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Zodiac
Meet Sangamon Taylor, a New Age Sam Spade who sports a wet suit instead of a trench coat and prefers Jolt from the can to Scotch on the rocks. He knows about chemical sludge the way he knows about evil—all too intimately. And the toxic trail he follows leads to some high and foul places. Before long Taylor’s house is bombed, his every move followed, he’s adopted by reservation Indians, moves onto the FBI’s most wanted list, makes up with his girlfriend, and plays a starring role in the near-assassination of a presidential candidate. Closing the case with the aid of his burnout roommate, his tofu-eating comrades, three major networks, and a range of unconventional weaponry, Sangamon Taylor pulls off the most startling caper in Boston Harbor since the Tea Party.
340 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 1, 1988
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About the author
Neal Stephenson
86 books28.8k followersNeal Stephenson is the author of Reamde, Anathem, and the three-volume historical epic the Baroque Cycle (Quicksilver, The Confusion, and The System of the World), as well as Cryptonomicon, The Diamond Age, Snow Crash, and Zodiac. He lives in Seattle, Washington.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 919 reviews
July 21, 2016
This book revolves around toxic waste being illegally dumped into Boston Harbor. While I was reading it, the water in the fish tank went mysteriously cloudy overnight despite being recently cleaned and our two goldfish who were like ten years old went belly up. So that was kind of creepy.
The first Neal Stephenson book I read was Cryptonomicon and I jumped from there right into The Baroque Cycle and then the brain-busting brilliant behemoth that was Anathem. I loved them all, but saw frequent complaints from other Stephenson fans that he’d gotten boring and his books were too long. After reading Snow Crash last year and now Zodiac, I understand where they’re coming from. I’d politely disagree, but now I think I’ve got a better idea of why fans of earlier work are frustrated with Stephenson‘s later books. And oh by the way, his new novel coming out in September is over 1000 pages so I don’t think he’ll be scaling back any time soon.
Sangamon Taylor is the ‘granola James Bond’, and a self-described professional asshole. A chemist who works for an environmental outfit that starts with the letter ‘G’, ST works tirelessly to stage flashy events that expose the illegal dumping of toxic waste and sometimes he gets a little more hands-on then just calling the media, but he refuses to cross the line into violence. His main area of expertise is all the illegal dumping into Boston Harbor, and he spends most of his time zipping around on his Zodiac boat charting the chemical levels, figuring out how it’s getting in the water, and then ripping the ass out of the corporation doing the polluting
ST is cocky, smart and has the MacGyver-like mechanical skills to use toilet parts and salad bowls to block off a mile long underwater pipe being used to illegally dump toxins. ST’s crusade against the illegal waste dumpers of the Boston area eventually gets him mixed up with a conspiracy involving some extremely dangerous toxic waste and a presidential candidate.
As usual, Stephenson is a bit ahead of his time in this book written in 1988. ST and his friends seem more like Gen X ‘90s then the New Wave ‘80s, and the book manages to avoid seeming dated despite the lack of cell phones and the Internet in the story. I loved the character of ST who seemed like a more foul mouthed version of one of the Mythbusters who has nothing but hatred for the soulless corporate yuppies and contempt for the spacey granola heads of the environmental movement who can’t do the simplest mechanical task. The schemes he cooks up are innovative and funny, and it was nice to have a main character who was genuinely trying to do something for the greater good without being either cynical or sanctimonious.
I did get a few laughs out of ST’s strategies which usually involved exposure to the media and his confidence that public shaming was the way to force a giant corporation out of business. Oh, how quaint that seems when we all watched an oil company spill crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico on cable news daily for over two months and is still doing business as usual.
This was a smart and funny ecological thriller that was way ahead of its time.
The first Neal Stephenson book I read was Cryptonomicon and I jumped from there right into The Baroque Cycle and then the brain-busting brilliant behemoth that was Anathem. I loved them all, but saw frequent complaints from other Stephenson fans that he’d gotten boring and his books were too long. After reading Snow Crash last year and now Zodiac, I understand where they’re coming from. I’d politely disagree, but now I think I’ve got a better idea of why fans of earlier work are frustrated with Stephenson‘s later books. And oh by the way, his new novel coming out in September is over 1000 pages so I don’t think he’ll be scaling back any time soon.
Sangamon Taylor is the ‘granola James Bond’, and a self-described professional asshole. A chemist who works for an environmental outfit that starts with the letter ‘G’, ST works tirelessly to stage flashy events that expose the illegal dumping of toxic waste and sometimes he gets a little more hands-on then just calling the media, but he refuses to cross the line into violence. His main area of expertise is all the illegal dumping into Boston Harbor, and he spends most of his time zipping around on his Zodiac boat charting the chemical levels, figuring out how it’s getting in the water, and then ripping the ass out of the corporation doing the polluting
ST is cocky, smart and has the MacGyver-like mechanical skills to use toilet parts and salad bowls to block off a mile long underwater pipe being used to illegally dump toxins. ST’s crusade against the illegal waste dumpers of the Boston area eventually gets him mixed up with a conspiracy involving some extremely dangerous toxic waste and a presidential candidate.
As usual, Stephenson is a bit ahead of his time in this book written in 1988. ST and his friends seem more like Gen X ‘90s then the New Wave ‘80s, and the book manages to avoid seeming dated despite the lack of cell phones and the Internet in the story. I loved the character of ST who seemed like a more foul mouthed version of one of the Mythbusters who has nothing but hatred for the soulless corporate yuppies and contempt for the spacey granola heads of the environmental movement who can’t do the simplest mechanical task. The schemes he cooks up are innovative and funny, and it was nice to have a main character who was genuinely trying to do something for the greater good without being either cynical or sanctimonious.
I did get a few laughs out of ST’s strategies which usually involved exposure to the media and his confidence that public shaming was the way to force a giant corporation out of business. Oh, how quaint that seems when we all watched an oil company spill crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico on cable news daily for over two months and is still doing business as usual.
This was a smart and funny ecological thriller that was way ahead of its time.
March 9, 2016
Sangamon Taylor
just might be the love of my life (and, as far as I'm concerned, the fact that he's an emotionally unavailable, fictional character is kind of a win-win). By my metrics of greatness, billing
ST
(that's what all the cool kids call him) as the “Granola James Bond” undersells him by a long shot.
Employed as a “professional asshole” (his words) by GEE, an environmental activist group in Boston, ST is a chemist by training, a fan of avoiding Boston traffic by taking to its waterways in his (sometimes) trusty Zodiac, and, overall, is pretty much equal parts super-spy, mad scientist, and sardonic badass at large.
So, what makes Sangamon Taylor so swoon-worthy?
1. He's great at hand-to-hand underwater combat, which is kind of a must.
2. Dude knows his way around a lab, but he's a nerd of the people—using six-packs of beer to illustrate the difference between benzene rings and phenyls is beyond brilliant. In a pinch, ST would definitely know how to make use of dry ice and a fun, sexy little molecule some like to call “dihydrogen monoxide.”
3. Speaking of molecules, Sangamon's Principle: “The simpler the molecule, the better the drug,” comes in handy in the event that one needs to decide what kind of pick me up to employ before going into battle.
4. ST knows that no grenade is a good grenade, but sometimes, you've gotta lay all tinnitus concerns aside, and pull the pin.
5. He definitely knows how to make the best of a bad situation…
6. Last, but not least, Sangamon Taylor understands that it's not about the size of the boat…it's about the engine, and knowing how to use it.
I could go on, but I don't want to induce seizures among the gif-sensitive masses. I'm far from being a Neal Stephenson expert, but rumor has it that Zodiac is an exception to the rule for those who, otherwise, are not big Stephenson fans.
Employed as a “professional asshole” (his words) by GEE, an environmental activist group in Boston, ST is a chemist by training, a fan of avoiding Boston traffic by taking to its waterways in his (sometimes) trusty Zodiac, and, overall, is pretty much equal parts super-spy, mad scientist, and sardonic badass at large.
So, what makes Sangamon Taylor so swoon-worthy?
1. He's great at hand-to-hand underwater combat, which is kind of a must.
2. Dude knows his way around a lab, but he's a nerd of the people—using six-packs of beer to illustrate the difference between benzene rings and phenyls is beyond brilliant. In a pinch, ST would definitely know how to make use of dry ice and a fun, sexy little molecule some like to call “dihydrogen monoxide.”
3. Speaking of molecules, Sangamon's Principle: “The simpler the molecule, the better the drug,” comes in handy in the event that one needs to decide what kind of pick me up to employ before going into battle.
4. ST knows that no grenade is a good grenade, but sometimes, you've gotta lay all tinnitus concerns aside, and pull the pin.
5. He definitely knows how to make the best of a bad situation…
6. Last, but not least, Sangamon Taylor understands that it's not about the size of the boat…it's about the engine, and knowing how to use it.
I could go on, but I don't want to induce seizures among the gif-sensitive masses. I'm far from being a Neal Stephenson expert, but rumor has it that Zodiac is an exception to the rule for those who, otherwise, are not big Stephenson fans.
September 21, 2009
If not for the voice of Sangamon Taylor, Neal Stephenson's Zodiac would have been a relatively okay eco-thriller, but the book isn't just the voice of Sangamon Taylor, it IS Sangamon Taylor, and once again Stephenson's ability to create compelling leading men (think Hiro Protagonist in Snow Crash) makes one of his books superior to the pulp it was inspired by.
Sangamon Taylor is Boston Harbor's very own Toxic Avenger. Working for GEE -- a thinly veiled, fictional Greenpeace -- ST spends his days testing the waters in his Zodiac so that he can trace the waste dumping of Boston's big, bad corporations. He's already got two corporation kills on the side of his boat, and he's going for the kill that will make him an "ace".
ST declares himself to be "an asshole, I do it for a living," and he is to some extent. He hangs up on a cranky old cancer victim; he strings along Debbie, the girl he loves, and runs away from any chance of commitment with assiduity; he regularly partakes of any drug that doesn't break Sangamon's Principle of Simple Compounds, and even a few that do; he's foul mouthed, cynical and egotistical. But the very fact that he knows he's an asshole, and is the one to admit all of these flaws to his audience, suggests that he really isn't, and that little twist makes all the bad bits of ST more enjoyable than they should be and all of the good bits positively entertaining.
Or maybe there's just so much of me in the slightly overweight, Big Mac munching, bike riding, drugged up, hypocritical "invirinmentalist" that I have no alternative but to like him.
Whatever the motivation, ST is likable, and that likability allows Stephenson to do one important thing with Zodiac that other eco-thriller writers cannot: make the issues secondary. Eco-thrillers tend to be terminally preachy, particularly those written in the last twenty or thirty years. You open to page one, see the soapbox, and spend the rest of the book reading a never-ending, speechifying guilt trip. But Zodiac lets entertainment be the thing, and if you develop an increased sense of moral outrage at real world toxic dumping corporations then so be it.
Finally, here's one warning to those who may be fooled by Stephenson's body of work: Zodiac is, at best, Sci-Fi lite. But it isn't really even that. If you're looking for his Sci-Fi work, look elsewhere. If you are looking for Stephenson having fun, however, and writing so that you can have fun, Zodiac is the book for you.
Sangamon Taylor is Boston Harbor's very own Toxic Avenger. Working for GEE -- a thinly veiled, fictional Greenpeace -- ST spends his days testing the waters in his Zodiac so that he can trace the waste dumping of Boston's big, bad corporations. He's already got two corporation kills on the side of his boat, and he's going for the kill that will make him an "ace".
ST declares himself to be "an asshole, I do it for a living," and he is to some extent. He hangs up on a cranky old cancer victim; he strings along Debbie, the girl he loves, and runs away from any chance of commitment with assiduity; he regularly partakes of any drug that doesn't break Sangamon's Principle of Simple Compounds, and even a few that do; he's foul mouthed, cynical and egotistical. But the very fact that he knows he's an asshole, and is the one to admit all of these flaws to his audience, suggests that he really isn't, and that little twist makes all the bad bits of ST more enjoyable than they should be and all of the good bits positively entertaining.
Or maybe there's just so much of me in the slightly overweight, Big Mac munching, bike riding, drugged up, hypocritical "invirinmentalist" that I have no alternative but to like him.
Whatever the motivation, ST is likable, and that likability allows Stephenson to do one important thing with Zodiac that other eco-thriller writers cannot: make the issues secondary. Eco-thrillers tend to be terminally preachy, particularly those written in the last twenty or thirty years. You open to page one, see the soapbox, and spend the rest of the book reading a never-ending, speechifying guilt trip. But Zodiac lets entertainment be the thing, and if you develop an increased sense of moral outrage at real world toxic dumping corporations then so be it.
Finally, here's one warning to those who may be fooled by Stephenson's body of work: Zodiac is, at best, Sci-Fi lite. But it isn't really even that. If you're looking for his Sci-Fi work, look elsewhere. If you are looking for Stephenson having fun, however, and writing so that you can have fun, Zodiac is the book for you.
August 15, 2025
Our protagonist is a “granola James Bond”, a toxic detective.
Delicious.
Zodiac reminds me obliquely of Chuck Palahniuk’s Pygmy because it’s an over the top satire of a thriller with hyperbolic caricatures. Another good comparison would be the similarity between Palahniuk’s and Stephenson’s casually dark humor.
This is an “Eco-thriller.” Stephenson has set up a story where our man rides his zodiac (mentioned dozens of times) all over Boston harbor to investigate and help to prosecute violations of environmental law. Written in a Neo-Noir style, with first person narrative, this is like a green Big Lebowski, full of colorful characters and a main character who pushed the untrustworthy narrator tag to the bursting point.
This also made me consider that this is a love letter to Boston as our hero is a native and clearly loves his town, this was fun to read.
What makes this work is Stephenson’s inspired writing and its hard to believe this was released in 1988! I’ll add my name to the list of reviewers who are surprised about how well ahead of his time he was in putting this out, and it’s a good book to boot!
Delicious.
Zodiac reminds me obliquely of Chuck Palahniuk’s Pygmy because it’s an over the top satire of a thriller with hyperbolic caricatures. Another good comparison would be the similarity between Palahniuk’s and Stephenson’s casually dark humor.
This is an “Eco-thriller.” Stephenson has set up a story where our man rides his zodiac (mentioned dozens of times) all over Boston harbor to investigate and help to prosecute violations of environmental law. Written in a Neo-Noir style, with first person narrative, this is like a green Big Lebowski, full of colorful characters and a main character who pushed the untrustworthy narrator tag to the bursting point.
This also made me consider that this is a love letter to Boston as our hero is a native and clearly loves his town, this was fun to read.
What makes this work is Stephenson’s inspired writing and its hard to believe this was released in 1988! I’ll add my name to the list of reviewers who are surprised about how well ahead of his time he was in putting this out, and it’s a good book to boot!
June 7, 2020
This book is a thriller, a detective story with science--lots of chemistry in fact--but it isn't quite a "science fiction" novel. Neal Stephenson has created a memorable main character, Sangamon Taylor, a chemist and ecology activist. The emphasis is on the activist. He lives in Boston, and gets around mostly on his zodiac, a small, fast boat. He is always on the lookout for polluting waste products being dumped by factories into the waterways of Boston.
Of course, he is not on the good side of the chemical companies that do the dumping. He is constantly being stalked and occasionally mugged or kidnapped or ....
However, Sangamon is a very clever fellow. He has to be clever, since he was invented by Neal Stephenson. He is very enterprising, and has a big mouth, though he is usually tactful. He knows how to evade his enemies--usually. And he knows that sometimes, offense is the best defense. You just can't go wrong with a book by Stephenson. While Sangamon is evading and investigating the bad guys, his good-natured witticisms permeate the dialogues. And, you can even learn some chemistry (by osmosis) from this book, as it is everywhere an important character in its own right.
I didn't read this book--I listened to the audiobook, narrated rather well by Ax Norman.
Of course, he is not on the good side of the chemical companies that do the dumping. He is constantly being stalked and occasionally mugged or kidnapped or ....
However, Sangamon is a very clever fellow. He has to be clever, since he was invented by Neal Stephenson. He is very enterprising, and has a big mouth, though he is usually tactful. He knows how to evade his enemies--usually. And he knows that sometimes, offense is the best defense. You just can't go wrong with a book by Stephenson. While Sangamon is evading and investigating the bad guys, his good-natured witticisms permeate the dialogues. And, you can even learn some chemistry (by osmosis) from this book, as it is everywhere an important character in its own right.
I didn't read this book--I listened to the audiobook, narrated rather well by Ax Norman.
December 28, 2023
Of all of Neal Stephenson's works, the one I've heard mentioned the least is Zodiac, and now I know why: it's not a good book. A self-proclaimed (on the front cover) "eco-thriller", the book delivers in spades on the "eco", with things like toxic chemicals and what compounds they're made of constantly being referenced...but it doesn't deliver at all on the "thriller" aspect, because the book is incredibly boring and uneventful.
The story follows a group of ecoterrorists who do things like clogging pipes emitting toxic waste with cement, shackling themselves to city hall to get the government's attention, and trying to ruin the reputations of big chemical companies by exposing how much they're polluting the environment. Eventually, the main protagonist finds out that someone is poisoning Boston Harbor with a ton of PCBs, which are man-made chemicals that cause a number of severe health problems in humans and animals. This leads him down a confusing, uninteresting rabbit hole and conspiracy as he tries to uncover the truth.
One of the main issues with this book is that the characters are either dull, or terrible, or in several cases both. The main protagonist, Sangamon Taylor, is extremely arrogant and even describes himself as "a professional a**hole". So he was mostly just irritating, and I didn't care about him or his mission in the slightest as a result. That's a big problem, because that's 100% of this book; it doesn't have any side stories or subplots like many other novels do.
The book was well written, as pretty much everything I've read from Stephenson is so far, but the story was way too boring. Something like 80% of this book is just Sangamon driving his motorized Zodiac boat around the Boston Harbor, collecting samples and talking to lobstermen who work the harbor. The book is entirely filler, as nothing interesting ever happens. And even when something seemingly interesting does happen, like Sangamon being chased and shot at on the waters of the harbor, or an assassination attempt playing out, Stephenson fumbles it and the execution is just dull. This whole book is generally as dull as watching paint dry.
Can't say I'd recommend this one. It was a 308-page book that felt like a thousand-page slog. Very mediocre and not worth your time. But if you're a Stephenson completionist, I guess you have to read it. That kinda sucks, but such is life, right?
The story follows a group of ecoterrorists who do things like clogging pipes emitting toxic waste with cement, shackling themselves to city hall to get the government's attention, and trying to ruin the reputations of big chemical companies by exposing how much they're polluting the environment. Eventually, the main protagonist finds out that someone is poisoning Boston Harbor with a ton of PCBs, which are man-made chemicals that cause a number of severe health problems in humans and animals. This leads him down a confusing, uninteresting rabbit hole and conspiracy as he tries to uncover the truth.
One of the main issues with this book is that the characters are either dull, or terrible, or in several cases both. The main protagonist, Sangamon Taylor, is extremely arrogant and even describes himself as "a professional a**hole". So he was mostly just irritating, and I didn't care about him or his mission in the slightest as a result. That's a big problem, because that's 100% of this book; it doesn't have any side stories or subplots like many other novels do.
The book was well written, as pretty much everything I've read from Stephenson is so far, but the story was way too boring. Something like 80% of this book is just Sangamon driving his motorized Zodiac boat around the Boston Harbor, collecting samples and talking to lobstermen who work the harbor. The book is entirely filler, as nothing interesting ever happens. And even when something seemingly interesting does happen, like Sangamon being chased and shot at on the waters of the harbor, or an assassination attempt playing out, Stephenson fumbles it and the execution is just dull. This whole book is generally as dull as watching paint dry.
Can't say I'd recommend this one. It was a 308-page book that felt like a thousand-page slog. Very mediocre and not worth your time. But if you're a Stephenson completionist, I guess you have to read it. That kinda sucks, but such is life, right?
January 10, 2021
Early Neal Stephenson still worth reading for the completist. It's not postcyberpunk, it's not a hacker thriller, and it's not an historical drama about scientists either.
Zodiac is more based in the real world, about a hip environmentalist fighting corporate toxic waste in the mean streets (and seas) of Boston. Politically, it's very interesting to note that this is pretty much a leftist theme without any libertarian leanings. The main Stephensonism, however, is more about having a cool intellectual adventurer as protagonist, regardless of ideological leanings.
So activist Sangamon Taylor, based off the real-life Marco Kaltofen, basically works for Greenpeace and fights off the evil villains who are tampering with nature in the Boston harbor. The stakes get bigger and ever more exciting, although there is that typical abrupt Stephenson ending which may not be satisfying enough for all.
It's a relatively quick read, you can learn a lot about chemical compositions and such, and even with all the trademarked fascinating infodumps it goes by much faster than his latter 1000-page tomes. Topics range from why simpler molecules make for better drugs, to the finer intricacies of the Vietnamese restaurant scene. This is all quite funny, by the way. Enjoy!
Just make sure to level up to the better books if this one is your first...
Zodiac is more based in the real world, about a hip environmentalist fighting corporate toxic waste in the mean streets (and seas) of Boston. Politically, it's very interesting to note that this is pretty much a leftist theme without any libertarian leanings. The main Stephensonism, however, is more about having a cool intellectual adventurer as protagonist, regardless of ideological leanings.
So activist Sangamon Taylor, based off the real-life Marco Kaltofen, basically works for Greenpeace and fights off the evil villains who are tampering with nature in the Boston harbor. The stakes get bigger and ever more exciting, although there is that typical abrupt Stephenson ending which may not be satisfying enough for all.
It's a relatively quick read, you can learn a lot about chemical compositions and such, and even with all the trademarked fascinating infodumps it goes by much faster than his latter 1000-page tomes. Topics range from why simpler molecules make for better drugs, to the finer intricacies of the Vietnamese restaurant scene. This is all quite funny, by the way. Enjoy!
Just make sure to level up to the better books if this one is your first...
June 9, 2017
An extraordinarily fun book - Stephenson meshes hardboiled crime with the pacing of a thriller, and he populates the book with his typical nerdy, witty humor. It's not so much a sci-fi book as it is a thriller with a lot of hard science behind it. It is so delightful reading a Stephenson book narrated in the first person!
Zodiac was WAY ahead of its time upon publication in 1988. Computers, gadgets, pollutants and the corporations (legally inculpable for complex reasons) that dump them everywhere, you name it, Stephenson foresaw it.
Zodiac was WAY ahead of its time upon publication in 1988. Computers, gadgets, pollutants and the corporations (legally inculpable for complex reasons) that dump them everywhere, you name it, Stephenson foresaw it.
January 19, 2012
I'm not sure what I would have thought about this book if it had been by another author, or an author I didn't already know. It's a fun book, and decent in its own right. Have you ever seen pictures of people you knew when they were babies, and tried to scope out the resemblance to their adult appearance. That's sort of what I found myself doing in this book. There are lots of hints and suggestions of the kind of writer Stephenson would become. But standing on its own, this book seems just as much like someone trying to riff on Carl Hiaasen.
The book is decidedly more coherent that some of his later books, and its fun and a bit weird, but its nowhere near as fun as Snow Crash or Diamond Age, and the weirdness doesn't approach some of the stuff in Anathem. The ending ties things up more neatly that he does in his other books. And that neatness left me feeling a bit flat. I've always been a bit dissatisfied with Stephenson's endings (except for the Baroque trilogy, which has a few amazing and perfect endings). And here, the ending was probably right in some sense, but I still didn't feel particularly satisfied. This time, because it seemed too pat.
What I really liked seeing here was Stephenson's geekiness -- Darth Vader suits, Star Trek analogies, comparisons between chemical plants and Mordor. Then there was the fun of having a hyper-aware environmentalist who seems to rival Hunter Thompson in drug consumption: Nitrous Oxide, LSD, shrooms, speed. And there were some entertaining, but very brief, digressions and infodumps here -- the sort of thing that become the meat of the later, fatter books. All in all, I took this as Stephenson Lite. It was fun, and I'm glad I read it.
The book is decidedly more coherent that some of his later books, and its fun and a bit weird, but its nowhere near as fun as Snow Crash or Diamond Age, and the weirdness doesn't approach some of the stuff in Anathem. The ending ties things up more neatly that he does in his other books. And that neatness left me feeling a bit flat. I've always been a bit dissatisfied with Stephenson's endings (except for the Baroque trilogy, which has a few amazing and perfect endings). And here, the ending was probably right in some sense, but I still didn't feel particularly satisfied. This time, because it seemed too pat.
What I really liked seeing here was Stephenson's geekiness -- Darth Vader suits, Star Trek analogies, comparisons between chemical plants and Mordor. Then there was the fun of having a hyper-aware environmentalist who seems to rival Hunter Thompson in drug consumption: Nitrous Oxide, LSD, shrooms, speed. And there were some entertaining, but very brief, digressions and infodumps here -- the sort of thing that become the meat of the later, fatter books. All in all, I took this as Stephenson Lite. It was fun, and I'm glad I read it.
April 16, 2024
Thriller following environmental activist and professional whistle blower who gets in way over his head. On paper it doesn't sound too exciting and honestly it isn't. There is tension and action but it's not some super exciting spy thriller. It's more toned down to fit tone of the book. Despite that I enjoyed this one a lot. Writing is smooth, characters are likable, villains aren't stupid and cops are competent (for the most part) and science is real with some lot of organic chemistry. Also despite following environmentalist group book doesn't feel preachy like a lot of books with similar themes tend to be.
November 13, 2020
Nobody gives a shit about their sins anymore. You think those corporate execs worry about sin?
Environmental catastrophe is a constant, and the cure for catastrophe can easily become another culprit.
Environmental catastrophe is a constant, and the cure for catastrophe can easily become another culprit.
June 9, 2020
Ahoy there me mateys! This review has a twist. The First Mate and I both read this one (sort of)! We discussed the book and I enjoyed his viewpoint so I ordered asked him to write a review. So you get one from me and a bonus additional review from me crew. Please note that I write like I talk and the First Mate writes like he thinks. Hope you enjoy!
From the First Mate:
The first time I read Zodiac was twenty years ago. Amazon tells me that I purchased it in May 2000, several months after I’d previously purchased and enjoyed Stephenson’s Cryptonomicon. I can’t say for certain that I’d purchased Snow Crash and The Diamond Age in the intervening months (perhaps in a long shuttered Borders), but my memory is that in the wake of reading Cryptonomicon I was trying to quickly read everything Stephenson had written, as I’d then found a new favorite author.
Zodiac tells the story of Sangamon Taylor, a dude bro eco terrorist, and his efforts to engage in “mediapathic” events against corporations that are polluting the environment, specifically his nemesis corporation, developer of Agent Orange: Basco Industries. Like a lot of early Stephenson, the plot of the novel is highly episodic. Taylor goes somewhere, does some explaining to someone about how the world really works, MacGyvers together something that will draw media attention, and then we move on to the next adventure.
There’s a larger storyline involving Basco Industries, Boston Harbor, and genetic engineering that weaves itself through Taylor’s adventures and eventually becomes the central focus of the last quarter of the book. But the majority of the book is hanging out with a guy that says things like “If you’ve put yourself in a position where someone has to see you in order for you to be safe – to see you, and to give a fuck – you’ve already blown it” and “It irritates the hell out of me to be in a situation where I’m forced to do exactly what’s expected.”
Twenty years ago I was definitely the target audience for this type of book and narrator. The snarky “I have the world’s address and you’re lucky you’ve got someone like me to explain it all” tone was right up my alley at the time. Two decades later it still makes me smile, even though I’ve certainly had my fill of dealing with those types of men in real life. Even in 2000, though, I probably would’ve told you that the reason to read any Stephenson was purely for stylistic reasons. If his style works for you (as it did for me), reading his work can be amazingly enjoyable. If that style grates, there’s very little value to get from Stephenson. He’s never written a truly satisfying ending and his palette of characters is rather limited. As with all of Stephenson’s early novels, major characters and plot elements appear for the first time in the last third of the novel out of nowhere.
I will say that the thematic core of the novel is perhaps even more relevant today than when it was when published in 1988. Taylor tells us “The big lie of American capitalism is that corporations work in their own best interests. In fact they’re constantly doing things that will eventually bring them to their knees.” It seems that we get weekly updates of corporations shooting themselves in the foot these days.
I enjoyed rereading Zodiac. Did I enjoy it as much as the first read? Don’t know. Part of the enjoyment was revisiting the now somewhat distant past of my youth. I recognize the late 80s of the novel, and I have to admit that I get some weird comfort from being reminded of that era. Likewise, it was fun to think about where I was and what I was like when I first read this novel in 2000. It’s probably not a high recommendation of the novel that a majority of my enjoyment was nostalgia-based.
Recommended if any of the above quotes have a tone that speaks to you. Avoid if you’re allergic to dude bros with a tendency to mansplaining.
From the Captain:
I read Anathem a long while back and adored it so I was excited to dive back into the author’s work. I be highly allergic to dude bros with a tendency to mansplain. I almost died so I quickly abandoned ship. Arrrrr!
From the First Mate:
The first time I read Zodiac was twenty years ago. Amazon tells me that I purchased it in May 2000, several months after I’d previously purchased and enjoyed Stephenson’s Cryptonomicon. I can’t say for certain that I’d purchased Snow Crash and The Diamond Age in the intervening months (perhaps in a long shuttered Borders), but my memory is that in the wake of reading Cryptonomicon I was trying to quickly read everything Stephenson had written, as I’d then found a new favorite author.
Zodiac tells the story of Sangamon Taylor, a dude bro eco terrorist, and his efforts to engage in “mediapathic” events against corporations that are polluting the environment, specifically his nemesis corporation, developer of Agent Orange: Basco Industries. Like a lot of early Stephenson, the plot of the novel is highly episodic. Taylor goes somewhere, does some explaining to someone about how the world really works, MacGyvers together something that will draw media attention, and then we move on to the next adventure.
There’s a larger storyline involving Basco Industries, Boston Harbor, and genetic engineering that weaves itself through Taylor’s adventures and eventually becomes the central focus of the last quarter of the book. But the majority of the book is hanging out with a guy that says things like “If you’ve put yourself in a position where someone has to see you in order for you to be safe – to see you, and to give a fuck – you’ve already blown it” and “It irritates the hell out of me to be in a situation where I’m forced to do exactly what’s expected.”
Twenty years ago I was definitely the target audience for this type of book and narrator. The snarky “I have the world’s address and you’re lucky you’ve got someone like me to explain it all” tone was right up my alley at the time. Two decades later it still makes me smile, even though I’ve certainly had my fill of dealing with those types of men in real life. Even in 2000, though, I probably would’ve told you that the reason to read any Stephenson was purely for stylistic reasons. If his style works for you (as it did for me), reading his work can be amazingly enjoyable. If that style grates, there’s very little value to get from Stephenson. He’s never written a truly satisfying ending and his palette of characters is rather limited. As with all of Stephenson’s early novels, major characters and plot elements appear for the first time in the last third of the novel out of nowhere.
I will say that the thematic core of the novel is perhaps even more relevant today than when it was when published in 1988. Taylor tells us “The big lie of American capitalism is that corporations work in their own best interests. In fact they’re constantly doing things that will eventually bring them to their knees.” It seems that we get weekly updates of corporations shooting themselves in the foot these days.
I enjoyed rereading Zodiac. Did I enjoy it as much as the first read? Don’t know. Part of the enjoyment was revisiting the now somewhat distant past of my youth. I recognize the late 80s of the novel, and I have to admit that I get some weird comfort from being reminded of that era. Likewise, it was fun to think about where I was and what I was like when I first read this novel in 2000. It’s probably not a high recommendation of the novel that a majority of my enjoyment was nostalgia-based.
Recommended if any of the above quotes have a tone that speaks to you. Avoid if you’re allergic to dude bros with a tendency to mansplaining.
From the Captain:
I read Anathem a long while back and adored it so I was excited to dive back into the author’s work. I be highly allergic to dude bros with a tendency to mansplain. I almost died so I quickly abandoned ship. Arrrrr!
February 3, 2024
This was Stephenson's second novel and reads very well. I liked the protagonist and his crazy eco-terrorism story. The descriptions of Boston and Boston Harbor reminded me of my time there (I lived there for 6 months in the 90s), so that also played in the book's favor. As for his writing style, this one is loose and informal like in Snow Crash, but here there is no sci-fi, just eco-fiction. The science is well done as per usual with Stephenson and that also rises this book above the average. I think that I'll be thinking twice before eating lobster in New England though.
One thing that bugged me was how his Zodiac gets from Boston to New Jersey early in the novel - maybe a slight slip up or I wasn't paying enough attention?
Fino's Neal Stephenson Reviews
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One thing that bugged me was how his Zodiac gets from Boston to New Jersey early in the novel - maybe a slight slip up or I wasn't paying enough attention?
Fino's Neal Stephenson Reviews
- https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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June 22, 2017
Zodiac is the first book I’ve read by Neal Stephenson, an author I see mentioned fairly often, often with mixed reviews. My own reaction to this particular book is a little mixed.
The title, Zodiac, refers to a type of motorized raft the characters used. The story is set in Boston and is told from the first-person perspective of a character who tries to catch, publicize, and prevent corporations from dumping toxic chemicals into the Boston Harbor. Naturally the big, powerful corporation people aren’t happy and don’t take his interference lying down.
The book is probably better classified as a Thriller than as Science Fiction. There was at least one small science fiction element but, for the most part, it seemed entirely based on technology and scientific knowledge from the 1980’s, when the book was published. There’s a decent amount of science, usually explained well enough for the layman to understand, and I never felt like I was reading infodumps. I learned some things, and I liked that.
On the other hand, the story itself just wasn’t that appealing to me. Since the book is more story-driven than character-driven, it was hard to be too enthusiastic about it if I wasn’t enthusiastic about the story itself. I liked the main character well enough, but I never felt attached, and I didn’t feel much interest in the other characters at all.
As far as entertainment level, this was pretty middle-of-the-road for me. There were parts when I did feel more eager to learn what would happen next but, mostly, I didn’t feel any compulsion to keep reading when I had other things to do. Fortunately, this was a pretty short book. If it had been stretched out into a longer book, I might have had more trouble making it to the end.
The title, Zodiac, refers to a type of motorized raft the characters used. The story is set in Boston and is told from the first-person perspective of a character who tries to catch, publicize, and prevent corporations from dumping toxic chemicals into the Boston Harbor. Naturally the big, powerful corporation people aren’t happy and don’t take his interference lying down.
The book is probably better classified as a Thriller than as Science Fiction. There was at least one small science fiction element but, for the most part, it seemed entirely based on technology and scientific knowledge from the 1980’s, when the book was published. There’s a decent amount of science, usually explained well enough for the layman to understand, and I never felt like I was reading infodumps. I learned some things, and I liked that.
On the other hand, the story itself just wasn’t that appealing to me. Since the book is more story-driven than character-driven, it was hard to be too enthusiastic about it if I wasn’t enthusiastic about the story itself. I liked the main character well enough, but I never felt attached, and I didn’t feel much interest in the other characters at all.
As far as entertainment level, this was pretty middle-of-the-road for me. There were parts when I did feel more eager to learn what would happen next but, mostly, I didn’t feel any compulsion to keep reading when I had other things to do. Fortunately, this was a pretty short book. If it had been stretched out into a longer book, I might have had more trouble making it to the end.
July 5, 2017
A quirky scientist/"Toxic James Bond" for the environmental group "G International" cruises Boston harbor in his Zodiac boat, looking for chemical hot spots. When he finds on that mysteriously disappears again, he is on a search that puts his career in danger, and then puts his life in danger.
More science-based adventure thriller than science fiction, it is still a fun little romp through the Hub of the Universe and my old stomping-ground.
[Fulfills several possibilities on my St. Mary's County Library Summer Reading Challenge bingo board. Fulfills part of several Seasonal Reading Challenge tasks, primarily Task 25.10 - BellaGBear's Task: OLD LOVE AND NEW LOVE. Another book towards my goal of Read All The Books 2017 Edition - A New Hope]
More science-based adventure thriller than science fiction, it is still a fun little romp through the Hub of the Universe and my old stomping-ground.
[Fulfills several possibilities on my St. Mary's County Library Summer Reading Challenge bingo board. Fulfills part of several Seasonal Reading Challenge tasks, primarily Task 25.10 - BellaGBear's Task: OLD LOVE AND NEW LOVE. Another book towards my goal of Read All The Books 2017 Edition - A New Hope]
July 31, 2021
3.5 Stars
This was a super fun eco thriller with a wonderful narrative rhythm (highly recommend the audio version). Most of the book reads like one long rant on environmentalism so readers need to be prepared for the subject matter, which can certainly feel preachy at times. The main character was absolutely obnoxious, which made him so entertaining. The story itself was a little ridiculous but I overall really enjoyed it. The hard science discussions involving chemistry were particularly interesting.
This was a super fun eco thriller with a wonderful narrative rhythm (highly recommend the audio version). Most of the book reads like one long rant on environmentalism so readers need to be prepared for the subject matter, which can certainly feel preachy at times. The main character was absolutely obnoxious, which made him so entertaining. The story itself was a little ridiculous but I overall really enjoyed it. The hard science discussions involving chemistry were particularly interesting.
February 7, 2020
I haven't had this much fun since Metzger's Dog. I wonder if Chinese Gordon and Sangamon Taylor are related somehow.
March 22, 2016
Omg, I need more! Is there a sequel? Who knew an eco thriller could be so absolutely amazing!
March 27, 2009
Zodiac is described as an eco-thriller, which about sums it up, actually! It certainly is a thriller - I read all 290 or so pages in one (long) night, gripped from the outset. The hero of the story is a chemist working for GEE, a direct action environmental organisation, in its Boston branch. He's out to get the companies dumping toxic waste into the harbour and the rivers and canals that feed into it. He has three company logos on the bows of his inflatable raft with its over-size outboard motor, capable of making it fly. None of those companies is trading anymore. Now he's gunning for his fourth, but the opposition start gunning for him, literally, and some of that opposition are criminal Families not criminal Corporations.
The man on a crusade has a big mystery, more enemies than he can figure out reasons for, a neglected girl-friend, a freak-show of friends, a knowledge of chemistry, his wits and a Zodiac boat. This turns out to be plenty to drive this taught, pacy, funny and occassionally unpredictable novel forward but at the end one question is left unaswered: what does our non-violent eco-warrior want more? To protect the aquatic eco-system or bash big corporations?
The man on a crusade has a big mystery, more enemies than he can figure out reasons for, a neglected girl-friend, a freak-show of friends, a knowledge of chemistry, his wits and a Zodiac boat. This turns out to be plenty to drive this taught, pacy, funny and occassionally unpredictable novel forward but at the end one question is left unaswered: what does our non-violent eco-warrior want more? To protect the aquatic eco-system or bash big corporations?
February 25, 2009
An early variant of Stephenson's 'Snow Crash' writing style. More down-to-earth plot, set in the present rather than the near-future, but just as much fun. It definitely feels rougher and less polished than either Snow Crash or The Diamond Age, but it's great fun. And the description of trying to cross the street in Boston is worth the purchase price.
August 3, 2022
Okay, I saw a blurb that compared this guy to Sam Spade and I don't see it. Don't get me wrong it is a really fun read and I did have to keep checking to see who wrote it due to the fact that This is nothing like the other two books I have read by the same author or a fourth that I have started. His writing style usually comes off as more intense, and more serious. This is a fun romp, not in your face bull you-over funny, but more controlled and very well done. I found it to be the kind of read that grabs a hold and doesn't let go.
September 25, 2024
Zodiac by Neal Stephenson is an environmental thriller. Sangamon Taylor works for an environmental activist group GEE and investigates toxic waste being dumped into Boston Harbour. A fast paced thriller which I enjoyed very much. S.T. is a fun modern day superhero, witty and smart. A very entertaining book.
August 30, 2014
Every once in a while when I open a box from Subterranean Press, I discover a surprise tucked inside. Such was the case with Zodiac; I received a free surplus ARC of their special edition of this novel. I seldom refuse free books, and of course, it’s Neal Stephenson. So off we go.
Even when attached to a name such as Stephenson’s, a novel that bills itself as an “eco-thriller” does not earn eager anticipation from me. My opinion of thrillers is low in general, and when combined with ecological motifs, the result isn’t always pretty. True, I also have a marked preference for physics over biology, preferring those thrillers set in deep space, orbiting wormholes or derelict spacecraft and deploying nanotechnology. As much as topics like genetic engineering and environmental responsibility are important to our society, it takes a really skilled writer to pull off a story that I will enjoy.
So in Zodiac, our protagonist, Sangamon Taylor, cruises around in an inflatable motor boat. He is a modern-day crusader against corporate abuse of the environment, stepping in where the EPA cannot or will not go. Eventually, he stumbles on a secret that would make an upcoming presidential candidate look bad, and for that he must be eliminated. The bad guys frame Sangamon (or ST, as he calls himself) as a terrorist. That’s when the thriller part of this eco-thriller kicks into high gear; prior to Sangamon’s fugitive status, the book is a somewhat enjoyable but frustrating mystery. Once ST is on the run from … well, everyone, the plot suddenly picks up the pace.
Pacing was probably my biggest issue with Zodiac. Stephenson’s exposition runs to a tendency to rhapsodize as it explains science. Maybe it’s the fact that I’m reading in 2011 a book written for a 1980s audience, but some of it is old hat, and much of it seems superfluous. This is another issue I take with many thrillers: they don’t realize that, with exposition, less is more. The more detailed a scientific explanation in a thriller, the less realistic it sounds. There is a fine line between plausible explanations and unrealistic technobabble, and that’s the line most thriller authors walk. To Stephenson’s credit, he doesn’t so much cross the line as make furtive forays over it in the dead of night, only to steal back across the border before I can train my search lights on him.
Oh, he’s crafty. But when I start talking about interacting with the author in this way, often it’s because I spent more time thinking about how the book was written than about the book itself. Zodiac has a satisfactory story, plenty of action, and a nice science-fiction premise involving some scary PCB-eating bacteria. But with the intermittent motor boat chase sequences and ST’s smarmy observations about various other characters, I could never shake the feeling I was in some kind of pulp thriller. Don’t get me wrong: I understand that, for some people, this works, that this feeling is desirable. If you are one of those people, check out Zodiac.
Zodiac also bears its age well. You don’t see that too often with science fiction set in a contemporary period. It would be very easy to take the events in Zodiac and transpose them to 2011 without changing many of the details. The lack of constant cell phone communication was the most conspicuous incongruity—so pervasive are mobile phones these days that we take them for granted, even in our thrillers and action movies. Indeed, the absence of cell phones was constantly on my mind. I began to analyze what would have to change if the characters had access to cheap mobile phones, and that in turn reveals a lot about how our society has changed now that we use mobile devices constantly. Zodiac is that rare novel that remains relevant in the present even as it presents a useful study in history.
As a Stephenson novel, Zodiac shows its colours both in style and in its place in his oeuvre. It’s obviously an early novel. But it’s Stephenson through and through. The characters aren’t the greatest, but he somehow manages to use them and some fascinating science-fiction ideas to create a genuine thriller. I’m just not that big a fan of thrillers.
Even when attached to a name such as Stephenson’s, a novel that bills itself as an “eco-thriller” does not earn eager anticipation from me. My opinion of thrillers is low in general, and when combined with ecological motifs, the result isn’t always pretty. True, I also have a marked preference for physics over biology, preferring those thrillers set in deep space, orbiting wormholes or derelict spacecraft and deploying nanotechnology. As much as topics like genetic engineering and environmental responsibility are important to our society, it takes a really skilled writer to pull off a story that I will enjoy.
So in Zodiac, our protagonist, Sangamon Taylor, cruises around in an inflatable motor boat. He is a modern-day crusader against corporate abuse of the environment, stepping in where the EPA cannot or will not go. Eventually, he stumbles on a secret that would make an upcoming presidential candidate look bad, and for that he must be eliminated. The bad guys frame Sangamon (or ST, as he calls himself) as a terrorist. That’s when the thriller part of this eco-thriller kicks into high gear; prior to Sangamon’s fugitive status, the book is a somewhat enjoyable but frustrating mystery. Once ST is on the run from … well, everyone, the plot suddenly picks up the pace.
Pacing was probably my biggest issue with Zodiac. Stephenson’s exposition runs to a tendency to rhapsodize as it explains science. Maybe it’s the fact that I’m reading in 2011 a book written for a 1980s audience, but some of it is old hat, and much of it seems superfluous. This is another issue I take with many thrillers: they don’t realize that, with exposition, less is more. The more detailed a scientific explanation in a thriller, the less realistic it sounds. There is a fine line between plausible explanations and unrealistic technobabble, and that’s the line most thriller authors walk. To Stephenson’s credit, he doesn’t so much cross the line as make furtive forays over it in the dead of night, only to steal back across the border before I can train my search lights on him.
Oh, he’s crafty. But when I start talking about interacting with the author in this way, often it’s because I spent more time thinking about how the book was written than about the book itself. Zodiac has a satisfactory story, plenty of action, and a nice science-fiction premise involving some scary PCB-eating bacteria. But with the intermittent motor boat chase sequences and ST’s smarmy observations about various other characters, I could never shake the feeling I was in some kind of pulp thriller. Don’t get me wrong: I understand that, for some people, this works, that this feeling is desirable. If you are one of those people, check out Zodiac.
Zodiac also bears its age well. You don’t see that too often with science fiction set in a contemporary period. It would be very easy to take the events in Zodiac and transpose them to 2011 without changing many of the details. The lack of constant cell phone communication was the most conspicuous incongruity—so pervasive are mobile phones these days that we take them for granted, even in our thrillers and action movies. Indeed, the absence of cell phones was constantly on my mind. I began to analyze what would have to change if the characters had access to cheap mobile phones, and that in turn reveals a lot about how our society has changed now that we use mobile devices constantly. Zodiac is that rare novel that remains relevant in the present even as it presents a useful study in history.
As a Stephenson novel, Zodiac shows its colours both in style and in its place in his oeuvre. It’s obviously an early novel. But it’s Stephenson through and through. The characters aren’t the greatest, but he somehow manages to use them and some fascinating science-fiction ideas to create a genuine thriller. I’m just not that big a fan of thrillers.
March 4, 2023
3 Stars for Zodiac (audiobook) by Neal Stephenson read by Ax Norman.
This is my first book by this author and it’s really not what I was expecting. The snarky environmentalist just got kind of old for me.
This is my first book by this author and it’s really not what I was expecting. The snarky environmentalist just got kind of old for me.
May 3, 2012
Dear S.T. -
I just finished reading your Zodiac adventures and how I loved them. At first I was a bit confused since I was expecting a science-fiction novel. I know, I know, you did start your memoirs clearly stating that this is an eco-thriller, but I was misled by the GoodReads shelving. Have you seen it? Oof! "Science Fiction," "Horror," even "Fantasy." Although "Cyberpunk" has be the best one given that your colleagues refuse to work in an office with a computer and you use yours only for printing and text-editing. Maybe it's because some guy named Neal-something wrote a bunch of SF novels, although I still didn't figure out the connection.
But enough of that. I don't think I've ever read such a fun thriller. Usually, this kind of tomes relinquish any kind of conviviality in order to accentuate their nerve-clenching aspect. But you look at life with the eyes of abig child tough dude, enjoying (almost) every moment. Did I tell you that I laughed out loud reading the car-chase description from Niagara and the subsequent shopping spree with the bad-guys' credit card? And your Macgyverian moments from the first half of the story were priceless. I did feel that maybe you started a bit late to get into the pith of the matter (around page 120 from 307) but that wasn't much of a problem.
However, S.T., I wasn't thrilled about you falling back to drugs every time when you're stressed. LSD, mushrooms, speed, and what else... For a "near-genius" chemist, one would think that you'd know better that kind of stuff permanently and irrevocably messes up your grey-matter. It made me a bit sad since a chemist would be the first one to understand how dangerous those drugs are. Watch out...
I have to finish here since I'm sure you have lots of fan-mail to read. Till next time, so long!
I just finished reading your Zodiac adventures and how I loved them. At first I was a bit confused since I was expecting a science-fiction novel. I know, I know, you did start your memoirs clearly stating that this is an eco-thriller, but I was misled by the GoodReads shelving. Have you seen it? Oof! "Science Fiction," "Horror," even "Fantasy." Although "Cyberpunk" has be the best one given that your colleagues refuse to work in an office with a computer and you use yours only for printing and text-editing. Maybe it's because some guy named Neal-something wrote a bunch of SF novels, although I still didn't figure out the connection.
But enough of that. I don't think I've ever read such a fun thriller. Usually, this kind of tomes relinquish any kind of conviviality in order to accentuate their nerve-clenching aspect. But you look at life with the eyes of a
However, S.T., I wasn't thrilled about you falling back to drugs every time when you're stressed. LSD, mushrooms, speed, and what else... For a "near-genius" chemist, one would think that you'd know better that kind of stuff permanently and irrevocably messes up your grey-matter. It made me a bit sad since a chemist would be the first one to understand how dangerous those drugs are. Watch out...
I have to finish here since I'm sure you have lots of fan-mail to read. Till next time, so long!
April 15, 2014
Early Neal Stephenson. The reason to read this book is the voice of the protagonist. Sangamon Taylor is a chemist and an environmental activist. I've read he is based around a person Stephenson knew in college; the rich characterization seems very authentic to me.
This is also an interesting time period for that sort of person; the book came out in 1988. This is a time at which the dinosaur chemical companies were moving toward greener chemistries and were stuck with numerous lawsuits and other actions over their not-so-green legacy.
Taylor works on toxics; his territory is the waterways of Boston. The title comes from the type of fast boat the environmental activists used in doing everything from hanging banners to taking samples to sabotage.
I'm a Ph.D. biochemist, and I can vouch that the chemistry was not only accurate but exactly what someone with this background would be thinking about. The love-em-and-leave-em attitude and the casual drug use and other self-destructive habits also helped build the persona.
However, there's a reason why Stephenson considers this and Big U as immature works, before he found his mature style. The thriller aspects of this don't make sense, surprisingly for Stephenson, because the science in the second half of the book doesn't make sense. The biotechnology and microbial ecology that the plot turns on couldn't happen. That's a no-no for science fiction; you can make up whatever you want, but if you are trying to describe actual science, it needs to be accurate.
The skullduggery undertaken by the companies may seem like conspiracy theory to those who didn't live through the time period, but I think what happened to the activists with the Mississippi Summer in the California Redwoods at precisely this time was as bad as anything that happened in this book. So, I have no problem with it.
This book could not have been written even five years later. Five years later, the environmental movement had kicked out the scientists. In the battle between what was called the "mystics" and the "mechanics," the mystics won. The founder and international director of Greenpeace went on to be a lobbyist for the biotech industry, because he saw what they were doing as more likely to help the environment that what the environmental activists had devolved into. This was the very last time period during which one could be both a mainstream environmental chemist and a environmentalist acceptable in radical circles.
Also, as far as literary technique, the slow build up of the world before the plot events really get going--that was acceptable in the 80s, but in our more rapid paced and text message-driven society, it wouldn't cut it.This probably wouldn't have gotten published today, at least in its current form.
So, to judge this work fairly, it must be remembered that what's portrayed is 1988, not the present day, and this was published in 1988.
In the protagonist voice, you see the roots of the Stephenson that came later: erudite to the point of nerdy, cynical, not above a funny one-liner here or there. I liked this voice.
As a thriller, it kept me reading, but I couldn't suspend disbelief. The Stephenson who constructed baroque plots that depended on consistent world-building (either science and history, as in Cryptonomicon, or science fantasy, as in The Diamond Age) hadn't quite developed yet.
So, if you have never read any Stephenson, start with Snow Crash, The Diamond Age and Cryptonomicon. But this is worth the read down the line.
This is also an interesting time period for that sort of person; the book came out in 1988. This is a time at which the dinosaur chemical companies were moving toward greener chemistries and were stuck with numerous lawsuits and other actions over their not-so-green legacy.
Taylor works on toxics; his territory is the waterways of Boston. The title comes from the type of fast boat the environmental activists used in doing everything from hanging banners to taking samples to sabotage.
I'm a Ph.D. biochemist, and I can vouch that the chemistry was not only accurate but exactly what someone with this background would be thinking about. The love-em-and-leave-em attitude and the casual drug use and other self-destructive habits also helped build the persona.
However, there's a reason why Stephenson considers this and Big U as immature works, before he found his mature style. The thriller aspects of this don't make sense, surprisingly for Stephenson, because the science in the second half of the book doesn't make sense. The biotechnology and microbial ecology that the plot turns on couldn't happen. That's a no-no for science fiction; you can make up whatever you want, but if you are trying to describe actual science, it needs to be accurate.
The skullduggery undertaken by the companies may seem like conspiracy theory to those who didn't live through the time period, but I think what happened to the activists with the Mississippi Summer in the California Redwoods at precisely this time was as bad as anything that happened in this book. So, I have no problem with it.
This book could not have been written even five years later. Five years later, the environmental movement had kicked out the scientists. In the battle between what was called the "mystics" and the "mechanics," the mystics won. The founder and international director of Greenpeace went on to be a lobbyist for the biotech industry, because he saw what they were doing as more likely to help the environment that what the environmental activists had devolved into. This was the very last time period during which one could be both a mainstream environmental chemist and a environmentalist acceptable in radical circles.
Also, as far as literary technique, the slow build up of the world before the plot events really get going--that was acceptable in the 80s, but in our more rapid paced and text message-driven society, it wouldn't cut it.This probably wouldn't have gotten published today, at least in its current form.
So, to judge this work fairly, it must be remembered that what's portrayed is 1988, not the present day, and this was published in 1988.
In the protagonist voice, you see the roots of the Stephenson that came later: erudite to the point of nerdy, cynical, not above a funny one-liner here or there. I liked this voice.
As a thriller, it kept me reading, but I couldn't suspend disbelief. The Stephenson who constructed baroque plots that depended on consistent world-building (either science and history, as in Cryptonomicon, or science fantasy, as in The Diamond Age) hadn't quite developed yet.
So, if you have never read any Stephenson, start with Snow Crash, The Diamond Age and Cryptonomicon. But this is worth the read down the line.
July 16, 2015
«Зодиак», вы удивитесь, — чтение, близкое к идеальному. Главный герой, он же рассказчик — человек знающий, что делает и что делать (мы уже давно для себя поняли, что профессионалы за работой в книгах — это лучше, чем распиздяи за бездельем; особенно если автор знает, о чем говорит; у Пинчона это освежало, здесь — тоже приятно). Мало того — он лихой балагур и отличный рассказчик (опять необходимый дисклеймер: я не знаю, что там в русском переводе творится). А главное, что помимо сюжета — вполне триллерного, с поворотами, подставами, теориями, догадками, тем и этим, присутствует по-настоящему важная и животрепещущая тема: защита природы. Т.е. животрепещущая — это пока еще есть что защищать.
Поясню. Когда следишь за перипетиями и хитросплетениями, подводящими к раскрытию какой-нибудь криминальной, финансовой или политической загадки, вскрытию интриги и т.д. у какого-нибудь прости-господи Гришэма или Дика Фрэнсиса, это как-то… ну, мелковато. С юристами Уолл-стрит (я обобщаю) или жокеями ипподрома себя не очень проассоциируешь (разве что с лошадками, читая Фрэнсиса), а тут понимаешь, что загрязнение Бостонской гавани, как ни странно, касается и тебя. Особенно если тебе подробно растолковывают, что с тобой после этого будет. Ну и натянуть государство или крупную корпорацию — вообще любимый аттракцион, особенно если изобретательно и с хорошим чувством юмора.
Кроме того, эко-террористы — излюбленный тип изгоев и героев (в т.ч. литературных), если они не идиоты, конечно, а такие, как у Стивенсона (да, я знаю, что в «Зодиаке» они подчеркнуто НЕ-террористы, сути это не меняет). Потому что у него они продолжают традицию Эдварда Эбби и выглядят двоюродными братьями и сестрами Карла Хайасена.
А еще из смешных черточек героя-рассказчика (только не сообщайте об этом автору, он явно не имел этого в виду, будучи американцем, он не видит в этом никакой иронии, он этого никак не подчеркивал, для него это само собой разумеется) — защитник природы, эко-боевик, химик, ныряющий в самую гущу токсических отходов, если нужно, — сильно болеет, просто порезав ногу на свалке. Потому что, как все американцы, напрочь лишен иммунитета.
Поясню. Когда следишь за перипетиями и хитросплетениями, подводящими к раскрытию какой-нибудь криминальной, финансовой или политической загадки, вскрытию интриги и т.д. у какого-нибудь прости-господи Гришэма или Дика Фрэнсиса, это как-то… ну, мелковато. С юристами Уолл-стрит (я обобщаю) или жокеями ипподрома себя не очень проассоциируешь (разве что с лошадками, читая Фрэнсиса), а тут понимаешь, что загрязнение Бостонской гавани, как ни странно, касается и тебя. Особенно если тебе подробно растолковывают, что с тобой после этого будет. Ну и натянуть государство или крупную корпорацию — вообще любимый аттракцион, особенно если изобретательно и с хорошим чувством юмора.
Кроме того, эко-террористы — излюбленный тип изгоев и героев (в т.ч. литературных), если они не идиоты, конечно, а такие, как у Стивенсона (да, я знаю, что в «Зодиаке» они подчеркнуто НЕ-террористы, сути это не меняет). Потому что у него они продолжают традицию Эдварда Эбби и выглядят двоюродными братьями и сестрами Карла Хайасена.
А еще из смешных черточек героя-рассказчика (только не сообщайте об этом автору, он явно не имел этого в виду, будучи американцем, он не видит в этом никакой иронии, он этого никак не подчеркивал, для него это само собой разумеется) — защитник природы, эко-боевик, химик, ныряющий в самую гущу токсических отходов, если нужно, — сильно болеет, просто порезав ногу на свалке. Потому что, как все американцы, напрочь лишен иммунитета.
June 25, 2019
I am a sucker for punishment.
I just keep trying out NS’s books because I WANT to like them as much as everyone else. I really need to stop the insanity and just never pick up another.
Overall review for this one: meh
ST works for a Greenpeace-like organization. His job involves catching and stopping companies from dumping toxins into the Boston harbour. This whole book is about that. Next...
I just keep trying out NS’s books because I WANT to like them as much as everyone else. I really need to stop the insanity and just never pick up another.
Overall review for this one: meh
ST works for a Greenpeace-like organization. His job involves catching and stopping companies from dumping toxins into the Boston harbour. This whole book is about that. Next...
November 10, 2017
This is a Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas meets 1980's thriller story. I couldn't help comparing Sangamon Taylor to Hunter S. Thompson, they both used whatever substance was at hand to fuel the madness. Sangamon Taylor's madness was fighting uncaring, corporate polluters and who wouldn't want to cheer for that. His methods and plans were equally ridiculous, inspired and undecypherable.
The story itself is loosely held together and mostly a vehicle for Sangamon's character who, although very entertaining throughout the book, gets old and tiresome at the end.
A bit too over the top for me to really love.
The story itself is loosely held together and mostly a vehicle for Sangamon's character who, although very entertaining throughout the book, gets old and tiresome at the end.
A bit too over the top for me to really love.
December 20, 2015
Although this is one of Stephenson's earliest works, it remains an excellent and enjoyable book and if I say it's one of his best, it's only to demonstrate the strength of this work as opposed to criticizing later ones.
All the traits that Stephenson would earn his bones on are present here; the whip-smart discussions about interesting scientific topics, an incredibly intelligent and skilled protagonist who, despite his smarts, isn't above getting things wrong and making mistakes. True, the Stephenson trait of the ending being more of a stopping point rather than a true finale is here too, but in this shorter work, it's less of an issue. I think large doorstopper novels create the expectation of a Lord of the Rings style finale, but here, it's less frustrating.
It's hard to believe this book was written in 1988. Unlike many, many works that are set in their times, this doesn't feel dated, but it also doesn't feel removed from time.
I loved the plot and the protagonist. As an ecologically minded person and an ethical vegetarian, I'm used to seeing my archetype rendered in fiction as either an eco-terrorist villain, a wimp, or an otherwise clueless treehugger type deserving of only scorn. The fact that protagonist Sangamon Taylor is a smart, funny, asskicking type of eco-activist was a genuine delight and I desperately wish this was a character that Stephenson wrote a sequel on. Ah well, maybe some day!
All the traits that Stephenson would earn his bones on are present here; the whip-smart discussions about interesting scientific topics, an incredibly intelligent and skilled protagonist who, despite his smarts, isn't above getting things wrong and making mistakes. True, the Stephenson trait of the ending being more of a stopping point rather than a true finale is here too, but in this shorter work, it's less of an issue. I think large doorstopper novels create the expectation of a Lord of the Rings style finale, but here, it's less frustrating.
It's hard to believe this book was written in 1988. Unlike many, many works that are set in their times, this doesn't feel dated, but it also doesn't feel removed from time.
I loved the plot and the protagonist. As an ecologically minded person and an ethical vegetarian, I'm used to seeing my archetype rendered in fiction as either an eco-terrorist villain, a wimp, or an otherwise clueless treehugger type deserving of only scorn. The fact that protagonist Sangamon Taylor is a smart, funny, asskicking type of eco-activist was a genuine delight and I desperately wish this was a character that Stephenson wrote a sequel on. Ah well, maybe some day!
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