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4.03 AVERAGE
4.03 AVERAGE
Weird but very, very good.
The writing style of this book is quite interesting. The reader is kept somewhat distant. This helps not to get confused by the many changing perspectives. The story is astonishingly creative. Not unusual for science fiction I suppose. Unique even for that, in my opinion. And an ambiguous ending. Very thought provoking.
The writing style of this book is quite interesting. The reader is kept somewhat distant. This helps not to get confused by the many changing perspectives. The story is astonishingly creative. Not unusual for science fiction I suppose. Unique even for that, in my opinion. And an ambiguous ending. Very thought provoking.
Stephenson tends to get bogged down in unnecessary details, it's true. But, he keeps that to a minimum (well, compared to, say, Cryptonomicon), and the story is interesting. There are times when it veers wildly off course, but it's worth slogging through the goofy parts.
A cracking good book. Stephenson's done a terrific job of writing a sci-fi book for girls and women to read with equal enthusiasm. At the end I wanted to flip it back and start at page one all over again.
Very good cyberpunk - page turner right to the end. Also very different read if all you've read is Gibson, which is a very dystopian, future society while this is very much a non-collapsed society that has found a different way of organization since national boundaries have dissolved under the new technology.
And enjoyed that didn't focus on A.I. like so many other cyberpunk do.
And enjoyed that didn't focus on A.I. like so many other cyberpunk do.
“A book is not just a material possession but the pathway to an enlightened mind, and thence to a well-ordered society.”
After an underwhelming experience with "Snow Crash" (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1343090562?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1), I decided to give Neal Stephenson a second (and possibly final) chance with “The Diamond Age”. I have come to accept that some sci-fi writers are idea guys (or gals), and that amazing ideas don’t necessarily wield amazing books, and that’s OK. And the idea of what is basically a Dickens story-line in a cyberpunk universe is nothing if not interesting! I was also curious to see what Stephenson would do with a female lead, because his female characters in “Snow Crash” were kind of awful…
Nell’s life begins like something you’d expect from a character in “David Copperfield”: her father is a petty criminal convicted and executed for assault, so she is raised by her neglectful mother Tequila and older brother Harv. They live in the Neo-Victorian society, near a Shanghai that belongs to the British Commonwealth. She accidentally gets her hand on a unique book, the “Young Lady’s Illustrated Primer”. This book was created by this society’s very best engineer, as a secret project commissioned by a high-ranking lord, who meant it for his grand-daughter so that she could lead what he describes as an “interesting life” – meaning a life lived on one's own term and not on those dictated by one's society. Naturally, this work was never meant to fall into the hands of a poor young girl from the slums… In parallel, we have the story of Mr. Hackworth, the creator of the “Young Lady’s Illustrated Primer”, who wants a better life for his own daughter: he understands that the class struggle is a very real problem that few people can hope to transcends, and he finds it his duty as a father to equip his daughter as best as he can, even if that means doing something not-quite-legal… The smaller story-lines of Judge Fang, the magistrate who gets tangled in Hackworth’s case, and Miranda, the voice of the Primer, make the book a rich and multifaceted story.
I really enjoyed the format, but then I am an absolute sucker for Victoriana – with or without nanobots! The prose also had an elegance that simply wasn’t there in “Snow Crash”; maybe Stephenson was trying to emulate the stylistic touches of 19th century literature, but whatever he was trying to do, it worked! The world building is vivid and complex, the globalization, social and cultural structures are fascinating - and while the technological aspects can sometimes feel confusing and under-explained (I could understand a decent amount of techno-babble, but some things definitely went over my head), the story and good pacing were strong enough to carry me through those frustrating bits.
As someone who has no greater treasure (and has never known a greater refuge) than my pile of beloved books, the concept of a pseudo-intelligent book being Nell’s best friend definitely resonated deeply. The Primer is every bookworm’s dream; a story that takes care of the reader, teaches them, nurtures them and helps them grow. With its help, Nell learns how to deal with bullies, her mother’s violent boyfriends and learns many skills that will come in very handy in the real world; the Primer become the parent she never had... Perhaps “Snow Crash” struck a stronger chord with gamers, while “The Diamond Age” does a better job of reaching the readers? In any case, I found myself eager to get back to the book at every chance I got!
I read somewhere that Stephenson meant this book as reflection on the effects of technology on child development: it was originally published in 1995, so Heaven knows if that can still have the same meaning as intended back then… My interpretation is more that this is a story about how books can shape someone's character, turn them into resourceful, critical thinking and unique individuals, but I'm obviously biased.
So congratulations Neal: you have redeemed yourself in my eyes with this great book! Even if Hackworth's story-line and the ending get kind of weird, I enjoyed this book so much I can't give it less than 4 and a half stars rounded up!
After an underwhelming experience with "Snow Crash" (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1343090562?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1), I decided to give Neal Stephenson a second (and possibly final) chance with “The Diamond Age”. I have come to accept that some sci-fi writers are idea guys (or gals), and that amazing ideas don’t necessarily wield amazing books, and that’s OK. And the idea of what is basically a Dickens story-line in a cyberpunk universe is nothing if not interesting! I was also curious to see what Stephenson would do with a female lead, because his female characters in “Snow Crash” were kind of awful…
Nell’s life begins like something you’d expect from a character in “David Copperfield”: her father is a petty criminal convicted and executed for assault, so she is raised by her neglectful mother Tequila and older brother Harv. They live in the Neo-Victorian society, near a Shanghai that belongs to the British Commonwealth. She accidentally gets her hand on a unique book, the “Young Lady’s Illustrated Primer”. This book was created by this society’s very best engineer, as a secret project commissioned by a high-ranking lord, who meant it for his grand-daughter so that she could lead what he describes as an “interesting life” – meaning a life lived on one's own term and not on those dictated by one's society. Naturally, this work was never meant to fall into the hands of a poor young girl from the slums… In parallel, we have the story of Mr. Hackworth, the creator of the “Young Lady’s Illustrated Primer”, who wants a better life for his own daughter: he understands that the class struggle is a very real problem that few people can hope to transcends, and he finds it his duty as a father to equip his daughter as best as he can, even if that means doing something not-quite-legal… The smaller story-lines of Judge Fang, the magistrate who gets tangled in Hackworth’s case, and Miranda, the voice of the Primer, make the book a rich and multifaceted story.
I really enjoyed the format, but then I am an absolute sucker for Victoriana – with or without nanobots! The prose also had an elegance that simply wasn’t there in “Snow Crash”; maybe Stephenson was trying to emulate the stylistic touches of 19th century literature, but whatever he was trying to do, it worked! The world building is vivid and complex, the globalization, social and cultural structures are fascinating - and while the technological aspects can sometimes feel confusing and under-explained (I could understand a decent amount of techno-babble, but some things definitely went over my head), the story and good pacing were strong enough to carry me through those frustrating bits.
As someone who has no greater treasure (and has never known a greater refuge) than my pile of beloved books, the concept of a pseudo-intelligent book being Nell’s best friend definitely resonated deeply. The Primer is every bookworm’s dream; a story that takes care of the reader, teaches them, nurtures them and helps them grow. With its help, Nell learns how to deal with bullies, her mother’s violent boyfriends and learns many skills that will come in very handy in the real world; the Primer become the parent she never had... Perhaps “Snow Crash” struck a stronger chord with gamers, while “The Diamond Age” does a better job of reaching the readers? In any case, I found myself eager to get back to the book at every chance I got!
I read somewhere that Stephenson meant this book as reflection on the effects of technology on child development: it was originally published in 1995, so Heaven knows if that can still have the same meaning as intended back then… My interpretation is more that this is a story about how books can shape someone's character, turn them into resourceful, critical thinking and unique individuals, but I'm obviously biased.
So congratulations Neal: you have redeemed yourself in my eyes with this great book! Even if Hackworth's story-line and the ending get kind of weird, I enjoyed this book so much I can't give it less than 4 and a half stars rounded up!
EDIT: 07-23-2014
I decided to listen to part 8 again since I really didn't understand the ending. And afterwards, I realized I missed an important section which helped clear up all my questions. So lesson learned is don't stay up late listening to an audiobook because you'll miss all the important stuff.
Now that I understand what happened, I really really liked the story. I like the issues that Stephenson brought up. The Drummers made me think of the Matrix in how they used humans as a device for transmitting data and it makes me wonder if such "technology" would be feasible (or prudent) in the future.
I liked that he brought up a lot of current issues like "tribes" and "files" and what that means and who you identify with. I felt this was particularly well done and I have noticed that science fiction tends to deal with political situations far more adeptly than a lot of the political stories I've read.
Lastly, as much as I like to grumble about the things that Stephenson does wrong as a writer, I feel he needs to be given a LOT of credit in one area he does extremely well: He writes strong female characters, often the center of his storyline. Princess Nell has to be one of the most exciting female characters I've read in a long while. First she starts out young and naive. But you watch her grow and progress and develop a logic of her own. And by the end, you realize it isn't Harv or Hollywood or any man who is going to save her. She will save herself AND she will save everyone else. And that is incredible. Because I've read a lot of stories with "strong" women in them, but in the end, they always manage to need a man to save them or figure out that crucial part. And this was pretty incredible that Nell was given the entire story, especially when there were several male characters that could have been the story's "hero".
This story also made me understand why so many male-dominated countries ban education for women. If the Mouse Tribe is any example of what happens when you raise 300k girls from infancy on books and books alone, you will see what "girl power" really means.
I am definitely reading more of his works. Cryptonomicom is up next on audiobook. And as that is one of his best known, I'm quite excited.
****
Stayed up to 1:30 am to finish. This rating is based on the audiobook version. I thought through most of it that I wouldn't like the book as much to read. But the ending got a bit convoluted while listening so I think it's something that I probably should read to get the most out of the story. Like all Stephenson books, this was long and meandering and contained way too many side stories and subplots and tangents. The benefit with audiobooks though is that you can pause easily enough and pick up later and it doesn't really affect the story. With reading, if I pause, then I find it hard to pick back up. I also find his short stories within the story distracting to read because for me it breaks up the rhythm of the story. But listening, it was just good spots to pause.
So all-in-all, I enjoyed it a lot. I found the ideas in it interesting to think about. I liked that this is the second book he set in Asia. He portrays China accurately which makes the stories more fun for me.
Note: I generally enjoyed the reader. She did a good job. Two things: in trying to give the Chinese judge a "New York" accent, she ended up sounding like a Jersey Joey Tribiani and it was really distracting since no Chinese New Yorker that I know has that kind of accent. Secondly, when reading non-western cities, it is imperative you learn how to correctly pronounce the city, particularly when the author goes to the trouble of doing his homework and accurately portrays the real cities in his story. At first I had no idea where "Han Jiao" was until I realized later, when she said "Su Jiao" that she was mispronouncing "Zhou" (the ou makes an "oh" sound so it should sound like "Joe" not "ow"). This mispronunciation had to be repeated multiple times in one chapter and it got to the point where it was cringe-worthy. But overall, I thought she was fine.
I decided to listen to part 8 again since I really didn't understand the ending. And afterwards, I realized I missed an important section which helped clear up all my questions. So lesson learned is don't stay up late listening to an audiobook because you'll miss all the important stuff.
Now that I understand what happened, I really really liked the story. I like the issues that Stephenson brought up. The Drummers made me think of the Matrix in how they used humans as a device for transmitting data and it makes me wonder if such "technology" would be feasible (or prudent) in the future.
I liked that he brought up a lot of current issues like "tribes" and "files" and what that means and who you identify with. I felt this was particularly well done and I have noticed that science fiction tends to deal with political situations far more adeptly than a lot of the political stories I've read.
Lastly, as much as I like to grumble about the things that Stephenson does wrong as a writer, I feel he needs to be given a LOT of credit in one area he does extremely well: He writes strong female characters, often the center of his storyline. Princess Nell has to be one of the most exciting female characters I've read in a long while. First she starts out young and naive. But you watch her grow and progress and develop a logic of her own. And by the end, you realize it isn't Harv or Hollywood or any man who is going to save her. She will save herself AND she will save everyone else. And that is incredible. Because I've read a lot of stories with "strong" women in them, but in the end, they always manage to need a man to save them or figure out that crucial part. And this was pretty incredible that Nell was given the entire story, especially when there were several male characters that could have been the story's "hero".
This story also made me understand why so many male-dominated countries ban education for women. If the Mouse Tribe is any example of what happens when you raise 300k girls from infancy on books and books alone, you will see what "girl power" really means.
I am definitely reading more of his works. Cryptonomicom is up next on audiobook. And as that is one of his best known, I'm quite excited.
****
Stayed up to 1:30 am to finish. This rating is based on the audiobook version. I thought through most of it that I wouldn't like the book as much to read. But the ending got a bit convoluted while listening so I think it's something that I probably should read to get the most out of the story. Like all Stephenson books, this was long and meandering and contained way too many side stories and subplots and tangents. The benefit with audiobooks though is that you can pause easily enough and pick up later and it doesn't really affect the story. With reading, if I pause, then I find it hard to pick back up. I also find his short stories within the story distracting to read because for me it breaks up the rhythm of the story. But listening, it was just good spots to pause.
So all-in-all, I enjoyed it a lot. I found the ideas in it interesting to think about. I liked that this is the second book he set in Asia. He portrays China accurately which makes the stories more fun for me.
Note: I generally enjoyed the reader. She did a good job. Two things: in trying to give the Chinese judge a "New York" accent, she ended up sounding like a Jersey Joey Tribiani and it was really distracting since no Chinese New Yorker that I know has that kind of accent. Secondly, when reading non-western cities, it is imperative you learn how to correctly pronounce the city, particularly when the author goes to the trouble of doing his homework and accurately portrays the real cities in his story. At first I had no idea where "Han Jiao" was until I realized later, when she said "Su Jiao" that she was mispronouncing "Zhou" (the ou makes an "oh" sound so it should sound like "Joe" not "ow"). This mispronunciation had to be repeated multiple times in one chapter and it got to the point where it was cringe-worthy. But overall, I thought she was fine.
I've been meaning to read Stephenson since college, but I only got around to it as semi-assigned reading for a game I'm working on. A lot of the worldbuilding is frontloaded, which makes it tough to get into, but it's worth sticking with.
A friend helpfully warned me that Stephenson doesn't write endings, just reaches a certain word count and shuts it all down. She was totally right. I've seen French movies with a stronger sense of resolution. Frustrating when the finish line was in sight.
A friend helpfully warned me that Stephenson doesn't write endings, just reaches a certain word count and shuts it all down. She was totally right. I've seen French movies with a stronger sense of resolution. Frustrating when the finish line was in sight.
I really enjoyed this book, despite the trippy and somewhat abrupt ending.
I thought this book was brilliant, genius, wonderful, and poured through it right up until the end when I suddenly said, "Wait...what?!"
That's my review. It's fabulous and then ends rather abruptly. Go figure.
That's my review. It's fabulous and then ends rather abruptly. Go figure.
Abandoned. Just couldn't stomach this. To each his/her own.