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Summary: Snow Crash is good, but can be confusing.
Review: Snow Crash is located in the future that is predominately run by computers. Hiro is the main star of the novel, and he is a computer hacker. In the computer world, he is also an expert swordsman.In this story, there is a computer virus going around the computer world that affects hackers. However, the hackers actually suffer biological damage from this computer virus. Hiro is supposed to find the cause of this virus with the help of a friend called Y.T. Hiro will face a big challenge in stopping this virus, because he finds out that it will affect all of humanity. The futuristic approach is very interesting, but at times the novel is really confusing. The roles of the many franchulates and the Mafia are quite amusing. But overall, it is only an average book.
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Summary: This book must be read....
Review: ...by anyone interested in religion, pizza, fast cars, faster skate boards & the evil machinations of corporate merger-land. Oh, and the harmful effects of software viruses on physical, mental, emotional & socioeconomical infrastructure of humanity. Neal Stephenson, I'm not sure if you (via prescience) consciously hit every relevant Millenial topic smack on its head when Snow Crash was first released in '93...or if you were simply writing a swift romp through an alternative future world for amusement only. Snow Crash works several ways. It satisfies the hunger of a science fiction fan. It addresses the historical impact of technology, spam-marketing, Brand recognition & our sick pursuit of organized & punitive religions. It is sweet and hopeful and has a noble sense of Honor as "pilotfish" through the ugly morass of the ALL-CAPITALISM--ALL-THE-TIME future that we are always on the very brink of creating. Thanks, Neal. I haven't reread a book so much since Harlan Ellison wrote, "A Boy & His Dog."
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Summary: Great Book right until the end
Review: I thought this was an incredible book, but I find that the resolution in both this book and the Cryptonomicon is too short to be satisfying. Rather than continuing the teriffic flow of the story, the tempo suddenly changes as everything works itself out. However, I found the book very entertaining and would encourage a friend to read it.
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Summary: The first 100 pages are great. So are the last 50.
Review: A friend recommended this book to me as the "best science fiction he had ever read." I simply do not agree. You've read the synopsis: The book is set in the near future, say 2030 a.d. or so. The author has a delightful sense of humor and witty prose. The characters are well-developed and like-able. His view of the future is sufficiently dark and yet somewhat plausible. However, his endlessly smug tone and his self-indulgent sense of humor slow the storyline of the book to a veritable crawl. This book has tones of Umberto Eco's _Foucault's Pendulum_, Gibson's _Neuromancer_, and even some Elmore Leonard in it. The effect would be spectacular if Stephenson was a strong enough author to pull it off. Sadly, he isn't. I will keep my eye on his later books and perhaps future titles... but probably borrow them next time rather than buy.
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Summary: Cultural satire that became too true too quickly
Review: This is probably my favorite book ever. Every year Stephenson's biting satire of American culture becomes funnier and more relevant. Reading his vision of sprawling, congested future driven by fast communication and business franchising gone awry one quickly sees that Stephenson is not trying to predict the future, but to scewer the present. Written in 1992, before Starbucks ruled the world and e-commerce was a buzz word, Stephenson's vision has become closer and closer to a reality.
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Summary: Futuristic battleland
Review: An explorational book. The future of the Internet as avatar-interaction is explored. The history of language is explored. The relationship between commerce and morality grows more and more in sync over time. But there's too much blood 'n' guts in it for me. It reads like it was written to become a movie and makes large leaps in character, warfare, geography and hacking. Maybe a more mature Stephenson will write more mature books. I do look forward to reading more of his books.
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Summary: Great book, bad ending
Review: THis book is fabulous. As was stated before, if you are a computer geek of any kind, or want to be, you'll love the book. Its references to the future of technology will keep you wondering. I couldn't put the book down until i hit about page 400, then it got slow. there wasn't much action, and it just got confusing. I could easily go through the pages upon pages of history lessons, but not the ending. What was supposed to be the climax was actually the low point of the book. Don't get me wrong, you MUST read this book. You'll be satisfied just by reading until page 400, but afterwards, it'll get slow. I highly recommend it.
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Summary: Oh, for Christ's Sake.
Review: "Liked Neuromancer? You'll love Snowcrash!" I should have known better. The guy who uttered that recommendation was an idiot. Snowcrash features everything I despise about bad science fiction. First off, there's the high "geek" factor of technolust, where the author can't help gloating about his knowledge of computers. Second, I . . . I just can't go on. If you're looking for more Neuromancer, don't read this book. Read Cormac McCarthy or Tim O'brien instead; like Gibson, they are great writers first, genre writers second. Stephenson is a slightly clever SF hack, and that's about it.
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Summary: Tedious at points but READ IT
Review: True, this story can drag on at points (particularly at the end, where I sort of felt like it should have been picking up), but, on the other hand, I just have to admire a guy who crafts a world where pizza delivery is controlled by a futuristic Mafia and the penalty for missing the 30min drop-off deadline is death. Because in a world like that, when, due to a kitchen fire you end up being handed a pizza that's already 20min old, you do what any sane man would do - you launch your car through someone's fence and go Grand Prix across people's lawn furniture and garden gnomes. People in this book react very believably; the world they exist in is just so out there that the things they do and the things they get mixed up in make for one wild trip, and it's a trip worth taking. It gets a little bogged down here and there - the guy needs an editor - but I wouldn't put that down as a reason not to read this book. Run out and grab it, you'll be glad you did!
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Summary: Worthy concept, poor execution
Review: Snow Crash is an exciting novel, with a great premise and an interesting story line. Technological descriptions are vivid and original; I especially like the futuristic wheels used by both Y.T. and Hiro P. However, this book suffers from a chronologically fragmented beginning, two plotlines which are horrendously slapped together, and a general sense of being on shaky ground throughout. Stephenson's bleak outlook on the future is not the problem here; the problem is that the plotline is so fractured and out of joint that the tale suffers greatly. I wound up being annoyed because whenever things got good with one character, the other main character would bludgeoun his/her way in and ruin the plot. It seems as if Stephenson or his editor wrote the manuscript, cut it up between random paragraphs, threw all the pieces in the air, and then reassembled with no thought for continuity or flow. I love the plot itself. References to Ancient Near Eastern religion and modern computer technology usually don't mix well, but Stephenson can and does make it work. The fragmented and fractured plotline, however, is more a distraction than a successful device. Perhaps a second or third read will improve the experience; here's hoping this is so.
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