Cryptonomicon - Neal Stephenson

1999; 1130 pages. Awards : Locus Award 2000 - Best Sci-Fi Novel. Which is strange, since there's no science fiction in it. Nominated for a Hugo and an Arthur C. Clarke Award that same year. Genre : Cyberpunk; Historical Fiction. Overall Rating : 8*/10.

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Cryptonomicon alternates between two storylines. One is set in World War 2, and chronicles the cryptography and counter-intelligence tactics employed against the Axis. There are three main characters - Bobby Shaftoe, a GI grunt; Lawrence Pritchard Waterhouse, who combines mathematics, code-breaking, and a learning disability; and Goto Dengo, who somehow survives an ordeal that makes Robinson Crusoe's fate seem like a walk in the park.

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The second storyline is set in the present, and follows the descendants of those WW2 characters as they try to set up an electronic-finance company, and their efforts to make it hacker-proof.

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What's To Like...

Not surprisingly, there are lots of descriptive passages. The WW2 parts are well-researched, as is (I presume) the modern-day hacking technology. Its simply amazing how "public" your PC is, thanks to techniques such as phreaking.

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Stephenson creates some vivid fictional places, such as a tropical sultanate called Kinakuta, and a North Sea area called Outer (and Inner) Qwghlm, with its very own Welsh-sounding, vowel-less language. He deftly moves characters all around the world in order to give a comprehensive picture of WW2 counterintelligence and modern day cyber-security. Oh yeah, the compendium of Cryptography, called the Cryptonomicon, is fictional too.

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There is some occasional sloppiness. "Qwghlm" becomes "Qwlghm" late in the book, and there is an unexplained resurrection to addle your mind. Stephenson regularly segues into flashbacks without telling you. There are lots of tangents to deal with, including ten pages about how Ares and Athena are kinda the same god/goddess, except different. Oog.

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Kewl New Words...

Lots of 'em. Here are the kewlest ones. Lissajous : a mathematically-defined curve (like what you see on an oscilloscope). Gnomon : the "arm" of a sundial that determines what time it is. Myrmidons : followers who carry out orders without question. Obloquy : a state of disgrace. Mickle (adj.) : great (here : "a mickle oath"). Tautological : needless repetition of the same sense, but in different words. Colloquy : a formal conversation. Lambency : the appearance of reflected light (as of a sunset on water). Lahar : an avalanche of water and mud down the slopes of a volcano.

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Excerpt...

They gave him an intelligence test. The first question on the math part had to do with boats on a river : Port Smith is 100 miles upstream of Port Jones. The river flows at 5 miles per hour. The boat goes through water at 10 miles per hour. How long does it take to go from Port Smith to Port Jones? How long to come back?

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Lawrence immediately saw that it was a trick question. You would have to be some kind of idiot to make the facile assumption that the current would add or subtract 5 miles per hour to or from the speed of the boat. Clearly, 5 miles per hour was nothing more than the average speed. The current would be faster in the middle of the river and slower at the banks. More complicated variations could be expected at the bends of the river. Basically it was a question of hydrodynamics, which could be tackled using certain well-known systems of differential equations.

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The ship had a band, and the Navy had given Lawrence the job of playing glockenspiel in it, because their testing procedures had proven that he was not intelligent enough to do anything else. (pgs. 26-27)

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Two tires fly. Two wail.

A bamboo grove, all chopped down

From it, warring songs. (the opening haiku)

You will enjoy Cryptonomicon if you're into WW2 history (I am), cryptography (I'm not), pure mathematics (I'm not), and/or computer hacking (I'm not). It is a book for geeks; but non-geeks can still enjoy the subtle humor (such as in the above excerpt) that runs throughout the book; and Stephenson's writing skills.

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The two storylines do eventually tie together, and there is a good ending. The modern-day plot is a yawner for a while - endless meetings, musings, and meandering around Manila. Cryptonomicon is a difficult, long read; so realize beforehand that you will be investing some major hours in this book. I give it 8 stars, cuz the WW2 parts were great, the writing is excellent, and we all really ought to occasionally read a book that's longer than 500 pages.