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4.03 AVERAGE
4.03 AVERAGE
DNF way too technical for me. Took the speed out of the story. Made it to page 66
Hot Chocolate
You know when you have hot chocolate, the instant kind, it's OK, it scratches an itch. Then you make a proper hot chocolate, with milk, maybe some cream, it's warm rich and luxuriant. This book is like that, it's dense, beautifully written, leaves you wanting more, but also sated and happy. I came to this one late having read most of Neals other books, I loved it, like all of his books I imagine it will live with me for a good bit. Cheers
You know when you have hot chocolate, the instant kind, it's OK, it scratches an itch. Then you make a proper hot chocolate, with milk, maybe some cream, it's warm rich and luxuriant. This book is like that, it's dense, beautifully written, leaves you wanting more, but also sated and happy. I came to this one late having read most of Neals other books, I loved it, like all of his books I imagine it will live with me for a good bit. Cheers
One of my all-time favorites. Stephenson once again manages to almost-predict technological breakthroughs and cultural shifts. In this one: neoVictorians and nanotechnology in Shanghai on the verge of the rise of the Fists of Righteous Harmony. History repeats itself? Plus, mediatronic paper, recursive storytelling that saves a young girl's life, and the return of everybody's favorite skateboard delivery-girl.
The Brothers Grimm meets A Clockwork Orange meets The Wizard of Oz meets, meets, meets - oh look, nobody can adequately describe this book (or the book within this book). It's immersive theatre and nanotechnology; it's confucian philosophy and Kentucky fried chicken; it's psychedelic orgies and Turing tests. It's fiction for those of us who like to remember that - as Vonnegut once wrote - science is magic that works.
This novel has a lot of really great scifi concepts, and the overall plot is neat, but Neal Stephenson is a really bad story-teller. Problems with pacing and chronology. Often robs the reader of suspense, and goes on tangents about details that seem really irrelevant at the time of telling.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
In between references to "dotheads" and guns installed in the skull, I'm not enjoying this one so we're moving on
I kind of regret reading this book. I kept waiting for it to go somewhere but it didn't. It was an exciting read, with no real conclusive point.
I liked both Snow Crash and Anathem a lot better. It's definitely worth reading if you are Neal Stephenson fan, otherwise I would skip it.
Here are some of my issues:
- Characters are not very well developed.
- He seems to like to use $100 vocabulary words just to show off - do you really want to force the vast majority of your readers to scramble for a dictionary every 20 pages?
- World-building is uneven, some concepts are glossed over, whilst other are explained ad nauseum.
His plots are similar to William Gibson's in that many character story lines are developed separately, and they all merge into a (hopefully) exciting climax.
Gibson generally pulls this plot model off way better, tho.
Here are some of my issues:
- Characters are not very well developed.
- He seems to like to use $100 vocabulary words just to show off - do you really want to force the vast majority of your readers to scramble for a dictionary every 20 pages?
- World-building is uneven, some concepts are glossed over, whilst other are explained ad nauseum.
His plots are similar to William Gibson's in that many character story lines are developed separately, and they all merge into a (hopefully) exciting climax.
Gibson generally pulls this plot model off way better, tho.
Incredible world-building unencumbered by plot or character.