Neal Stephenson- Snow Crash (10/10)

Neal Stephenson

Bantam Spectra Books

1992

Stephenson's Snow Crash is a futuristic satire with a clever writing style, strong sense of humor, and one of the most complex plots I have ever encountered. Written in 1992, Snow Crash is a blend of The Matrix, Bladerunner, and The Fifth Element, which should just give you an idea of how ahead of it's time this book really is. The protaganist, aptly named Hiro Protaganist, is a world class pizza delivery boy/hacker/world's greatest sword fighter. He lives in a world where the franchise is king, the Mafia as prevalent as ever, and the United States is... well... still ridiculously impotent.

In the book, Hiro and his trusty sidekick Y.T., discover a conspiracy involving the leading media center and the Reverend Wayne's Pearly Gates franchise (the future of organized religion, I suppose); a diabolical plot using technology that dates all the way back to Ancient Sumeria to basically rule the world (it's way more original than it sounds). Neal clearly has done his research, because amidst the high voltage futuristic, slightly hilarious action of the book, he presents a case implying that the brain operates like a computer, with both hardware and software, that long ago we all spoke the same language, but in one singular event all peoples were scattered and languages began to diverge (Babel), that religion is spread as a virus (whether orally as in Judeo-Christianity or through bodily fluids, which would explain why earlier religions had temple prostitutes and ritualistic orgies), and that the original language (prior to Babel) still lies in our brains as hardware, and can be activated and understood by all, which would explain Glossolia (the "speaking in tongues" phenomenon). Obviously the above sounds ludicrous at first, but reading the book, it becomes very difficult to refute all the evidence he proposes. Like I said, he clearly did his homework.

Another interesting and very important aspect of Snow Crash is the concept of the Metaverse, which is his vision (remember this was 1992) of an internet that one "jacks in" to and has a virtual avatar that allows him to walk around. Basically the Metaverse is a giant planet with one street, and instead of websites, you have buildings that go along that street which you an choose to enter or not enter. Essentially, think the Matrix... only 10 years earlier. By the way, Stephenson invented the word "avatar" with this book.

His writing style is my personal favorite- he opts for writing closer to the way a normal person speaks, rather than sticking to the strict rules of traditional grammar. That isn't to say, however, that he isn't extremely talented and intelligent. Snow Crash is the kind of book that inspires you, regardless of your interest in the content. The kind where every few pages you'll he'll put something into words that you've always understood but never known how to say.

Snow Crash is full of sword fights, futuristic weapons, romance, violence, big words, scandalous sex, morbid and satiric humor, and covers some very serious ground with a very light hearted attitude. I've read it multiple times, and it's definitely in my top favorites collection as far as books go. I'd recommend it to anyone.

For Fans Of: Anything Nerdy