Cryptonomicon and over 360,000 other books are available for Amazon Kindle – Amazon’s new wireless reading device. Learn more

 

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
 
Express Checkout with PayPhrase
What's this? | Create PayPhrase
More Buying Choices
117 used & new from $0.66
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
   
Cryptonomicon
 
 
Share your own customer images
Search inside this book
Start reading Cryptonomicon on your Kindle in under a minute.

Don’t have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here.
 
  

Cryptonomicon (Mass Market Paperback)

~ (Author) "IS THE BEST THAT CORPORAL BOBBY SHAFTOE CAN do on short notice-he's standing on the running board, gripping his Springfield with one hand and the..." (more)
Key Phrases: special security zone, stupendous badass, business foray, Goto Dengo, Bobby Shaftoe, The General (more...)
4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (853 customer reviews)
Price: $8.99 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
  Special Offers Available
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.

Want it delivered Tuesday, November 24? Choose One-Day Shipping at checkout. Details
32 new from $5.18 82 used from $0.66 3 collectible from $10.00

Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
  Kindle Edition, May 6, 2003 $8.99 -- --
  Hardcover, April 30, 1999 -- $21.95 $0.94
  Paperback, May 31, 2000 $12.23 $1.01 $0.01
  Mass Market Paperback, October 31, 2002 $8.99 $5.18 $0.66
  Audio, Cassette, Abridged, Audiobook -- $39.38 $13.30
  Audio, Download Offsite Link $16.78 or less with new Audible membership
Neal Stephenson
More from this Author
Discover our featured science fiction titles by Neal Stephenson.

Frequently Bought Together

Cryptonomicon + Snow Crash (Bantam Spectra Book) + Anathem
Price For All Three: $27.18

Show availability and shipping details

  • This item: Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

  • Snow Crash (Bantam Spectra Book) by Neal Stephenson

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

  • Anathem by Neal Stephenson

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

Special Offers and Product Promotions

  • This item is eligible for our 4-for-3 promotion. Eligible products include select Books, Single Copy Magazines, and Home & Garden items. Buy any 4 eligible items and get the lowest-priced item free. Here's how (restrictions apply)
  • Sci-Fi Sale Extravaganza: Over 600 Sci-Fi movies & TV shows are now on sale as part of our Sci-Fi Sale Extravaganza. Sale ends November 23. Shop now.

  • Over a hundred thousand items are eligible for our 4-for-3 promotion. How do I find more eligible items?

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Snow Crash (Bantam Spectra Book)

Snow Crash (Bantam Spectra Book)

by Neal Stephenson
4.1 out of 5 stars (574)  $10.20
Quicksilver (The Baroque Cycle, Vol. 1)

Quicksilver (The Baroque Cycle, Vol. 1)

by Neal Stephenson
3.4 out of 5 stars (330)  $6.14
The System of the World (The Baroque Cycle, Vol. 3)

The System of the World (The Baroque Cycle, Vol. 3)

by Neal Stephenson
4.4 out of 5 stars (67)  $10.87
The Confusion (The Baroque Cycle, Vol. 2)

The Confusion (The Baroque Cycle, Vol. 2)

by Neal Stephenson
4.4 out of 5 stars (69)  $12.44
The Diamond Age: Or, a Young Lady's Illustrated Primer (Bantam Spectra Book)

The Diamond Age: Or, a Young Lady's Illustrated Primer (Bantam Spectra Book)

by Neal Stephenson
4.2 out of 5 stars (348)  $10.20
› Explore similar items

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Neal Stephenson enjoys cult status among science fiction fans and techie types thanks to Snow Crash, which so completely redefined conventional notions of the high-tech future that it became a self-fulfilling prophecy. But if his cyberpunk classic was big, Cryptonomicon is huge... gargantuan... massive, not just in size (a hefty 918 pages including appendices) but in scope and appeal. It's the hip, readable heir to Gravity's Rainbow and the Illuminatus trilogy. And it's only the first of a proposed series--for more information, read our interview with Stephenson.

Cryptonomicon zooms all over the world, careening conspiratorially back and forth between two time periods--World War II and the present. Our 1940s heroes are the brilliant mathematician Lawrence Waterhouse, cryptanalyst extraordinaire, and gung ho, morphine-addicted marine Bobby Shaftoe. They're part of Detachment 2702, an Allied group trying to break Axis communication codes while simultaneously preventing the enemy from figuring out that their codes have been broken. Their job boils down to layer upon layer of deception. Dr. Alan Turing is also a member of 2702, and he explains the unit's strange workings to Waterhouse. "When we want to sink a convoy, we send out an observation plane first.... Of course, to observe is not its real duty--we already know exactly where the convoy is. Its real duty is to be observed.... Then, when we come round and sink them, the Germans will not find it suspicious."

All of this secrecy resonates in the present-day story line, in which the grandchildren of the WWII heroes--inimitable programming geek Randy Waterhouse and the lovely and powerful Amy Shaftoe--team up to help create an offshore data haven in Southeast Asia and maybe uncover some gold once destined for Nazi coffers. To top off the paranoiac tone of the book, the mysterious Enoch Root, key member of Detachment 2702 and the Societas Eruditorum, pops up with an unbreakable encryption scheme left over from WWII to befuddle the 1990s protagonists with conspiratorial ties.

Cryptonomicon is vintage Stephenson from start to finish: short on plot, but long on detail so precise it's exhausting. Every page has a math problem, a quotable in-joke, an amazing idea, or a bit of sharp prose. Cryptonomicon is also packed with truly weird characters, funky tech, and crypto--all the crypto you'll ever need, in fact, not to mention all the computer jargon of the moment. A word to the wise: if you read this book in one sitting, you may die of information overload (and starvation). --Therese Littleton --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.



From Library Journal

Computer expert Randy Waterhouse spearheads a movement to create a safe haven for data in a world where information equals power and big business and government seek to control the flow of knowledge. His ambitions collide with a top-secret conspiracy with links to the encryption wars of World War II and his grandfather's work in preventing the Nazis from discovering that the Allies had cracked their supposedly unbreakable Enigma code. The author of Snow Crash (LJ 4/1/92) focuses his eclectic vision on a story of epic proportions, encompassing both the beginnings of information technology in the 1940s and the blossoming of the present cybertech revolution. Stephenson's freewheeling prose and ironic voice lend a sense of familiarity to a story that transcends the genre and demands a wide readership among fans of technothrillers as well as a general audience. Highly recommended.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

  • Mass Market Paperback: 1168 pages
  • Publisher: Avon; later printing edition (November 5, 2002)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0060512806
  • ISBN-13: 978-0060512804
  • Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.1 x 2 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (853 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #4,969 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

    #3 in  Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Authors, A-Z > ( S ) > Stephenson, Neal
    #17 in  Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Science Fiction > High Tech

    •  Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

More About the Author

Neal Stephenson
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

› Visit Amazon's Neal Stephenson Page
Front Cover | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:
Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
IS THE BEST THAT CORPORAL BOBBY SHAFTOE CAN do on short notice-he's standing on the running board, gripping his Springfield with one hand and the rearview mirror with the other, so counting the syllables on his fingers is out of the question. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
special security zone, stupendous badass, business foray, grand wazir, substitution alphabet, data haven
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Goto Dengo, Bobby Shaftoe, The General, Enoch Root, Doug Shaftoe, Attorney Alejandro, Captain Noda, Tom Howard, Bletchley Park, Epiphyte Corp, Lawrence Pritchard Waterhouse, Andrew Loeb, New Guinea, John Cantrell, Sergeant Shaftoe, Lieutenant Mori, Aunt Nina, Uncle Red, Manila Bay, Yours Truly, Rudolf von Hacklheber, Lieutenant Monkberg, Secret Admirers, Lake Yamamoto, Tojo River
New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats
Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 10 books:
See all 10 books this book cites

Books on Related Topics (learn more)
 
Quicksilver by Neal Stephenson
 

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Cryptonomicon
80% buy the item featured on this page:
Cryptonomicon 4.1 out of 5 stars (853)
$8.99
Snow Crash (Bantam Spectra Book)
7% buy
Snow Crash (Bantam Spectra Book) 4.1 out of 5 stars (574)
$10.20
Quicksilver (The Baroque Cycle, Vol. 1)
6% buy
Quicksilver (The Baroque Cycle, Vol. 1) 3.4 out of 5 stars (330)
$6.14
Anathem
5% buy
Anathem 3.9 out of 5 stars (228)
$7.99
Explore similar items

Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
 
(75)
(65)
(60)
(57)
(37)
(36)
(27)
(15)
(9)
(8)
Agree with these tags?
See all 67 tags...

Your tags: Add your first tag
 
See most popular tags
 

Customer Reviews

853 Reviews
5 star:
 (456)
4 star:
 (217)
3 star:
 (86)
2 star:
 (38)
1 star:
 (56)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.1 out of 5 stars (853 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
184 of 198 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Hacker's delight - others will enjoy it too, February 15, 2000
By Michael Nahas (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: Cryptonomicon (Hardcover)
Stephenson's writing style is unique: flippant, indulgent and fun. He doesn't mind pausing for 2 or even 5 pages to set up the perfect metaphor. You won't see a highly delinieated plot but a playful flow from scene to scene through the book. I found the characters interesting, the story worthwhile, and the writing amazing.

I love it whole heartedly, but I'm a Computer Scientist. I understand the programs, the math, and the cryptography which comes up from time to time. People totally unfamiliar with it will find these sections boring, possibly pompous. I think you can skip over these without losing the story.

Even though the writing style is usually light-hearted, Stephenson does tackle big topics. A major focus is on the role of money in a society. He also looks at anticipation being more enjoyable than the actual event, especially in relationships.

If you're a hacker - buy it without thought. If you're not a hacker - stop by a brick-and-mortar store, read a few pages, and, if you like what you see, take a chance. Truly, I can't think of a book I enjoyed more. Besides, if you read it you'll find out what the phrase "the most cigarettes" means. :)

Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
111 of 122 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars A joy to read. . ., August 7, 2002
By Nathan Blumenfeld "mastadge" (Wilmington, DE United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   
This review is from: Cryptonomicon (Hardcover)
Going in to CRYPTONOMICON, I had absolutely no idea what to expect. I'd never read anything by Neal Stephenson, nor had I read any blurbs or reviews of the book. However, it had appeared on enough "Best Book" lists that I decided to give it a try. And boy am I glad I did.

This novel is fun, huge, funny, rambling, witty, and sprawling. It is clever, engaging, and well-paced. It is full of quirky, eccentric, immensely likeable characters, crazy, interesting ideas, and amusing, often hilarious, looks at various situations including, but not limited to, mathematics, life, how to eat Cap'n Crunch properly, the purpose of beards, and well, just about anything else you can think of. Obviously, then, this book is not for everyone. Those who like tight, meticulously pared-down straightforward stories may not be able to get into this one.

For me, though, as you may have guessed from the title of the review, this book was an absolute joy to read. The books chapters cycled between four main characters, and every time I finished a chapter I found myself in an awkward position: I didn't want to go on, because I wanted to keep reading about the character I'd been following. However, by the end of the first paragraph of the next chapter, I'd be feeling the same way about the next character in the cycle. It was an odd feeling, and a tribute to the skill with which Stephenson created these characters that each of them was so completely engaging.

In addition to the main characters, the settings and situations were vivid and well-drawn. Despite this books immensity and its tendency to ramble at length about inanity, it never got boring, and always retained its charm. Stephenson provides us with a very amusing outlook on life.

However, this book is not without flaws, the two biggest of which have been noted in previous reviews:

1) Women. There are no really well-developed female characters. Most of the women have virtually no "screen time" at all, and the one who does have quite a bit of time is not fully realized as a character. It would have been very helpful to have gotten inside her head once in a while.

2) The ending. This book kind of just ends, without resolving properly. It feels like it just cuts off, and that was kind of unsatisfactory. Randy's story deserved at least another chapter or an epilogue of some sort to tie-up the plot. Alas, Stephenson, at the end, couldn't deliver.

So, as I've said, this book is delightfully readable, and if not for the sudden ending, would easily have garnered a 5/5 rating. I'm definitely looking forward to the next CRYPTONOMICON book (which, if I'm not mistaken, is intended to stand alone; it will not be a sequel, per se).

Comment Comments (4) | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Not Just For Cyberpunk Fans, April 29, 2000
This review is from: Cryptonomicon (Hardcover)
Neal Stephenson's latest book, Cryptonomicon, will appeal to a wider fan base that his previous novels. Having read all of Stephenson's previous novels (with the exception of the elusive The Big U) I was surprised to find this book lacking in ultra-futuristic technology, and presented as more of a straight war story/business suspense novel. As usual, Stephenson's character development and prose is amazing, and if you work in high-tech or mathematics you will instantly realize how well Stephenson knows the personalities of these people. As with Snow Crash, the book takes a while to get up to speed, but once it does you'll find yourself not wanting to put it down. As other reviewers have mentioned, there are many potentionally confusing plot twists, so the reader must pay close attention at times or risk getting lost. Stephenson also gives a thorough grounding in the mathematics of cryptography, although the pages of formulas and explanations can thankfully be skimmed by the mathematically-challenged (like myself) without losing the story. The book also doesn't fall apart towards the end as many thought Snow Crash did - in fact, at one point you will smack your forehead when you realize how everything fits together, and you can't wait to see how it ends. Overall, an excellent read.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)


Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Great historical fiction
Although I'm a computer engineer the part of the book that I found most interesting was the historical part. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Amber fan

5.0 out of 5 stars qwerty = azerty [q, 1^5.3, @ zeta 12]/.15^&
Cryptonomicon is a boys own ripping tale for nerds. Beloved of math geeks, and fantasy hard guys, this tells the multigenerational story of the do-something Shafetoes (USMC) and... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Bachelier

4.0 out of 5 stars Cryptonomicon
Very well written. Moved a little slow at times, but the rest of it more than made up for it. One of the funniest books I have ever read.
Published 3 months ago by J. Champion

4.0 out of 5 stars His best work
This book is largely responsible for my fascination with cryptography now, next to "The Code Book". I lost a lot of sleep for a week or so reading it, but was a little surprised... Read more
Published 3 months ago by John O'hara

4.0 out of 5 stars Good, but frustrating
I started reading Neal Stephenson with Snowcrash - probably the best possible place to start reading Neal Stephenson. Read more
Published 3 months ago by M. Bridges

1.0 out of 5 stars Boring
I was bored all the way through but kept thinking it would get better with all the reviews. Once I was 3/4 of the way through I figured well the ending must be amazing. Read more
Published 3 months ago by DS Troutman

5.0 out of 5 stars WWII Epic Meets Modern Techno-Thriller
Publshed in 1999, Stephenson's military/suspense epic of codes and codebreaking tells two parallel stories, one set during World War II, and the other in the present (when the... Read more
Published 4 months ago by R. Silva

2.0 out of 5 stars Appallingly terrible. No cohesion.
I'm shocked by the critical acclaim this book received in the sci-fi category but I suppose even a turd can float. Two stars is really pushing it. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Coco

1.0 out of 5 stars A thousand yawns for nine bucks.
I decided to stop reading this novel at page 100, and now use it as a paperweight. It's the only way I can rationalize paying nine bucks for one of the most tedious, overwritten... Read more
Published 4 months ago by T. Cheney

5.0 out of 5 stars 5 Stars for Cryptonomicon
The Cryptonomicon is a story told in two parts. Each part separated by history. These two parts are developed separately but intertwined within the story, each part supplying a... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Andy F

Only search this product's reviews


Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   

Product Information from the Amapedia Community

Beta (What's this?)

Cryptonomicon

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION: Book. -TheDr

(Report this)
Created on Nov 25, 2005, last edited on Nov 26, 2005.

› Explore and Edit at Amapedia.com opens new browser window


Look for Similar Items by Category

Look for Similar Items by Subject

Search Books by subject:













i.e., each book must be in subject 1 AND subject 2 AND ...
 

Feedback

If you need help or have a question for Customer Service, contact us.
 Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
Is there any other feedback you would like to provide?

Your comments can help make our site better for everyone.


Your Recent History

 (What's this?)

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.