Cryptonomicon

Rating:
Summary: Multi-threaded masterpiece
Review: Cryptonomicon is a fascinating and fantastic work. As most of the reviewers here have pointed out, the novel has a richness that is both a treat and a challenge to the reader. Even the passages (some pretty long!) that pertain to technical issues are generally readable (you don't have to get *all* the details to catch the significant plot points). Stephenson interweaves the episodes from the two timelines (WW II and contemporary) until the reader sees more and more connections.

I understand why some reviewers did not like the ending. Without committing the reviewer's cardinal sin of giving away major plot points (please, people, these reviews are mostly read by folks trying to decide whether to read the book; don't spoil the fun for them!), I'd say Stephenson's resolution of the plot(s) is just about right. It would have been a bit too pat and artificial for each loose end to be tied up in a neat little bow and "they all lived happily ever after". Yes, he doesn't tell us everything about the mysterious Enoch Root (and I definitely wanted to know more). Did the renegade U-boat captain cheat death? Readers can disagree because the author does not explicitly tell us. However, we get to the end of the race to Golgotha and we know who outwitted whom in the final crunch. If Stephenson chooses to write a separate novel on whether the protagonists are ultimately successful with their digital money/data haven/communications venture/business/scheme, I will want to read it, but Cryptonomicon reached a major resolution point, a moment at which the surviving characters of the contemporary plot line must now decide what to do next.

When compared to the strengths of this novel, the weaknesses are insignificant -- and sometimes unavoidable. Amy Shaftoe is the only major female character we get to know more than slightly. However, the WW II plot line occurs in the ranks of the military, the huts of the codebreakers, and aboard ships and U-boats; women were absent or relegated to subsidiary roles in these environments. The contemporary plot line offered Stephenson more opportunity for interesting female players, but their actual presence in the ranks of nerds, geeks, and hackers is similarly limited. If the author had gone out of his way to "fix" this problem, the novel would have had even greater anachronisms than the occasional distraction of WW II participants talking like people from the 1990s.

Bottom line: An excellent, entertaining, enormous novel that will almost certainly reward a second reading. How rare is that?

Rating:
Summary: A cyberpunk and WWII war story smashed into one
Review: I don't usually place much weight into the book reviews publishers tag on back covers, but the review on this book really does describe it - this book is Tom Clancy mated with William Gibson with James Mitchner acting as a midwife.

Even though this book is an astounding 1200+ pages, it is an engrossing read. Like Mitchner, the story weaves the lives of many generations together through a common theme. Except Mitchner never wrote about lives so exciting (Apologies to any Mitchner fans - but Hawaii was a little dull.)

There are many character threads and stories in the book, but the two main ones are the story of a WWII cryptographer (Clancy style), and the story of his Silicon Valley grandson's pursuit of an offshore data center and advanced cryptography (Gibson style). Both threads are thoroughly engrossing. The book paces perfectly, it never gets too frentic or too dull.

The character development is also done very well - Stevenson doesn't clutter the book with too many marginal characters besides his main ones and he makes most the characters very memorable. This leaves him lots of time to develop his main characters into complex and interesting people.

Stevenson's writing style is also very readable, yet not as flat as the standard supermarket fiction (or bad sci-fi for that matter). The different story threads are written in a different tone, and Stevenson uses his command of tone to provide even more character and plot development. For example, his savant WWI cryptographer thinks in mathmatical proofs, his modern-day cyberpunk in Tolkein-inspired metaphors.

If I had a complaint about this book (I don't have many) it is that the ending leaves a little to be desired. I won't give anything away, but my overall impression with the last 200 or so pages of the book was that Stevenson got tired and just started typing out some text to finish the thing up. It's not a complete breakdown, but compared to the rest of the book it is a weak showing.

Regardless, I still highly recommend this book to any cyberpunk fans, war story fans, or math geeks.

Rating:
Summary: Great
Review: I admit to being a Neal Stephenson fan, so I went into this book expecting a good read. What I got was a great read!

I started my Neal Stephenson reading with Snow Crash as I think many people did. It is a "cyber punk" novel which I found to be almost prophetic considering it was written before the Internet had become mainstream. I was expecting something along these lines but this book was very different.

It was a masterfully woven tale that moves back and forth between characters in WWII and their grandchildren in present day business. The parallel's it draws between today's data security and WWII's encryption and information warfare are great.

Stephenson fans will not be disappointed when it comes to computer/math aspects of this book. It will teach you a little soemthing about the invention of the computer (Alan Turing in a character) and cryptography. The movement between present day and WWII is done brilliantly and I never felt as if the book was disjointed because of it.

It is a big book, but when it is over you will wish it was longer. Don't be suprised if when you are done you want to know more about cryptography. I had to go out and purchase The Code Book afterward to learn more, which was also a good book by the way.

Rating:
Summary: Funny, Educational, but leaves many questions open
Review: I enjoyed this book, as the author demonstratd a solid grasp of good sarcasm on many fronts. His research into the parallels of information and deception during WWII and the present global age were put to excellent use.
The one character who we should have gotten into the head of more was Ari. He has such a pivotal role in the present time, crafting the (shifting) strategic development of the company. But I feel that he is as aimless as the modern Shaftoe character, even though he is not.
I could not give this a 5 star, because the book still left me wanting at the end. I have high hopes for his next venture in this area.

Rating:
Summary: Better every time
Review: This book keeps getting better and better. When I first read it I wasn't able to pick up on a lot of the themes but as I reread the book I saw things I had missed before and the book was no longer a 1168 page behemoth, but a page-turning novel. The book really kept me going and if you are at all interested in the exciting world of cryptography (which I obviously am) then this book is a must read. Any technoliterate individual needs this book on his or her shelf.

Rating:
Summary: Edu-tainment
Review: This book is extremely entertaining, educational and excellently executed. (Pardon the alliteration) Stephenson's prose is quick and to the point, his mathematics are easily explained and his characters are vivid. But... where's the plot? I mean, who really cares about Enoch Root, or any of that "mystery"? If you're going to read to this techno-tome, please try to ignore giant plot holes and silly "twists", enjoy this novel for its edu-tainment.

Rating:
Summary: Cryptonomincon
Review: Stephenson did a great job with telling the story of encrytion from WW2 up to and including what the near future holds. The book could of been about 150 pages shorter, but still keeps the readers attention. The story goes back and forth between 2 men and their 2 grandkids in different times in history. Although this can be confusing sometimes, the ideas and concepts, like all Stephenson's work, is very timely. The hope for a "data haven" is something that is in the mind of every person, or will be after reading this book. All in all it's a very witty, real, and great written story. We'll see if he decides to make a series out of it.

Rating:
Summary: Chicken soup
Review: I was given this book as a birthday/x-mas gift this past December, it just so happens that I was off due to surgery and I spent alot of time in bed. This book was like chicken soup for me. I couldn't put it down. I truly loved it.

I am not a techie but several of my closest friends are. I have just enough knowledge of Unix/Linux and the paranoia of the first generation internet geeks (I worked for a fledgling ISP part-time in '94-'95) that I actually laughed out loud throughout the book.

I have not read a novel in years and NEVER read one this long before. I just couldn't put it down. I extended my time off from work just to stay home and finish it! (I am also in graduate school and I don't have much time to read for pleasure)

The only thing that I can say is that the ending was disappointing. It had such a dramatic climax and *POW* it was over...Sequal?

Rating:
Summary: Outstanding but imperfect
Review: I knew I was reading a good book when, about a quarter of the way in, I found myself nostalgic for high school math classes - the first time *that* has ever happened! Stephenson has managed to accomplish what only a very few writers are able to do - bring out the minutiae of daily life in a way both interesting and entertaining. Sometimes he does it by reducing life to mathematical equations. Sometimes it's just a character opining on the banal (like the best way to eat Captain Crunch; it's best to keep the milk separate). Think Stephen King without the sense of ickiness.

Plotwise, the novel consists of two storylines that at first share no connection except a family relationship between characters. Gradually, however, the stories begin to tie in to each other, coming closer to together - a fascinating process that unfortunately ends with a thud. Stephenson brings the two threads together but never ties them up, leaving a keen sense of disappointment.

Still, Cryptonomicon is immensely enjoyable while you're in the middle of it, and really will make you pine for algebra.

Rating:
Summary: Over 1000 pages and still no ending
Review: This book is not one that you'll read in one evening. It's an interesting intertwining of two stories, one set in WWII and one in the present. Interpersed with the narratives are various digressions on cryptography and mathematics, which some nerds (myself included) will find interesting, but I suspect most people will just skip as being too arcane. Whenever I see a book of this length I suspect that the author is being paid by the word (or pound) or simply does not have the discipline to write a book that is reasonably concise. What the author should find most embarassing is that he has written a book of over 1000 pages AND STILL DIDN'T FINISH THE STORY! This book ends as if the editor told him "Neal, that's enough, there are only so many trees on the planet." The odd thing is that I don't think there are any plans for a sequel. What seemed like some of the most interesting story lines are just dropped. This was a good effort, but somebody should have had their blue pencil handy to reign in the author. Maybe he should have broken up the two story lines and written as two books, so he would have had enough room left to finish the stories.