cryptonomicon, the author chooses to spend chapter after chapter describing technical jargon and cryptography gimmicks that, in many cases, have little to do with the actual story. This over-attention to detail would be forgivable if the plot actually went somewhere, but the novel doesn't seem to have much of a point until around page 850. Even then, I found the ending to be horribly anti-climactic and left feeling completely underwhelmed and unsatisfied.

In short, a passable book if you find yourself really bored or interested in code-breaking, but a waste of time for the casual reader who enjoys a plot or, if nothing else, a point.

Rating:
Summary: So Surreal it Seems Real
Review: Believably hilarious and tragic characters, canny observations of our intra- and inter-cultural customs and quirks, a factually rich and constantly evolving plot, and a fluid, dynamic prosaic style make this novel hard to put down. Stephenson weaves a surreal transgenerational mystery, while skillfully lampooning several of society's sacred cows. A must-read.

Rating:
Summary: Insight into the mathematical mind! But sloooow start.
Review: If you are interested in mathematics, crytography, or computers you should find this book interesting. Also, if you just want to get an idea of how the mathematical mind works this would be a good book to read. After finishing the book I can say that I am satisfied, but I'm not planning on reading any more books by Stephenson.

This book is long. Not because it is 900+ pages, but because it doesn't really get going until page 600. The novel shifts between a number of different story lines and I found it hard to keep interested in them all until they began to fall together toward the end. Most of the male characters blend together in that they speak and think the same way. As for the female characters, we get more insight into the life of a piece of Captain Crunch cereal than the life of one of the cardboard-cutout women in this book.

Rating:
Summary: My Birthday Present
Review: Cryptonomicon was the first Neal Stephenson book I read, a gift from my younger brother. From the beginning, I was hooked. It was sometimes a little technical (math concepts that went over my head) but it REALLY kept me interested. I liked the fact that it was two stories, with the descendants of the WWII characters coming together as their ancestors did. This book opened the door for me to other works by Neal Stephenson which I have also loved!

Rating:
Summary: Stephenson's best so far
Review: Stephenson combines his quirky characters and high tech backgrounds to weave a complex story spanning more than half a century and several continents. This is a rousing good story as well as a thoughtful exploration of the value added nature of cryptography. Guaranteed to be a favorite of any techie.

Rating:
Summary: Historical fiction + Action/Adventure + Comedy
Review: If you have read any other reviews, you know that this book could have used a more stringent editor, and you know that it is very long. You may also have read that some plot lines disappear, or that some obvious questions remained unanswered by the books ending.

All these things are true.

However, if you like historical fiction, or action/adventure books, you will probably like this one. I loved the way this book blended strong historical references with fiction, and the way it was woven together with a '90's plotline. I like most of the characters, although they were not written with deep volume. Actually, it is a tribute to the scope and pace of this book that I did not object to the characters that were nothing more than vague outlines.

There are some implausibilities, such as, how a group of people, or descendants of this group, so intricately laced together during WW2, could, almost randomly, reunite in the '90s without it becoming obvious to everyone involved.

Every book has its flaws. The scope, pace, and subject of this book worked well enough for me to overlook, what, in the end are minor flaws.

Stephenson has written a book that is exciting, informative, and suprisingly funny. At times, to me, it was gut-busting-teary-eyed-laugh-out-loud funny (i.e. pages 511-528.)

Do not let the size or negative reviews scare you off. Despite the flaws I have mentioned above, this book is worth reading.

So Read It.

Rating:
Summary: heard it all before but...
Review: Like all the other Stephenson books I've read, I get the feeling that I've read this book before. I just can't put my finger on where.

Beyond the feeling that this work isn't original, it is a fun read. While I never loved the characters, and the plot never dazzled me, it was alot better than any other book I've read in awhile.