Rating: 
Summary: Some readers may be missing the point
Review: At first this may seem to be the less than engrossing story of a full of himself pop icon that wants to marry an equally famous piece of pseudohuman Japanese software. However, through the use of the often bizzarre supporting cast Gibson analyzes the differences between our perception of celebrities, and the reality behind them, while investigating the possibility of merging man with technology. An excellent read, with unforgettable characters.
Rating:
Summary: His bet yet? Maybe.
Review: Gibson hit us hard with Burning Chrome and Neuromancer. I felt he started to slide from there. The Difference Engine made me want my money back, and Virtual Light had an interesting setting, but that was it. Idoru is light, as many other readers have commented, but is not so far fetched (where do I get my Sandbenders?). This is a quick and very enjoyable read.
Rating: 
Summary: Wonderful Read... for those of us who get the point.
Review: William Gibson's Idoru is a fun book. It's a silly story about a rock star falling in love with a synthetic pop star. I've read the other reviews and noticed that many of you were upset at the loose atmosphere of this book. This book can't be taken seriously... to enjoy it, you have to take it for what it's worth. Read it like you'd watch a cheap, made-for-cable movie that makes you laugh even though it's not supposed to. If you want to read a futuristic, imaginative novel with very light subject matter, this is it. A good, casual read.
Rating:
Summary: An imaginative sci-fi story in futuristic Tokyo.
Review: Idoru was a very different story for me to read. The story was really split into two. The two main characters, Chia McKenzie and Colin Laney, never meet up in throughout the whole story. I didn't expect it to end up like that. The beginning of the novel was a little confusing for me to read and understand what was going on. This was because the story kept on having flashbacks in and out which made it hard for me to tell whether or not it was the past or the present. Later on, however, I started to understand what was going on because most of it was present time. I was more interested in Chia's storyline rather than Colin's simply because I understood her purpose in the story which was to figure out why Rez was marrying Rei Toei, the idoru. Her storyline was also more exciting to follow. I like Colin's storyline also, but his was a little more complex for me to understand. As for the title character, Rei Toei, the idoru, I thought that she should've been more involved in the story. Her character wasn't even seen of talking until the the later part of the book. Overall, I would have to say that Idoru is an entertaining book, but it wasn't the story that I expected to be.
Rating: 
Summary: Much Ado About Nothing II -- By S. Venable
Review: As I read Idoru, I was waiting for the story to turn away from the trivial to the relevant. It never did. The story follows two characters as they are intertwined in the life of a pop star who has fallen in love with an Idoru, a computer-generated celebrity. That's pretty much the whole story. It's very trivial; but perhaps Gibson is making a comment about the characters' extreme reactions to something so seemingly unimportant. But even though the subject matter is trivial, you get glimpses of a fascinating world. It's worth reading, as long as you don't expect earth-shattering, world-saving feats. In fact, it's sort of refreshing reading something devoid of relevance.
Rating:
Summary: In my opinion, *we're already there*!
Review: Having read three Gibson books before - Neuromancer and its two follow-ups - and having loved the first of these, quite liked the second and found myself bored and disappointed by the third, I borrowed this book from a friend with some apprehension. While it suffers from some of Gibson's problems - the predictable, almost mechanic structure of the plot into n subplots that have to be brought together somewhere in the last third - it is a fascinating thought experiment on our emotional connection to artificial constructs. The superstars in 'Idoru' exist mainly as pop video visuals, and their 'reality' is just as ephemeral as that of computer-created Idoru <can't remember her name, sorry...>. Perhaps even more, as the digi-girl might exist forever, while LoRez as physical human beings will die. The audience's hunger for constructed people they can project their emotions onto - it's already reality, in my opinion. People watch their idols on television, on movie screens; they don't care about the real person behind, because they are in love with their own made-up constructs, aided by the media. Why else did so many people mourn when Lady Di died? She was a media construct, and practically none of the mourners will have known her real persona - but that's beside the point. Perhaps we want to create our ideals, we want to believe in them, whether they're flesh and blood, computer-generated, or characters in a book. Their reality exists mainly in our minds.
Rating: 
Summary: More time than it was worth
Review: Throughout the story I was slightly bored. I have never started a book that I have not finished and was not about to start with this one. Hoping the end would bring together the boring tangents into something that would at least allow me to feel I had not totally wasted my time, I continued reading. The inspiring finish was not there, and the writing never improved. Certainly I have read far worse books, but I cannot think of anything nicer than that to say about this book either.
Rating: 
Summary: I had no idea what was going on by page 3.
Review: Perhaps I'm not the brightest fellow, but I really had no clue what Gibson was writing about by page 3. The whole "cyberpunk" thing obviously never happened, and will likely never happen.
Rating:
Summary: Still very good.
Review: Gibson's settings and characters are still as vibrant as before. However, instead of a story that is crucial to the survival of the world, all this trouble centers around pop culture figures that only matter to a bunch of teens. To me, this made the story that much more funny and interesting--to see so many lives and resources devoted to fan culture. A view of the future? or of today already?The climax may leave many readers dissatisfied, as it is both confusing and predictable at the same time. Also, passing off things in current Japanese culture as futuristic was very annoying. Does Gibson consider Japanese consumer products to be strange enough already so that he doesn't have to evolve them to make them futuristic? Or is Gibson just unable to be imaginative from a non U.S. perspective? I hope it's the latter, because I'd be offended by the first.
Rating:
Summary: Gibson builds great worlds but plot is ridiculous
Review: I've enjoyed Gibson's prior works but have not read him in a while so I was keen to get into Idoru. Hmmm. Overall, it's a fun breezy read and Gibson's visions of post quake Tokyo and new media poltics are thought provoking. Still, its basically two stories that of course manage to intertwine, that of a young fan trying to chase down a rumor about her rock star idol ("Rez")and that of a "researcher" working for Rez's security chief. There's some russian mafiosi, cyber-paparazzi, otaku and nanotechnology to keep things moving but nothing really too compelling. I like Gibson's economy with words and his description of certain streets and clubs in Tokyo's new underworld really evoke wonder. Read Idoru for a glimpse of the future but not for its plot.
|
