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Mar 04, 2016ace_combs rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
This is Stephenson at his best--hard science and theology butting heads mixed with action and a unique world built practically from scratch. Two caveats: 1) The book is slow to get started. It's almost pastoral which fits the monastic nature of the Concent where it begins but is necessary to build a world that is counter to our own in many ways. Things pick up and become another Stephenson thrill ride full of unexpected twists and turns and wry humor. 2) I recommend reading some elementary particle physics before you get too far into the book--Hawking's A Brief History of Time is one even this math-averse reader can manage. I happened to be reading it concurrently with Anathem and it was like a guidebook in the latter half of the novel when things get sciencey a lot. The rational discourse is an interesting anti-verse to Umberto Eco's deep theological dialogue.