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Anathem
Tue Dec 22 22:12:52 GMT 2009
I've long been a fan of Stephenson's work, and, having exhausted the canon of his previous work, I looked forward to Anathem's publication with some anticipation. When the book finally arrived, snapped up in hard-back format from an online retailer, my first thought was of how very big this book is: some 800 pages of fairly dense text make not only for a lengthy yarn, but also for a novel which practically demands special consideration before even sitting down to read it. It's not a book for the morning commute, or for reading in the bath.
The special consideration this novel requires does not end with the physical, however. The reader should also be prepared for some heavy mental lifting, as the twists and turns of Anathem take in a range of weighty themes, including discussions on mathematics, physics and philosophy. Stephenson even goes so far as to include three appendices which expand on specific discussions presented in the main text of the book, elevating his typically discursive style to the realms of fine art.
However, for all that it is weighty and discursive, Anathem does have rich rewards for the dedicated reader in the form of a driving plot, engaging characters, and underlying concepts which are stimulating as they are intellectually challenging. Beyond that, it even manages a rather clever twist that turns the reader's own scepticism of an increasingly fantastic storyline on itself; a meta-plot-twist, if you will. Stephenson is arguably one of the foremost alt-fiction writers of his generation, and this is entirely apparent in Anathem.
This said, the book is not without flaws. In particular, the way the narrative frequently bends in order to accommodate a particular thematic discussion can serve to distract as much as illuminate; with characters following what at times can read like a conversation-by-numbers, serving only to ram home some philosophical point. On top of that, for an 800-page novel Anathem would appear to contain much that could safely have been cut: whilst the sheer volume of the book does help to present an immersive world to the reader one is left wondering whether a manuscript half that size would have served just as well.
All in all, Anathem is a fine addition to Stephenson's already impressive bibliography. For fans of his other works, Anathem continues a grand tradition of lofty themes presented around characters your inner geek loves to champion. Erasmus, the cloistered philosopher protagonist of Anathem sits comfortably alongside Snow Crash's samurai-sword wielding hacker, Cryptonomicon's haiku-loving GI Bobby Shaftoe, or even Zodiac's motor-boat piloting enviro-hero Sangamon Taylor; and to be honest, for fans the main problem with Anathem is likely to be that it is over too soon, and that samurai swords don't make a more prominent appearance. For newcomers to Neal Stephenson, Anathem is still a worthwhile read, so long as you're prepared for the challenges it presents, and for it to be more of a intellectual investment that the typical novel.