It took me close to two months, but I finally dragged myself through Neal Stephenson's 900-page philosophical science fiction epic, "Anathem." Oy. I'm a big fan of the author of "Cryptonomicon" and "The Baroque Cycle," but this tale of cloistered scholars making their way into the outside to deal with extraterrestrial visitors was a struggle all the way through. I nearly gave up a couple times, but I persevered, mainly because I knew that The Chronicle should cover the book and that no one else was going to step forward to do so.It got a little easier once I found a hook for the review. After seeing "Rock 'n' Roll" last week, it struck me that Stephenson is to science fiction as Tom Stoppard is to contemporary drama. Sound far-fetched? Well, read my review from today's Chronicle and see if you agree.
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3 comments:
Maybe you'd like it more if you discovered that it wasn't actually about cloistered scholars making their way to the outside...umm...isn't it kind of about philosophy???
Thanks Mike, I feel a lot more positive about trying to wade through it myself now.
freeb -- It's all about philosophy, which is fine, if that's what you're looking for at the particular moment.
Cheryl -- It's definitely not anything you want to read on a deadline. But I probably wouldn't have continued without one. There are some great scenes and cool revelations, but I never felt the excitement that "Cryptonomicon" generated.
It does, at least, have a definitive ending.
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