Neuromancer by William Gibson Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Neuromancer
Book Review: A pioneering Cyberpunk work
Summary: 5 Stars
It's this simple. Anyone who didn't enjoy this book didn't put any effort into it. They might have started with a pre-conceived notion (like our "literary" reviewers), or they might simply not be capable of the level of imagination that this book commands. My advice is to turn off the video game (that likely owes at least a passing nod to Gibson's imagery), turn off your "Matrix" video (ditto) and PAY ATTENTION! You will be rewarded by a stunning, viseral read. Calling Neuromancer cliched is like saying B.B King's music is cliched. It's because he defined the style. If you enjoy the work of Rucker, Dick, Brunner, etc., you owe it to yourself to delve into Neuromancer. You won't be sorry.
Book Review: A true original
Summary: 4 Stars
This book is like nothing I have read. Neuromancer is set in a future full of mind-boggling technologies and odd surgical procedures. The main character Case's health is failing, and he must embark on a series of elusive missions in order to survive. This plot is extremely interesting, as is the concept. With most novels about technology, the characters are lifeless and two-dimensional, but not with Neuromancer. William Gibson has created characters that stand out, and are hard to forget. As great as the concepts in this book may be, I found a lot of the technology hard to understand, and at some points in the novel, the words become nothing but techno-babble. However, this book is a true original, and its fast pace is absolutely addictive. A must-read.Book Review: A unique story...
Summary: 4 Stars
I finished reading this book last night and found that I was a little disappointed. It was recommended to me as the BEST sci-fi novel ever, but I am not so sure.Case is a rogue computer hacker and drug addict living in the seemingly dirty and downtrodden enclaves of great cities past. His glorious life of stealing information was cut short when he messed with the wrong people who burnt him out of cyberspace. His life now consists of minor wheelings and dealings until he is recruited for his reputable hacking panache by an irregular group of people looking for the ultimate score; giving him a second chance. The story follows Case around the world and through cyberspace as he "jacks in" to the matrix to manipulate computers to his advantage, not quite knowing the full purpose of the deal. Along the way he meets and avoids an array of different and interesting characters; some trying to help and some to hinder.
I found Gibsons language difficult to follow at times and found myself confused at other stages as he jumped about from situation to situation. The story is dark and his descriptions of everyday life in the "Sprawl" are intoned with a bleak disdain for the purpose of existance, allowing you to feel more compassion for some characters than others.
Overall, I was intrigued; enjoying the obvious uniqueness of this books idea, the complex world and Gibsons intelligent imagination, but I think that I may have missed the point of its meaning.
I give this book 3.5 to 4 stars, but I can understand why so many rate it higher. Maybe I should read it again.
Book Review: A wonderful read, whether or not you're into computers.
Summary: 5 Stars
I read this book in 1990. I was browsing a book store with my boyfriend, who picked up the book and exclaimed ``Wow, listen to this!'' upon reading the first sentence. ("The sky was the color of television, tuned to a dead channel.")He bought the book, loan it to me the next week and I never returned it. Gibson's lyric writing, his intricate plotting, his discomfort with corporate omnipresense are all worth savoring...you'll read the novel once for story, then again (and again) for text and texture.
He's also a master at capturing the way a city feels, how it crowds you and isolates you at the same time. (Manhattanites will definitely get it.)
In any event, I'm not at all involved in computers or high technology of any kind. Gibson may be the father of cyberpunk and the coiner of the word "cyberspace," but you don't need to know or care what that means to enjoy his books, particularly Neuromancer.
Book Review: ALL books by Gibson are gospel for cyberpunk
Summary: 5 Stars
I have virtually every book William Gibson has ever written and they have, essentially, created our current terminology and way of thinking in terms of cyberspace and computers as well as high-tech devices. Such books as "Mona Lisa Overdrive", "Count Zero", "All Tomorrow's Parties", "Burning Chrome", "Pattern Recognition", as well as other cyberpunk/high-tech books like "Snow Crash", "Cryptonomicon", and "Darkeye: Cyber Hunter". All of these books can take the reader into worlds of cyberspace and computer espionage or danger that no other sci-fi or thriller can take them. All are recommended and William Gibson should receive some cyber-award for what his high-tech imagination has contributed to our computerized society.