[EscapeFromLife4]

Hey all,

Has anyone here read Stephenson's Diamond Age? I'm starting it and it seems he basically moves further in the future from snow crash (That's a good thing) Any opinions?

Escape

[Glelas]

He is one of my top five authors. In my opinion it is his best work. I have read Snow Crash, loved it, Cryptonomicon, loved it, Zodiac, loved it. I have the whole Baroque cycle on my to read pile, so I can't say yet. But Diamond Age is more vast in scope than the others. His characters are much more fleshed out compared to Snow Crash and while not as "action" packed Diamond is heavier on the intellectual side but no less entertaining. A masterpiece if you ask me. But hey, that is me. :)

[Archren]

I have an odd relationship with Stephenson:

Loved Snowcrash!
Loved Zodiac!
Couldn't stand Diamond Age!
Was completely ambivalent about Cryptonomicon!
Loved Quicksilver!

Diamond Age & Cryptonomicon seemed to me to be so much more deadly serious that the ones that I liked, like his sense of humor didn't come through at all in those two. To me they are quite different from the rest, so take that for what it's worth.

[lemming]

Diamond Age is the sparsest of all his novels... by which I mean he doesn't explain anything twice, and only shows you the world in flashing (but precise) glimpses. It's also the book I've gotten THE biggest payback on for reading it twice, because there is stuff in there near the beginning that you won't (you just can't) notice and fit into your view of the society the first time through. The first time I read it, I wasn't sure. The second time I found it a thing of beauty. The third time I was absolutely blown away--and because I wasn't reading for plot anymore, I stopped and looked up all the words I didn't know, and found that very rewarding too. :)

Now that Stephenson is bogged down in lengthy, overdetailed slogs like The System of the World, I only wish he'd start writing things like The Diamond Age again. But that's just me.

[KatG]

Hmm, maybe I should read "Diamond Age" again, then, and see if I spot things I missed. I loved "Snow Crash" -- it was creative, funny, fast-paced and highly stylized (in a good talented way rather than a more flash than substance way.) In "Diamond Age," it was clear that Stephenson was experimenting and I think the story suffered because of it. He was doing a much more philosophical, speculative hokey pokey, deliberately more fragmented, though the plot is easy enough to follow, just not as much fun, IMO. The ending worked in some aspects but not in others for me. The characters, though, were quite good, something Stephenson excels at. "Cryptonomicon," though it stays barely within the border of sf, was an amazing historical thriller novel, a real epic, and parts of it, particularly the Asian sections, are really brilliant. Stephenson once again establishes great characters. While I liked the sections on codes, I'm not obsessed with them, but Stephenson seems to be in the Baroque cycle for which he's also using a Baroque writing style. I tried, I really did, to read the first one in that series, but I just couldn't. Maybe I'll try some other time, but it seems to me he's turning away from story to satisfy those who like to play riddles.

Then again, maybe it's just an orientation thing. I've generally found that those who love his "Snow Crash" are not as wild about "Diamond Age" whereas those who love "Diamond Age" don't find "Snow Crash" as interesting. So you could say he's a writer of many faces. If you find you don't like "Diamond Age," you might want to try "Snow Crash," or tackle the hefty but complex "Cryptonomicon." And if you don't find the Baroque books boring, maybe you can explain it to me. :)

[Taft]

Diamond Age is the best thing he ever wrote. Why? It is more plot driven than his other books. I like Stephenson a lot, but he tends to add way too much detail and often has a hard time getting to the point. This isn't a problem in Diamond Age. It's an excellent book.

[Sheets]

Diamond Age & Cryptonomicon seemed to me to be so much more deadly serious that the ones that I liked, like his sense of humor didn't come through at all in those two. To me they are quite different from the rest, so take that for what it's worth.

Huh. I haven't read Cryptonomicon but I thought The Diamond Age was often just as hilarious as Snow Crash :)

[Ward]

i've read this recently and i think its a minor masterpiece, splendedly balanced with a few exceptions, and compellingly readable. i really enjoyed his extrapolation of current trends into the clanish, culturally fragmented future, and the chinese setting seemed very authentic. the kaleidescope of ideas that grew from his nanotech revolution was staggering, and i really felt he gave that premise its deserved fullness rather than just treat it as a backdrop.

highly recommended, for my tastes far superior to snow crash, which i felt couldnt' make up its mind between satire and story.

[intensityxx]

I've got both, but have read neither Snow Crash nor Diamond Age. I didn't know DA was a sequel of sorts. Would it be best to read SC first? Does DA stand well alone?

[Priestvyrce]

I've got both, but have read neither Snow Crash nor Diamond Age. I didn't know DA was a sequel of sorts. Would it be best to read SC first? Does DA stand well alone?

They're both stand alones as far as I'm concerned. I think that someone will have to point out as to how Diamond Age and Snow Crash are related; because I didn't notice. By the way, one of the best opening sequences in ANY novel is the chase scene in Snowcrash just brilliant!