Gabrielle's Reviews > The Diamond Age

“A book is not just a material possession but the pathway to an enlightened mind, and thence to a well-ordered society.”


After an underwhelming experience with "Snow Crash" (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...), I decided to give Neal Stephenson a second (and possibly final) chance with “The Diamond Age”. I have come to accept that some sci-fi writers are idea guys (or gals), and that amazing ideas don’t necessarily wield amazing books, and that’s OK. And the idea of what is basically a Dickens story-line in a cyberpunk universe is nothing if not interesting! I was also curious to see what Stephenson would do with a female lead, because his female characters in “Snow Crash” were kind of awful…

Nell’s life begins like something you’d expect from a character in “David Copperfield”: her father is a petty criminal convicted and executed for assault, so she is raised by her neglectful mother Tequila and older brother Harv. They live in the Neo-Victorian society, near a Shanghai that belongs to the British Commonwealth. She accidentally gets her hand on a unique book, the “Young Lady’s Illustrated Primer”. This book was created by this society’s very best engineer, as a secret project commissioned by a high-ranking lord, who meant it for his grand-daughter so that she could lead what he describes as an “interesting life” – meaning a life lived on one's own term and not on those dictated by one's society. Naturally, this work was never meant to fall into the hands of a poor young girl from the slums… In parallel, we have the story of Mr. Hackworth, the creator of the “Young Lady’s Illustrated Primer”, who wants a better life for his own daughter: he understands that the class struggle is a very real problem that few people can hope to transcends, and he finds it his duty as a father to equip his daughter as best as he can, even if that means doing something not-quite-legal… The smaller story-lines of Judge Fang, the magistrate who gets tangled in Hackworth’s case, and Miranda, the voice of the Primer, make the book a rich and multifaceted story.

I really enjoyed the format, but then I am an absolute sucker for Victoriana – with or without nanobots! The prose also had an elegance that simply wasn’t there in “Snow Crash”; maybe Stephenson was trying to emulate the stylistic touches of 19th century literature, but whatever he was trying to do, it worked! The world building is vivid and complex, the globalization, social and cultural structures are fascinating - and while the technological aspects can sometimes feel confusing and under-explained (I could understand a decent amount of techno-babble, but some things definitely went over my head), the story and good pacing were strong enough to carry me through those frustrating bits.

As someone who has no greater treasure (and has never known a greater refuge) than my pile of beloved books, the concept of a pseudo-intelligent book being Nell’s best friend definitely resonated deeply. The Primer is every bookworm’s dream; a story that takes care of the reader, teaches them, nurtures them and helps them grow. With its help, Nell learns how to deal with bullies, her mother’s violent boyfriends and learns many skills that will come in very handy in the real world; the Primer become the parent she never had... Perhaps “Snow Crash” struck a stronger chord with gamers, while “The Diamond Age” does a better job of reaching the readers? In any case, I found myself eager to get back to the book at every chance I got!

I read somewhere that Stephenson meant this book as reflection on the effects of technology on child development: it was originally published in 1995, so Heaven knows if that can still have the same meaning as intended back then… My interpretation is more that this is a story about how books can shape someone's character, turn them into resourceful, critical thinking and unique individuals, but I'm obviously biased.

So congratulations Neal: you have redeemed yourself in my eyes with this great book! Even if Hackworth's story-line and the ending get kind of weird, I enjoyed this book so much I can't give it less than 4 and a half stars rounded up!