Snow Crash

By: Neal Stephenson

Narrated by: Jonathan Davis

Length: 17 hrs and 3 mins

Publisher's summary

Only once in a great while does a writer come along who defies comparison - a writer so original he redefines the way we look at the world. Neal Stephenson is such a writer and Snow Crash is such a novel, weaving virtual reality, Sumerian myth, and just about everything in between with a cool, hip cybersensibility to bring us the gigathriller of the information age.

In reality, Hiro Protagonist delivers pizza for Uncle Enzo's CosaNostra Pizza Inc., but in the Metaverse he's a warrior prince. Plunging headlong into the enigma of a new computer virus that's striking down hackers everywhere, he races along the neon-lit streets on a search-and-destroy mission for the shadowy virtual villain threatening to bring about Infocalypse. Snow Crash is a mind-altering romp through a future America so bizarre, so outrageous...you'll recognize it immediately.

©1992 Neal Stephenson (P)2001 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Brilliantly realized...Stephenson turns out to be an engaging guide to an onrushing tomorrow." (The New York Times Book Review)
"Fast-forward free-style mall mythology for the 21st century." (William Gibson)

Riotous, Good Fun

Disclaimer: I've plowed through several of Stepheson's epics (Cryptonomicon and Seveneves among them) and have developed a taste for his maximalist style. With him, more is more. If you enjoy Steinbeckian sparseness, this book is not for you. That being said:

I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Stephenson does speculative fiction right. The aptly-named Hiro Protagonist might be somewhat lacking in the personality department, but Y.T. and a host of other interesting secondary characters more than make up for it. I am a staunch lover of sword-and-sorcery, yet somehow felt right at home in this near-future-post-cyberpunk brand of sci-fi. I totally recommend it. It's a blast.

The Nature of Consciousness

Every science fiction story is a reflection of the time it was written, and if it is good, it is a commentary on that time. Snow Crash definitely belongs to the 1990s, even if it is set in the future, and as is usual with Neal Stephenson novels, goes into as much detail as the listener/reader would care to know about how things work. Some of his futuristic technology is already dated, which is not surprising, seeing how quickly the digital world has evolved and mutated since the book was written, but his humorous style still makes it all somehow fresh and new. The social commentary is still relevant, if not more so, as he brings to life an America in which everything has been carved up by special interests into a libertarian fantasy world, where taxes can't be collected and the US government only exercises power over those federal employees who still choose to work for it; former American citizens must choose which special interest group they would like to belong to, and if they want something like protection or a defense system, must hire the Mafia or some sort of corporate police force. Terrorists can bring nuclear weapons and other devices in and out of the former States at will, and it is up to individual groups to try to stop them, if they would care to do so. Stephenson leaves it to the individual reader to decide if this is a dream or nightmare, so the story can be enjoyed by people of all political persuasions.

Into this setting, Stephenson brings an adventure store that lets him analyze such things as the nature of consciousness and the role language and social connections play in its existence. The nature of consciousness is one of those topics he comes back to time and again, and he developed some of these ideas more fully in Anathem, which is also here on Audible (and which I highly recommend). Snow Crash is definitely one for his fans who are interested in seeing how he developed his ideas over the years.

Jonathon Davis never disappoints, and he was an excellent choice as narrator of this book. He is able to deliver that slightly ironic edge that the work demands, and is skilled enough to give every character a distinct voice. No matter how many times our hero, Hiro, was described as being a half-African American, half Asian man in his 20s, Davis recognized that in the '90s only one actor would have been chosen to play this part had a Hollywood movie version been made - even if he doesn't match the racial description of the character in the book - and Davis is able to pull off an absolutely flawless Keanu Reeves as the voice of Hiro. A little social commentary of his own, no doubt.

Not bad, but wasn't what I was expecting

Stephenson's Snow Crash was recommended to me from several folks, but it really wasn't my cup of tea. It was far from a bad novel, in fact, some of the dystopian elements of this future world are downright brilliant, if not entirely plausible. The issue of what year the story takes place bothers me, and isn't helped by seemingly contradictory events in the story. Jonathan Davis's performance was admirable, despite lame sound effects and chanting between chapters.

New to me

Would you listen to Snow Crash again? Why?

I've been reading books for a really long time. Sci-fi/Fantasy mostly. But there are gaps in my experience. I had not read anything like this. Apparently, it's part of this whole Cyber Punk genre growing out of the Sci-fi umbrella. To me it was young, fresh, energetic and fun. I've already put more Neal Stephenson on my wish list, and will look forward to getting back to him.

What did you like best about this story?

I was pleased by the wholly contained beginning to end narrative leaving me satisfied at with a real ending, but leaving plenty of room for further stories in this world and with these characters.

What about Jonathan Davis’s performance did you like?

Davis' performance was unobtrusive. He let's the flow of the story take over and goes along with the energy and tone well.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I just don't do that. I always grab bits and pieces here and there throughout the day, though I may get a good three or four hour block to enjoy on the weekends. This tends to make me go back and continue from a slightly earlier spot to help me pick up the beat again. Because of the linear storyline, I could very well see this carrying you along for hours at a time.

Any additional comments?

My introduction to "Cyber Punk" could be a tough act to follow. I look forward exploring more futures

Awesome reading of a classic post-cyberpunk novel

What does Jonathan Davis bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

His voicing and switching between a variety of distinct sounding characters in the novel is quite impressive.

Great story, but poor recording

The story was very interesting, but the audio quality was very poor and would change randomly. Almost like a compression issue.

Good story, solid reading with bad audio

I'm not the most picky about the audio quality but Snow Crash has a few issues:

* There's a bit of glitches, the audio cuts to distortion. I tried redownloading and it occurred in the same spots. Only happened four or five times, and only for a second.

* The audio quality sounds lower bit rate than the usual audio books on Audible.

* There's an omni-present hiss, its pretty low but pronounced if listening over the iPhone speaker.

*At the end of one chapter, there's a clear bizarre edit that lasts about 30 seconds. It sounds as if another reader reads the section of the book. Its disorienting and strange.

And lastly, purely atheistic but each chapter has a goofy soundfont, it varies slightly but the faux gibbering often jarring, and worse, completely cheesy. I'm glad newer audiobooks have stayed away from this trend.


The book itself holds up fairly well, written over two decades ago, the who metaverse pre-conception the internet really holds up surprisingly well. The premise of the main story is a hokey at times, but I've heard some call this book parodying the world of Cyber-Punk. Perhaps so, the future is portrayed in classic cyber punk terms except the volume has been cranked to 11. Corporations don't just control the world, they've become nations themselves. Violence isn't just rampant, its the way of life. Hackers aren't simply the technocracy, they're the center of society. Inflation didn't just get out of control, trillion dollar bills are normal. There's a heavy dose of post-modernistic relativity that makes the chaos bitingly sarcastic while at the same time trying to covey a serious story. Its a disconnect that asks the reader to carry a bit the cognitive dissonance, likely purposely.

The book at first seems a bit chaotic, and attention-deficit but as you get the groove, it flows better.

As you listen, you'll probably find yourself thinking at times... "Is that where..." insert pop culture movie/tv show "Got there idea from?". Rightly so. Worth a listen. Johnathan Davis does a good enough job to carry the story, technical glitches and a few bad production calls aside. Certainly not for everyone, this book is something special and enjoyable.

Fun

I love the goofiness to this bad-ass cyberpunk conspiracy novel. Great characters, interesting plot, and a playful easygoing style of story telling. I also like how it really explores deep concepts about language and computers and human brains. Definitely recommend it!

some good scenes overall not bad

interesting story, the gibberish soundclip between scenes was overbearing. quarenti Quatro every damn clip. it drove me crazy and took away from the production.

Thought Provoking.

I realized that in the not to distant future, excellence in the analogue world will be enhanced by the virtual world. Those who can maneuver in both with excellent dexterity will be much more powerful than those can can only perform in one.
The Metaverse will be like a performance enhancing drug. You will HAVE to use it in order to compete. If you do not, you will fall behind. Just like athletes and steroids.