A Cautionary Tale for the Untouchable

Stephenson remains utterly unmatched in his execution of this near-future exposé about the potential of technology. As usual, he introduces and develops unforgettable characters and adds detail and color to even the most mundane settings and circumstances.
This story is one that hits rather close to home when the current political climate is taken into account. While some of the ideas are beginning to show their age (the absence of social media being the most glaringly obvious) the premise and conflict can be easily extrapolated out to our modern day. Of course, those that desperately need the lesson this book teaches seem to be immune to learning anything new and are comfortable remaining ultra-rich, über-privileged, and ultimately out of touch with reality. Regardless, it is so very satisfying to ride along with true salt of the earth people as they attempt to outsmart the powers-at-be. Another rousing success from Stephenson and his illustrious writing partner J. Fredrick George.

Good old-school Neal Stephenson. Not especially innovative or wacky (although it has its moments) by Stephenson standards, but enjoyable. More of a political/medical thriller, but well done and very readable. Solid 4 stars.

A riveting, comical and biting read. If people in power -in reality- could get away with rigging the game in this enormous way, they probably would. This book has not dated one bit.

The only problem I have with this book is that it contains an embarrassing amount of spelling- and type errors. Where was the editor??

I like all the things about this that I liked about Stephenson's Cryptonomicon and Reamde, and, in addition, I appreciated the lack of so much "infodump." This is just straight story-line the whole way through. Perhaps that's why it could fit in barely over 600 pages, rather than 1000+. The wry humor here is a bit different from that in Reamde: nothing really seemed implausible, but now and then, I'd find myself smiling at what had just happened or what someone said.

Most of the characters were fairly straightforward, not that complex. But I enjoyed watching them puzzle out the situation they found themselves in and figure out what to do about it. Floyd Wayne Vishniak was an exception, simply fascinating.

And the primary premise? Frighteningly, it takes only a tiny leap of imagination to believe it could all happen.

"Stephen Bury" Neal Stephenson is seriously underrated. That was a lot of fun.

96-2022. This was an unexpected pleasure. I love Mr Stephenson’s books, and wasn’t sure what to expect from this co-write. It had his usual science backbone, but it felt a bit like the love child of Carl Hiaasen and William Gibson. Wild situations, and resourceful and smart people to navigate through them. Some justice is done to the bad people. I had a grand time.

A bit dated (1994) but surprisingly relevant. Very entertaining to read.

This was a very nice read. A lot of it is eerily prescient about the role of media in elections and the peril of moneyed influence within our political system. At times though it does remind you it is definitely a product of the 1990’s and has surprisingly weak points to make about politics as commonly discussed.

It’s interesting reading this book post-Trump election. While I don’t think Trump was backed by the Network as depicted in this novel, I think The Network wants Americans divided so they can control the results.

The difference I see between Neal Stephenson’s books that he has written alone and this book written with Frederick George is the lack of science behind all the gadgetry. Stephenson loves to explain all the science contained within his works and one of the things I love about his novels.

All in all a very good novel that I’m surprised hasn’t been made into a movie. A worthwhile read.

The review of this book on Boing! Boing! says all I could say and more. This book is not full of gimmicks the way most modern fiction is. Despite its "thriller label, is isn't not one of those cheap "scare-you for 3 pages, calm-you-down for 2 pages" roller coaster rides, It's brilliant, intelligent, deeply entertaining, very carefully staged and plotted, every word counting, and... it's hilarious, poignant, unexpected, banal. Pretty much all of life is there. I love seeing a master at work at his craft. Written in 1994, it's also quite thought-provoking at a time (2018) when brain interfaces for "pleasure" and "mental enhancement" are right around the corner.

Читал книгу в любительском переводе Гранта Бородина. Несмотря на то, что в целом перевод удачный (сохранилась живость изложения, вкусный язык автора, примечания к американским реалиям даны толково), впечатление от книги и перевода убивается путаницей с "не/ни", " тся/ться" и слитно/раздельно, и просто опечатки. Переводчику настоятельный совет найти корректора - и тогда текст станет блестящим. Обложка к этому переводу тоже не удалась.

По развитию сюжета, стандартная манера Стивенсона: сначала дать экскурсы и разбросать несколько сюжетных ниточек, потом дать бодрый экшен, в ходе которого связать все сюжетные линии в один узел, а потом найти рояль в кустах и вытащить бога из машины, чтобы разрубить сюжетный клубок и сделать из истории сказку для взрослых.

Тем не менее, книгу стоит пролистать, так как, несмотря на время, прошедшее с написания, она читается на удивление современно и злободневно, и вряд ли потеряет актуальность в ближайшие десятилетия.

Started out great, with a fantastic premise and engaging characters. Went out on a bit of a whimper.

That said, I am still gorging my belly on the Neal Stephenson Kool-Aid and know the man can do no wrong. Except, apparently, when he collaborates with relatives.

San Dimas High School Football rules!