March 11, 2013

"Anathem" by Neal Stephenson – The Power of Rationality

Anathem by Neal Stephenson (Book cover)
In Anathem, by Neal Setphenson, author of classics such as Cryptonomicon and The Baroque Cycle, we are presented with a strange, alternate world where men of science, mathematics and philosophy are confined to live in seclusion behind the walls of an ancient monastery, keeping on doing their work in complete isolation from everyone else.

However, suddenly the threat of an existence-ending cataclysm looms on the horizon, and humanity is helpless to stop it. In a last-ditch effort to save the day, the scientists, philosophers and mathematicians are brought back into the world once again and are asked to try and deal with the impending doom about to swallow everyone. Naturally, they all agree, and so begins a quest of intellect to stop and unstoppable doom.

Anathem is a very special book to me, because even though I’m not exactly a big Neal Stephenson fan, this is the one novel that I will associate with him, probably for the rest of my life.

For those who have heard about it, yes, the book does contain a language invented by Neal Stephenson himself, although it isn’t nearly as complex or developed as Tolkien’s Middle Earth works.

There is a glossary at the end of the book as well as dictionary notes spread throughout. I have to say that even though it takes a couple hundred pages for the story to actually get going, they are some of the finest two hundred pages I have ever read.

The world of the book is described so vividly that you can close your eyes and feel yourself actually being there. A true adventure for the mind and the senses.

As far as the story goes, it is one of the best science-fiction plots I have read; a huge cataclysm is about to swallow everything whole, and humanity’s last resort isn’t to fire some kind of rocket at it or find some kind of ancient technology.

Anathem by Neal Stephenson (Book cover)
No, they use the power of the human mind, the power of intelligence, the power of man-made concepts as well as scientific and philosophical discoveries. There isn’t exactly much for the action aficionado, but those who like intelligent, methodical, original, and relatively slow-paced novels, this is definitely a read worth investing your time in.



Neal Stephenson (Author)

Neal Stephenson


Personal site

Neal Stephenson is an American writer and game designer whose many novels have touched on science-fiction, cyberpunk and historical fiction.

Some of his better-known novels include Snow Crash, which earned him a nomination for the Clarke Award, and Cryptonomicon, which won him the Locus SF Award and the 2013 Prometheus Hall of Fame Award.

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