Cryptonomicon: Neal Stephenson
Posted by Mark on December 14th, 2005
This has become my favorite book of all time, I cannot say enough about it. It is an amazing story that ties WWII history, code breaking, money and banking systems, dot com startup intrigue, legal maneuvering, mathematics, computer espionage, combat theory, and other geek topics into a story-line that spans 5 decades. Although not for the faint of heart (1130 pages and some very technical and math heavy descriptions), it is accessible to non geeks and moves fast enough that you do not notice the length.
Three story-lines in two separate timelines are tracked simultaneously. First there is Lawrence Waterhouse, a shy and somewhat naive math wiz who gets involved in the Allies cryptanalysis (code breaking) operation during WWII. Rising up through the ranks and breaking Nazi and Nip codes with his longtime friend Alan Turing, he stumbles upon something even more secretive and interesting, a secret conspiracy involving seemingly unbreakable codes and gold.
Bobby Shaftoe is a Tennessee boy who has proven himself countless times in the field of battle in the pacific with his fellow Marine Raiders. His new assignment however is as confusing as it is secret. Thrown together with a loose confederation of Brits, Aussies, and Americans he becomes the “business” end of Detachment 2702. Without any clear idea of what this Detachment is supposed to be accomplishing, he is assigned to a series of odd and dangerous missions, leading him to get mixed up with gold, morphine, and a strange chaplain named Enoch Root.
Randy Waterhouse is Lawrence’s grandson, but he never really knew him. He is a Unix hacker and system administrator who is working with a group of math, networking, crypto, and business hackers on a typical dot com startup company. However as new opportunities arise for them to create a data-haven and digital cash system, they attract the attention of corporate shark lawyers, governments, and a mysterious ex NSA crypto guy named (wait for it)…Enoch Root.
The two timelines and all three story-lines tie in together perfectly, but leave you wondering right up until the end.