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4.03 AVERAGE
4.03 AVERAGE
Really liked re-read this book. It has a nice mix of technology, education, action, philosophy, and other topics. And as far as action a lot of crazy stuff happens. It holds up some 25 years after it was published.
This is an interesting book. It felt a bit like different books, meshed together. At times, it was kind of trippy - echoing the vibe of [a:Philip K. Dick|4764|Philip K. Dick|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1264613853p2/4764.jpg]. At other times it was a fantastical coming of age story. Yet, other moments, it was a socio-political techno war story.
I'll admit, it took me a some time to get into the story and start to follow what was happening. This is certainly not a light read. But then, I don't expect light reading when it comes to [a:Neal Stephenson|545|Neal Stephenson|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1430920344p2/545.jpg]. But, then, as with my previous experience with NS, I found myself completely wrapped up in the narrative.
There are some interesting concepts in this book. The heart of books seems to be about a future in which national affiliations have broken geographic definition thanks to advanced technology. I like how he incorporates a return to some historical societal customs. At the same time, he blends in a very cool level of nano-technology. I did have few WTF moments. Not sure why he took the story in certain directions. I can't help but wonder if some of them weren't deliberate homage to Dick.
I am glad that I moved this one up my TBR list. It was quite fun.
I'll admit, it took me a some time to get into the story and start to follow what was happening. This is certainly not a light read. But then, I don't expect light reading when it comes to [a:Neal Stephenson|545|Neal Stephenson|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1430920344p2/545.jpg]. But, then, as with my previous experience with NS, I found myself completely wrapped up in the narrative.
There are some interesting concepts in this book. The heart of books seems to be about a future in which national affiliations have broken geographic definition thanks to advanced technology. I like how he incorporates a return to some historical societal customs. At the same time, he blends in a very cool level of nano-technology. I did have few WTF moments. Not sure why he took the story in certain directions. I can't help but wonder if some of them weren't deliberate homage to Dick.
I am glad that I moved this one up my TBR list. It was quite fun.
Neal Stephenson is one of my favorite authors. I remember reading this book, years ago. Early in the book, I read one paragraph many times over, saying to myself "What?! What is going on?!". His ideas were just so amazing, one after another, and imagining the world he was describing was so cool. You know what's really amazing? Today, exactly what he's describing about the Primer sounds just like what an iPad can do. People wouldn't think it at all unusual, but, at the time, it was far in the future.
I was going to rate this four stars, but then...the ending! Just. So. Abrupt.
Further to my plan to read everything Neal Stephenson has ever written, the Chaos, who is a good sort, bought me The Diamond Age for Christmas. Like all of Stephenson’s books I’ve read so far, I found it thoroughly addictive, so much so that I blasted through it in under two days. As I go further into his back catalogue, though, and approach his plots with a slightly more critical eye, I’m also discovering that his earlier work tends to suffer from structural weakness. He gets away with it because his invention is explosive and boundless and entirely seductive; the reader is swept up in a world they don’t want to leave, and so the fact that the whole narrative is curiously lopsided doesn’t matter. But it’ll leave the book vulnerable on rereading.
The Diamond Age is set in a near-future made possible by huge leaps in nanotechnological development. Nation-states are obsolete; people now select their own tribe (or join a “phyle”, a slightly less centralised version thereof). Some of them are familiar: the Jews, the Parsis, the Zulus. Some of them are less so: most of England has become neo-Victorian, while America includes a tribe known as the Heartlanders and China is divided into the Celestial Kingdom and the Coastal Republic. Body modification is most commonly practiced through the use of “sites”, nanobots introduced into the bloodstream that can enhance reflexes, incite pain or pleasure, interface with other objects like spectacles or external weaponry, and much more.
Read the rest of the review here: https://ellethinks.wordpress.com/2016/12/30/the-diamond-age-by-neal-stephenson/
The Diamond Age is set in a near-future made possible by huge leaps in nanotechnological development. Nation-states are obsolete; people now select their own tribe (or join a “phyle”, a slightly less centralised version thereof). Some of them are familiar: the Jews, the Parsis, the Zulus. Some of them are less so: most of England has become neo-Victorian, while America includes a tribe known as the Heartlanders and China is divided into the Celestial Kingdom and the Coastal Republic. Body modification is most commonly practiced through the use of “sites”, nanobots introduced into the bloodstream that can enhance reflexes, incite pain or pleasure, interface with other objects like spectacles or external weaponry, and much more.
Read the rest of the review here: https://ellethinks.wordpress.com/2016/12/30/the-diamond-age-by-neal-stephenson/
adventurous
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Very compelling world and story with a less than satisfactory ending.
A Hugo Award? I start by giving those the benefit of the doubt. This book quickly took it away. A near future story when society seems to be controlled by different affinity groups. Set on the edge of China, a number of people interact in a seemingly novel and interesting way in order to set up a focus on Nell. Sadly, the story wasn't vaguely interesting enough to get me to the real start with Nell.
It's an exercise in world building without enough interest in characters to make me care. It's a mishmash that just doesn't hold together.
It's an exercise in world building without enough interest in characters to make me care. It's a mishmash that just doesn't hold together.
Maybe it's the fact that I have a young daughter, but this book, and it's focus on daughters kept me enraptured throughout the entire book. Well, up to the very end, where it got kind of lame. The rest of the book, however, overcame the weak ending by orders of magnitude.
I LOVE this book. I have both read and listened to the audio book and both times I really enjoyed it.