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Reamde, Neal Stephenson (2011)
Oct. 30th, 2011 10:35 amOne of the odd side-effects of reading a Neal Stephenson novel whilst on the plane to Istanbul to take part in a conference on cloud computing is that you find yourself - at least, if you're me - feeling as if you're a character in a Neal Stephenson novel. At least, my inner narrative seems to fix on to Stephenson's sardonic-detached-observer writing style and adopt it for itself.
Reamde (the titular computer virus is indeed a misspelling of README) certainly passes a long trip. At 1050 pages, most of which are continuous action, even though I found it a compulsive page-turner it still took four flights, several departure lounges and a couple of hours on the sofa at home to get through it. It's fun and engaging, but is it thought-provoking in the same way that, say, Snow Crash, Cryptonomicon or Anathem were? On reflection, I'd say not: it' a postmodern and rather cerebral thriller, much more in the vein of Interface and The Cobweb, the novels he jointly authored in the 1990s with an uncle under the name Stephen Bury.
I also, despite enjoying Reamde very much, have some Issues with it.
( Lots of spoilers )
Verdict: recommended, but be prepared to go '...hang on a minute' after you've recovered from the exuberance of the ride.
Reamde (the titular computer virus is indeed a misspelling of README) certainly passes a long trip. At 1050 pages, most of which are continuous action, even though I found it a compulsive page-turner it still took four flights, several departure lounges and a couple of hours on the sofa at home to get through it. It's fun and engaging, but is it thought-provoking in the same way that, say, Snow Crash, Cryptonomicon or Anathem were? On reflection, I'd say not: it' a postmodern and rather cerebral thriller, much more in the vein of Interface and The Cobweb, the novels he jointly authored in the 1990s with an uncle under the name Stephen Bury.
I also, despite enjoying Reamde very much, have some Issues with it.
( Lots of spoilers )
Verdict: recommended, but be prepared to go '...hang on a minute' after you've recovered from the exuberance of the ride.
