# Anathem



## mythique890 (Sep 13, 2011)

Has anyone read _Anathem_ by Neil Stephenson?  I downloaded the audiobook from the library, and I have to say, for the first 4 hours, that book drove me insane.  Every little freaking detail of every building... ARG!  So boring.  (Before you ask, the reason I kept on listening is because audiobooks are how I get through housework and I didn't want to waste a bunch of time finding another one, downloading it, and transferring it.)  Talk about the most massive infodump in history!  Part of the problem is probably that I'm listening to it, so I can't skim when he talks for twenty minutes about the walls (forgive me, "tracery" and "screens").  Finally, in the fifth hour, I understood enough of what he was talking about to be interested.  But this is supposed to be one of the top 100 best fantasy/sci fi books (ok, it's 85, but it's still on the list)!

Anyway, after the fifth hour, I'm slightly interested (even though he's still throwing out a few twenty-minute descriptions) but the story still hasn't even started.  And we don't even know a whole lot about the world, just the Vatican City-esque place where the MC & co. have been cloistered for 10 years!  And the "non-religion" is so confusing I don't even listen when he starts spouting off about sects and saints and whatnot.

Has anyone read this?  Is there hope, or does he continue this disturbingly graphic architectural description for the entire (27 hour) time?


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