Zodiac
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Zodiac description
Believe it or not, some readers find Zodiac even more fun than Neal Stephenson's defining 1990s cyberpunk novel, Snow Crash. Zodiac is set in Boston, and hero Sangamon Taylor (S. T.) ironically describes his hilarious exploits in the first person. S. T. is a modern superhero, a self-proclaimed Toxic Spiderman. With stealth, spunk, and the backing of GEE (a non-profit environmental group) as his weapons, S. T. chases down the bad guys with James Bond-like Zen. Cruising Boston Harbor with lab tests and scuba gear, S. T. rides in with the ecosystem cavalry on his 40-horsepower Zodiac raft. His job of tracking down poisonous runoff and embarrassing the powerful corporations who caused them becomes more sticky than usual; run-ins with a gang of satanic rock fans, a deranged geneticist, and a mysterious PCB contamination that may or may not be man-made--plus a falling-out with his competent ("I adore stress") girlfriend--all complicate his mission. Stephenson/S. T.'s irreverent, facetious, esprit-filled voice make this near-future tale a joy to read. |
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interesting yarn
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My take: this was early in NS's development as a writer. It shows. The writer that he has developed into would do a much better job.
But the premise is very interesting. An 'analytical chemist(?!?!)' as the hero (okay, I'm an analytical chemist, one of the few, the proud, and this may be the first fiction book I've ever read with one as the hero...) sets it apart a bit. Obviously the science in parts is a bit sophomoric. But in places it shines. In cases the characterization of different people are good. And the setting of Boston makes it interesting. The twists and turns will keep you turning the pages.
It's just at times the writing is way too earnest, way too explicative. Not to complain too much. My writing is often earnest and explicative as well. But then again, I am not much of a writer, except for science journal reports (and I am sure those aren't generally page-turners for the general public). It's just not to the level of his later stuff, Cryptomonicon, and the Baroque Cycle. I'd like to see a rewrite in his hands, actually. Of course it would turn into an 800 pager, probably, if not a 3000 page trilogy.
At any rate, its in my wife's stack of to-be-read now, and she is neither as critical as me generally, nor taking an analytical chemists view of the analytical chemist hero, so perhaps she'll give it a better review. |
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Zodiac Books In Print, Audio Books.