Rating:  Summary: Pretty good Review: I usually stick to mainstream novels like "The Triumph and the Glory" or "Point of Origin", but Stephenson originally captured my interest with "Cryptonomicon" because of the WWII connection. So I read "Snow Crash". I had to work at it, some of it was pretty bizarre, but it grew on me. About half way through I was very involved in the story and remained intrigued with it until the end.
Rating:  Summary: Overrated Review: I did like this book actually but if you read the reviews on the paperback edition you'd think this was the Second Coming, in fact some reviewers compared it to Pynchon, there are echoes of Pynchon in there but not enough that I would have drawn that sort of comparsion. But about the book itself, it's typical cyberpunk stuff, Stephenson loves his idea of the future and spends many pages describing it, in fact so many that you don't notice for about a hundred pages that the plot still hasn't gone anywhere and when it does go somewhere it does get better, but the ending is absolute nonsense and totally anticlimatic and is it just me or does Snow Crash never turn into the threat that everyone is talking about. One guy gets hit by Snow Crash and that's it. Whee. And then characters themselves are a tad bland, even though I like Hiro but the scenes between him and YT aren't all that interesting, and there's too much time devoted to explaining Sumerian myth . . . it gets sort of boring after a bit. But his prose and pacing do save it from becoming a chore and I have to admit that I didn't realize many of these faults until after I finished the book. Go figure. If you've devoured Gibson this is probably the next best place to start.
Rating:  Summary: 1st half good then downhill Review: Has some good points but the plot goes downhill in the second part and is unsatisfying, monotonous and tedious about language
Rating:  Summary: Satire? Cyberpunk? Both? Review: An easy read. The plot seems to take forever to rise up out of the text, with a lot of less-than-believable setting filler taking up the early part of the story. The Sumerian tie-in is excellent and intriguing. If you're looking for a literary masterpiece, look elsewhere. If you're looking for cyberpunk with some ribbing, read this book. Deus ex machina lurks around every turn in this book, making it a disappointing read, in my mind.
Rating:  Summary: Bring It On. Review: This book was good, genuine fun. The future setting was believable, the characters were believable, and I can't really find anything bad to say about the book - it's all good.Pizza delivery and coding - the best way to start all good cyberpunk books.
Rating:  Summary: screaming memes... Review: A screaming animee feel, a bit of dry humor, and a unique look at the future where the excesses of today are taken to the extreme, all come to mind upon reflection of _Snow_Crash_. Somewhere around the middle it does tend to prattle on a bit too long about the whole 'language as a virus' thing, but overall an excellent techno-thriller with strong characterizations (if a tad sexist at times). Definitely a book worth reading more than once.
Rating:  Summary: Good, but not that good... Review: This book begins wonderfully with great descriptions and everything, however, the book drags on as they try to explain the Sumerian mythology and also the conclusion is very rushed together and quickly resolved. But if you're bored, read this book.
Rating:  Summary: Excellant Book! Review: One of the most exciting books I have ever read. It's smart and funny with furious action. Read it!
Rating:  Summary: Breathtaking action + erratic pacing = disappointment Review: While reading Snow Crash, I wasn't sure whether I was reading a satirical view of the near-future, where mafia-run pizza franchises and New Hong Kong burbclaves take the place of government, or a serious cyber-historical thriller about an ancient Sumerian linguistic virus being used to conquer the planet. Stephenson's pacing swings wildly and disconcertingly, from breakneck speed during chase scenes, to inexplicable lulls while characters float in life rafts for days at a time, to painfully tedious passages (entire chapters) devoted to a computerized librarian's history lectures. None of the characters are well-realized, their relationships are arbitrary and trivial, and the technology varies from very-near-future (slow, unrealistic, unreliable, shared VR universes) to far-future (nuclear-powered cybernetic guard dogs that run at 700 kph). The first third of the book is exciting, fun, and gripping; the middle third is overwhelmingly dull and tedious; and the final third is confusing and rushed, with a sudden and unsatisfying conclusion. I would not recommend this book, particularly not to someone new to the cyberpunk genre, lest they get the wrong impression and shun talented authors like William Gibson.
Rating:  Summary: full-on cyberpunk satire Review: Stephenson has a style all his own. It's a non-stop, lightspeed paced writing style that kept Snow Crash in my hands at all times. Though, he takes up to 1/3 of the book to establish his characters, it's a good ride all the way to the end. In a world dominated by privatized communities and corporation run pseudo-governments, you'll find that this book hits pretty close to home. Top that scathing satire with analogies on computers, the human thought process, computer viruses, the origins of human language, sumerian myth and the origins of religion and you have a very deep, sci-fi comedy on your hands. I recommend this to everyone!
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