I’m a big fan of Neal Stephenson, author of The Baroque Cycle, Cryptonomicon and other assorted books. A few weeks ago I picked up Anathem at the store the day it was officially released. His previous books have been rich in story, diverse in character, and a blast to read. Anathem does not disappoint.
The events in Anathem take place on the planet Abre, an Earth-like world that has seen its’ ups and downs. Science and logic rule in the ‘maths,’ which, on the surface, are the ultimate university in which individuals are chosen to serve and live there for possibly their entire lives, separated from society and cloistered together to pursue science at a theoretical academic level. They are not allowed to use any ‘praxics’ or technology, even as the world becomes more advanced around them.
The story is focused around ‘Fraa’ Erasmus, a man who has been in the Math of Saint Edhar for ten years after being selected as child. Erasmus is an average scholar who gets swept up into a whirlwind adventure that never happens to these secluded academics.
Without warning, Erasmus and several of his friends are ripped from their sheltered and secluded society, one that is required to avoid technology, to take part in an effort to save their world. With only his three belongings, basically the clothes on his back, he sets off across Abre to find his mentor and to find a way to save his planet.
This book is not for the faint of heart, it’s over 850 pages long with a great emphasis on thinking about the mysteries of the universe. Not only do the main characters struggle with these, Neal throws in plenty of diagrams and mathematical proofs in an appendix. Similar to Cryptonomicon in this regard.
Another warning, this book starts out almost agonizingly slow, but the pace picks up. There is plenty of back story to pick up in the first quarter of the book that builds up after the first 200 or so pages.
I really liked how the book balanced science versus religion. Religion is such a nasty topic these days and Stephenson really brought it to the forefront comparing the pursuit of science as a pseudo-religion. He proved neither wrong and neither right, but he does tell an enthralling story that marries the two together.
The book is only in hardback so you’ll have to spend around $15-$25 to pick it up at the store. I do recommend it, even if you wait for paperback.
