Anathem Audiobook By Neal Stephenson cover art

Anathem

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Anathem

By: Neal Stephenson
Narrated by: Oliver Wyman, Tavia Gilbert, William Dufris, Neal Stephenson
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Fraa Erasmus is a young avout living in the Concent of Saunt Edhar, a sanctuary for mathematicians, scientists, and philosophers, protected from the corrupting influences of the "Saecular" world by ancient stone, honored traditions, and complex rituals.

Over the centuries, cities, and governments have risen and fallen beyond the concent's walls. Three times during history's darkest epochs, bloody violence born of superstition and ignorance has invaded and devastated the cloistered mathic community. Yet always the avout have managed to adapt in the wake of catastrophe, becoming out of necessity more austere and less dependent on technology and material things. Erasmus, however, has no fear of the outside - the Extramuros - for the last of the terrible times was long, long ago.

Now, in celebration of the week-long, once-in-a-decade rite of Apert, the fras and suurs prepare to venture outside the concent's gates - opening them wide at the same time to welcome the curious "extras" in.

During his first Apert as a fra, Erasmus eagerly anticipates reconnecting with the landmarks and family he hasn't seen since he was "collected". But before the week is out, both the existence he abandoned and the one he embraced will stand poised on the perilous brink of cataclysmic change.

Powerful unforeseen forces threaten the peaceful stability of mathic life and the established ennui of the Extramuros - a threat that only an unsteady alliance of Saecular and avout can oppose - as, one by one, Raz's colleagues, teachers, and friends are all called forth from the safety of the concent in hopes of warding off global disaster.

Suddenly burdened with a worlds-shattering responsibility, Erasmus finds himself a major player in a drama that will determine the future of everything - as he sets out on an extraordinary odyssey that will carry him to the most dangerous, inhospitable corners of an unfamiliar planet...and far beyond.

©2008 Neal Stephenson (P)2008 Macmillan Audio
Fiction Post-Apocalyptic Science Fiction Suspenseful

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Philosophical Depth • Intricate Worldbuilding • Thought-provoking Concepts • Unique Vocabulary • Engaging Characters
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You either get this, or you are a "Sline"

Stephenson's Best Work

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Ok, so it's long. ...very long. I often listen while walking and don't see the progress of the recording; judge the end of the book from the arc of the story. I was wrong about being almost finished at least three times. Everything following the first anticipated end was bonus tale. Everything after the second felt decadent. And so on... I never tired of it, but was ready to be done when the story ended.

Captivating sci-fi; good telling.

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If you're a nerd who delights in detailed speculation about technical subjects, philosophical questions, and the intersection between the two, and has a somewhat sarcastic sense of humor, chances are that Neal Stephenson is already high on your list of favorite novelists. If you don't fit this type, you might find that his doorstop-sized works leave you bored silly, feeling like you're watching an interminable lecture by an overly-caffeinated TED Talker.

Obviously, I belong to the former camp, so read accordingly.

Anathem definitely isn’t a reboot to Stephenson’s glib Snow Crash style (for which I’m thankful), but it is, after the Baroque Cycle, a welcome return to writing a self-contained novel with a manageable cast of characters. He imagines a planet called Arbe, home to an ancient, monkish order called the Avout. In the manner of classical Greek philosophers, the Avout have developed and maintained their “Mathic World’s” knowledge of mathematics, science, and philosophy, and have lived apart (or been segregated for mutual safety, depending on the point of view) from the rest of society and most technology, even as outside civilizations have risen, violently collapsed, and risen again over thousands of years. Naturally, there are many factions and suborders, with their own ideologies, rituals, and politics. It’s like the old “school of wizards who live outside the Muggle world” trope, but much nerdier.

Anathem is narrated from the perspective of a young, socially naive Avout named Erasmus, living in an era that’s roughly similar to present-day Earth terms of technology and social order. Erasmus has just spent the past decade of his life walled off from “the saecular” world, but briefly renewed contact with it reveals strange goings-on on Arbe, which set in motion a plot that I won’t give away, except to say that it takes a number of turns over the course of the novel, evolving from mystery to science fiction to adventure to a parallel-universe story that enlists some pretty mind-bending meta-quantum-physical ideas.

The first hundred pages or so of the novel are somewhat confusing, and readers might feel overwhelmed by all the invented names and terminology. But, if you’re patient and pay attention, it’ll all make sense. Fortunately, the story, once it comes to the fore, is interesting, and I grew to like the characters, particularly the brilliant, maddeningly roundabout teacher figure, Orolo; the martial-arts-obsessed oddball, Lio; the lovably irritating kid with Asperger’s Syndrome, Barb; and the humorously at-arms-length narration style of Erasmus himself. For me, watching different minds and philosophies play off each other through dialogue and cleverly-constructed scenes was the joy at the heart of the book, far more than “what happens”. Stephenson does a fine job of getting difficult concepts to make sense. I also enjoyed the intricately constructed action sequences, though these are fewer.

Criticisms? Mainly just the usual one for Stephenson -- i.e. that the geeking out takes precedence over everything else. If you're not onboard for all the idea construction and digressions, the plot doesn't offer any innovations or emotional experiences that haven't been done better in other science fiction novels. Also, I found the world-building a little skewed. We learn a lot about the Avout, but the rest of the cultural/political/geographical reality of Arbe remains vague until needed for the plot in some way -- e.g. "now I will explain the religion of Arbe (which is pretty interesting), so we can ponder that for a chapter before moving on".

Still, I think Anathem will stand as one of Neal Stephenson’s most ingenious novels, if you can embrace the challenge of reading it. It’s got the wit and intellect of Cryptonomicon combined with the humility to perceive the author’s own small place in a vast chain of human thought (even an imagined one). It also proves that he can do appealing characters, too. As both a thinker and a writer, he’s come a long way from the brash, callow cyberpunk who wrote Snow Crash.

On the audiobook experience, this is one of those rare books where I appreciated having both the audio and print editions. The character voices add some personality that doesn’t come across in the text and made the invented terminology less jarring to my brain, but the print edition provides a helpful glossary and is useful for parts that require several reads to make sense. Plus, the chants were a nice touch.

4.5 stars

Ingenious intellectual adventure

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I have been wanting to read "Anathem" ever since I got into Neal Stephenson's work. By far, he is my favorite author for science fiction. Anathem is not an easy read. It is very complex and very time consuming and you really need to pay attention at what is going on, but the finish product is so good.

The story starts slow and gets confusing, but if you stay with it and focus, the universe opens to a new dimension. Unlike the typical sci fi with space battle and aliens, Anathem has more behind the scenes to it. There is less battles and more politics and structure to build up their social realm.

The Orth's dictionary at the beginning of each chapter is the best. According to Anathem Wiki, "Bulshytt is a term used to describe words, phrases, or even entire paragraphs which are misleading or empty in meaning."

I need to thank my friend for getting me into Stephenson's materials. Whenever I need some sci fi, I always ask my friend of what I should read and he almost always recommend another title from Neal.

Bulshytt

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Great book. Highlights the disparity of thought within the secular world and our very ideas on truths. Not a whiz bang science fiction or a treatise on base truths. Somewhere in the middle of where stories and plausible societies collide.

Thought provoking, slow at beginning.

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Smarter, Funnier and Snarkier than anything written in the last five years. You almost need a classical education to get some jokes. But fear not for there is abundant snark for readers of all ages.

Smarter, Funnier, Snarkier!

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Non-standard use of language in the beginning made it hard to keep up with the subtleties of what was going on combined with a very slow and excruciatingly long "start" left me just wanting this book finished. Don't let this be your first book by Stephenson.

Love his other books. Couldn't get into this one.

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I listen to audio books every day while doing other things. The idea behind this universe is quite interesting, but it is almost lost in the mind numbing dialogs between the characters. Perhaps it would be better as a paper book, where one could easily skim expressed thoughts that are rehashed repeatedly. I also lost track of characters sometimes with their similar names and the lack of differentiation in the reading of their dialog.

In all, it's a good story that is drug out.

Decent, but tedious for much of the book

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Seriously, you might not like this book. You might not "get it". But, if you do, you will realize that this is a remarkable story, filled with mind-expanding themes, cutting edge science, and much, much more. It is completely original science fiction...unconventional...not part of any series...unlike anything. Very worthy of it's author. What's more, it's intelligent...literate...and it stays with you for a very long time after you're done. I highly, highly recommend it! It's well performed, too. But, you know...if you want space opera (and sometimes I do, too)...this ain't that. At all....

Extraordinary Book!

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This book, in print and audio both, is now one of my all-time favorites. And I've said that of every previous Neal Stephenson book as well... The depth of perception, the continual exploration of language, consciousness and the peculiarities of quantum theory, the wild adventure and the great compassion. All create a rapturous tapestry of beauty and music.

Brilliant fugue on quantum consciousness

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