Snow Crash
Finished the...second(?) and probably last book of winter break. Pity I didn't try to stretch it out a little longer. Anyway, Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson, of Cryptonomicon fame.
The protagonist is named Hiro Protagonist (a little odd, but you get used to it) and he (at the start of the book) delivers pizzas for the mafia. Yes, the mafia. The setting is the relatively near future, the world has basically become a patchwork of corporate enterprises and franchises which have almost entirely supplanted government. Technology has advanced and poverty hasn't so much run amok as it has gained the ability to migrate more efficiently. With the evolution of computer technology, the Metaverse has sprung into being. The Metaverse is basically VR and plays a pretty big part in the story; because like most of Stephenson's protagonists, Hiro's a hacker. The book gets it's name from the first plot point, Snow Crash, a supposed narcotic that's being distributed in the Metaverse of all places. What's weird is that it doesn't make sense, because you can't do drugs in the Metaverse. You can walk around, go places, talk to people, but you can't feel or in this case, get high. Coincidentally, "snow crash" is also the term for a certain kind of computer crash. And most of what this story deals with, is how you can crash the human brain.
It was a good read. I like Stephenson's writing style because he's very smart. There's a lot of wit in the dialogue and you usually learn something new from his books. He also seems to hate being overdramatic, or maybe even dramatic, because he rarely is (if ever). This makes his books a little stagnant in a weird kind of way. He's also typically pretty long-winded (as was the case with Cryptonomicon which was probably the longest book I have ever read in my life). I can see why now, because I think Snow Crash suffered a little from being so short (at 468 pages to Cryptonomicon's some...900). Because he takes awhile to say anything (and he does say it well) those 468 pages don't give him quite enough time to create a story with a whole lot of depth, something that Cryptonomicon had in surplus.
Overall, I liked it. There were a few colorful characters, good dialogue, and some really interesting ideas and circumstances. However, I liked Cryptonomicon better. Being talkative suits the man, he should stick to it.
[edit]
Also, check this out. That is a legitimate, TV promo. It's just proof that everything I love is somehow, deep down, related.
The protagonist is named Hiro Protagonist (a little odd, but you get used to it) and he (at the start of the book) delivers pizzas for the mafia. Yes, the mafia. The setting is the relatively near future, the world has basically become a patchwork of corporate enterprises and franchises which have almost entirely supplanted government. Technology has advanced and poverty hasn't so much run amok as it has gained the ability to migrate more efficiently. With the evolution of computer technology, the Metaverse has sprung into being. The Metaverse is basically VR and plays a pretty big part in the story; because like most of Stephenson's protagonists, Hiro's a hacker. The book gets it's name from the first plot point, Snow Crash, a supposed narcotic that's being distributed in the Metaverse of all places. What's weird is that it doesn't make sense, because you can't do drugs in the Metaverse. You can walk around, go places, talk to people, but you can't feel or in this case, get high. Coincidentally, "snow crash" is also the term for a certain kind of computer crash. And most of what this story deals with, is how you can crash the human brain.
It was a good read. I like Stephenson's writing style because he's very smart. There's a lot of wit in the dialogue and you usually learn something new from his books. He also seems to hate being overdramatic, or maybe even dramatic, because he rarely is (if ever). This makes his books a little stagnant in a weird kind of way. He's also typically pretty long-winded (as was the case with Cryptonomicon which was probably the longest book I have ever read in my life). I can see why now, because I think Snow Crash suffered a little from being so short (at 468 pages to Cryptonomicon's some...900). Because he takes awhile to say anything (and he does say it well) those 468 pages don't give him quite enough time to create a story with a whole lot of depth, something that Cryptonomicon had in surplus.
Overall, I liked it. There were a few colorful characters, good dialogue, and some really interesting ideas and circumstances. However, I liked Cryptonomicon better. Being talkative suits the man, he should stick to it.
[edit]
Also, check this out. That is a legitimate, TV promo. It's just proof that everything I love is somehow, deep down, related.