Anathem
by Neal Stephenson
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Book Summary Information
Author: Neal StephensonEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2008-09-09
ISBN: 0061474096
Number of pages: 960
Publisher: William Morrow
Product features:
- Fiction, Novel
Book Reviews of Anathem
Book Review: Spoiler - Enjoyable with minor flaws
Summary: 4 Stars
Warning: Spoilers ahead.
When I met Neal Stephenson on the Anathem book tour, as he was signing my copy of Anathem, I thanked him for teaching me how to slow down and chew my fiction. To be expected, there is much to savor in his latest work.
As in his other works, Stephenson creates a rich and believable world, filled not just with memorable characters but with entire societies that persist in memory long after finishing. The planet of Arbre is alien enough to necessitate deep exploration, though familiar enough that its exploration doesn't impede character development in parallel. Like many of works in the genre, the addition of terms unique to the environment serve as a constant reminder that Arbre is not Earth, no matter how familiar.
The many-worlds interpretation served as a great premise to allow the reader to experience frequent 'upsights', where the correspondence between some element of the Arbre cosmos and the Earthly equivalent is discovered. These continue to lend credence to the quantum theories present in the book, specifically the existence of parallel yet slightly altered planets like ours, which helps to smooth out some of the irrational and unpredictable events that happen at the end. Gardan's Steelyard as the Arbre equivalent of Ockham's Razor, the collapsing of probable states like Schrodinger's cat, Lady Baritoe as Lord Herbert of Cherbury (perhaps with a splash of Kant?)...exemplifying the depth of research and breadth of subject matter Stephenson is willing to incorporate into his works.
The emergence of the Ringing Vale avout was excellent, a rescue on par with the chapter of The Confusion where Jack exacts vengeance for Eliza. If Anathem had a different author, I'd look forward to another book on the Ringing Vale math and their origins, or even the Ita and the split. I especially enjoyed the clever literary recursion of the Ganakelux creation narrative of the Magistrate, the Condemned Man and the Innocent. The question I have is, who is the authors Innocent? I appreciated his willingness to sacrifice important characters. Orolo's act of self sacrifice for the Convox was reminiscent of Bobby Shaftoe's sacrifice for the marines in Cryptonomicon.
Unfortunately, Anathem failed in a few ways for me, most glaringly with the protagonist. As the protagonists of other Stephenson works seemed to be incredibly intelligent, wiser than their station would indicate, I found it oddly ironic that Erasmus was such a laggard. For a Decenarian, I found myself wondering why he hadn't been Thrown Back years before the beginning of the story. He's aware of this, mentioning it periodically, even at the end when he admits that his purpose in one of the alternate strings was simply to open hatches for Fraa Jad. Further, the point is made often that he's clearly outmatched by his close friends, Jesry in intellect, Lio in his brawn and dexterity, and Ala in her organizational ability. (Perhaps he is smarter than Arsibalt?)
What Erasmus does have (beyond an ability to recall his story and write it later) is a sense of adventure. He's downright indefatigable (very Shaftoesque) for someone who was sheltered i a concent with very limited extramuros contact or knowledge. I found it to be a difficult pill to see this trusting, naive teenager to suddenly turn into a brave, adventurous, not-quite-hero. I think the transition between fid and leader should have taken much longer, only after learning a few lessons along the way. Perhaps the Gheeth could have exploited his trusting nature by luring him into an alley and jumping him, or some other sequence of hardening the character.
He's certainly not the hero in matters of love. His relationship with Ala was lacked cohesiveness in that they both appeared to share a strong bond, yet as his persisted and strengthened with distance and time, hers withered and died. Yet, even after finding out she'd been having sex with Jesry (his best friend?), he not only accepts this and waits patiently for her to pick a suitor, with little or no mending he's back with her ready to marry her on the spot! I understand and appreciate character flaws, but this one (as it wasn't particularly germane to the plot, maybe simply a love interest to humanize the protagonist?) was too much for me.
About two-thirds of the way through the book, as I reflected on what I had read, I was upset about how poorly established the previous ages were. Their technologies, their ambitions, all simply glossed over in order to delve more deeply into the working of the clock, the maths, and developing the relationships of the main characters. Had there been more background (overt or otherwise) on these prior ages, especially those leading up to the Reconstitution, it might have been more plausible that the Saeculars would have such an advanced society. Given only the reflections of a Decenarian to build a mental model of extramuros, the first third of the book I wildly underestimated the history and post-3rd Sack state of Arbre. This made many of the aspects of the book (interactions with the Saecular world mostly) feel contrived, as if constructed haphazardly to bridge the plot across a crevasse of missing background. Naturally, after Advent it was clear that Stephenson had constructed this history of Arbre, though I think he left too much out in the early going, possibly due to the chosen narrative style.
One of the more subtle flaws that irked me after finishing the book was how the entire planet of Arbre seemed to be reflections of only a subset of Earth's cultures. Everything stemmed from Greco-Roman, Christian and post-Christian roots. While I might be forgiving of this in lesser authors, and chalked it up to the massive task of creating an entire planet, Stephenson is one of only a handful of speculative fiction authors that can achieve exactly this aim, and account for myriad cultures.
Another problem, which I'll attribute to the choice in narrative style, is that all the heroes of the story just so happen to be all the Decenarian buddies from the same concent. Of all the people in all the world of Arbre, these handful of individuals happened to be perfectly suited to the task of saving the world? While I appreciate the necessary addition of muscle with the Valers, I found the others relationships to be implausibly convenient. But, perhaps there are hundreds of other worlds where the book is never written, because the group assembled can't accomplish the task and the protagonist dies before writing his journal?
I enjoyed Anathem, and recommend it for science fiction fans, especially those who prefer a more ordinary protagonist and frequent explorations of theoretical physics.
Summary of Anathem
For ten years Fraa Erasmas, a young avout, has lived in a cloistered sanctuary for mathematicians, scientists, and philosophers, protected from the corrupting influences of the outside world. But before the week is out, both the existence he abandoned and the one he embraced will stand poised on the brink of cataclysmic change?and Erasmas will become a major player in a drama that will determine the future of his world, as he follows his destiny to the most inhospitable corners of the planet . . . and beyond.
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