Neal Stephenson hacks into the secret histories of nations and the private obsessions of men, decrypting with dazzling virtuosity the forces that have shaped the past century. Weaving together the cracking of the Axis codes during WWII and the quest to establish a free South East Asian 'data haven' for digital information in the present, Cryptonomicon explores themes of power, information, secrecy and war in the twentieth century in a gripping and page-turning thriller.

Accolades

Winner Locus award 2000.
Shortlisted for Arthur C.Clarke Award 2000.

Author Biography

Neal Stephenson is the author of six novels and co-author (with Frederick George) of two more. He lives in Seattle.

Reviews

"Cryptonomicon ... wants to blow your mind while keeping you well fed and happy. For the most part, it succeeds. It's brain candy for bitheads." The New York Times Book Review, Dwight Garner

"Suspenseful...moves along as such a fantastic clip."--Wall Street Journal

"Computer expert Randy Waterhouse spearheads a movement to create a safe haven for data in a world where information equals power and big business and government seek to control the flow of knowledge. His ambitions collide with a top-secret conspiracy with links to the encryption wars of World War II and his grandfather's work in preventing the Nazis from discovering that the Allies had cracked their supposedly unbreakable Enigma code. The author of Snow Crash (LJ 4/1/92) focuses his eclectic vision on a story of epic proportions, encompassing both the beginnings of information technology in the 1940s and the blossoming of the present cybertech revolution. Stephenson's freewheeling prose and ironic voice lend a sense of familiarity to a story that transcends the genre and demands a wide readership among fans of technothrillers as well as a general audience." Library Journal