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Quicksilver (The Baroque Cycle, Vol. 1)
 
 
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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In Quicksilver, the first volume of the "Baroque Cycle," Neal Stephenson launches his most ambitious work to date. The novel, divided into three books, opens in 1713 with the ageless Enoch Root seeking Daniel Waterhouse on the campus of what passes for MIT in eighteenth-century Massachusetts. Daniel, Enoch's message conveys, is key to resolving an explosive scientific battle of preeminence between Isaac Newton and Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz over the development of calculus. As Daniel returns to London aboard the Minerva, readers are catapulted back half a century to recall his years at Cambridge with young Isaac. Daniel is a perfect historical witness. Privy to Robert Hooke's early drawings of microscope images and with associates among the English nobility, religious radicals, and the Royal Society, he also befriends Samuel Pepys, risks a cup of coffee, and enjoys a lecture on Belgian waffles and cleavage-—all before the year 1700.

In the second book, Stephenson introduces Jack Shaftoe and Eliza. "Half-Cocked" Jack (also know as the "King of the Vagabonds") recovers the English Eliza from a Turkish harem. Fleeing the siege of Vienna, the two journey across Europe driven by Eliza's lust for fame, fortune, and nobility. Gradually, their circle intertwines with that of Daniel in the third book of the novel.

The book courses with Stephenson's scholarship but is rarely bogged down in its historical detail. Stephenson is especially impressive in his ability to represent dialogue over the evolving worldview of seventeenth-century scientists and enliven the most abstruse explanation of theory. Though replete with science, the novel is as much about the complex struggles for political ascendancy and the workings of financial markets. Further, the novel's literary ambitions match its physical size. Stephenson narrates through epistolary chapters, fragments of plays and poems, journal entries, maps, drawings, genealogic tables, and copious contemporary epigrams. But, caught in this richness, the prose is occasionally neglected and wants editing. Further, anticipating a cycle, the book does not provide a satisfying conclusion to its 900 pages. These are minor quibbles, though. Stephenson has matched ambition to execution, and his faithful, durable readers will be both entertained and richly rewarded with a practicum in Baroque science, cypher, culture, and politics. --Patrick O'Kelley



From Publishers Weekly

Stephenson's very long historical novel, the first volume of a projected trilogy, finds Enoch Root, the Wandering Jew/alchemist from 1999's Cryptonomicon, arriving in 1713 Boston to collect Daniel Waterhouse and take him back to Europe. Waterhouse, an experimenter in early computational systems and an old pal of Isaac Newton, is needed to mediate the fight for precedence between Newton and scientist and philosopher Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, both of whom independently invented the calculus. Their escalating feud threatens to revert science to pre-empirical times. Root believes Waterhouse, as a close friend to both mathematicians, has the ability to calm the neurotic Newton's nerves and make peace with Leibniz. As Waterhouse sails back to Europe (and eludes capture by the pirate Blackbeard), he reminisces about Newton and the birth of England's scientific revolution during the 1600s. While the Waterhouse story line lets readers see luminaries like Robert Hooke and Isaac Newton at work, a concurrent plot line follows vagabond Jack Shaftoe (an ancestor of a Cryptonomicon character, as is Waterhouse), on his journey across 17th-century continental Europe. Jack meets Eliza, a young English woman who has escaped from a Turkish harem, where she spent her teenage years. The resourceful Eliza eventually rises and achieves revenge against the slave merchant who sold her to the Turks. Stephenson, once best known for his techno-geek SF novel Snow Crash, skillfully reimagines empiricists Newton, Hooke and Leibniz, and creatively retells the birth of the scientific revolution. He has a strong feel for history and a knack for bringing settings to life. Expect high interest in this title, as much for its size and ambition, which make it a publishing event, as for its sales potential-which is high.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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Product Details

  • Hardcover: 944 pages
  • Publisher: William Morrow; 1st edition (September 23, 2003)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0380977427
  • ISBN-13: 978-0380977420
  • Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 5.9 x 2.2 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 3.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (330 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #39,376 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Neal Stephenson
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Front Cover | Front Flap | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Flap | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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First Sentence:
ENOCH ROUNDS THE CORNER JUST as the executioner raises the noose above the woman's head. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
tangents paper, rarefying engine, cabinet noir
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Royal Society, Daniel Waterhouse, Roger Comstock, Duke of Monmouth, Duke of York, Isaac Newton, William of Orange, Charing Cross, Earl of Upnor, King Charles, Sir Winston, Jack Ketch, King Looie, Prince of Orange, Civil War, King Louis, Bob Shaftoe, Herr Geidel, Sir Richard, Plague Year, God's Wounds, Dutch Republic, Gresham's College, King of England, Trinity College
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Quicksilver (The Baroque Cycle, Vol. 1)
79% buy the item featured on this page:
Quicksilver (The Baroque Cycle, Vol. 1) 3.4 out of 5 stars (330)
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Anathem
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Anathem 3.9 out of 5 stars (228)
$7.99
The System of the World: Volume Three of the Baroque Cycle (P.S.)
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The System of the World: Volume Three of the Baroque Cycle (P.S.) 4.4 out of 5 stars (67)
The Confusion (The Baroque Cycle, Vol. 2)
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The Confusion (The Baroque Cycle, Vol. 2) 4.4 out of 5 stars (69)
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330 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
3.4 out of 5 stars (330 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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305 of 323 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars A long, entertaining journey... see if it's for you!, January 6, 2004
I had a fantastic time reading Stephenson's latest book. Yes, I found it an extremely long read, but every page contained a wonderful nugget which made the journey worth the effort.

Here are two examples of Stephenson's unique ability to whip up a powerful brew of humor, science, and history:

"Penn did not take his gaze away from the window, but squinted as if trying to hold back a mighty volume of flatulence, and shifted his focal point to a thousand miles in the distance. But this was coastal Holland and there was nothing out that window save the Curvature of the World"

and...

"... I am seated near a window that looks out over a canal, and two gondoliers, who nearly collided a minute ago, are screaming murderous threats at each other... The Venetians have even given it a name: 'Canal Rage'."

Which isn't to say that the book doesn't have its share of flaws - I'll talk about the two major ones here. First, if you've read Stephenson before, you are undoubtedly aware of his tendency to use 1000 words to do where 100 would have worked just fine. So, sometimes you begin to think "where was the editor?", but most of the time he is able to pull all the threads (long as they are) together into a cohesive, compelling whole. But overall, the extreme length ends up being a plus.

The other major flaw stems from Stephenson's seemingly bottomless reservoir of creativity: this book contains not one, not two, but three lead characters. But, you say, you can't have more than one lead character, no? Exactly! All three main characters are compelling in their own way, and you want to keep watching each one grow and change. As was the case with Cryptonomicon, Stephenson could easily have written an entire book just about the character Shaftoe.

The Big Question: should you invest the time to read this book (don't worry about the dollar cost - it's inconsequential relative the number of hours you'll invest reading it)? If your answer to any of the following questions is "yes", give it a try:

1) You've read a work by Umberto Ecco and liked it
2) You enjoyed physics class in high school or college
3) You can code
4) You dig binary
5) You always wondered who Newton, Hooke, and Leibniz really were
6) You see tangents as but the arcs of greater circles

Go ahead, take the plunge into QuickSilver!

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43 of 44 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Another fascinating piece of "math fiction" from Stephenson, November 30, 2003
By Molly Johnson (Eastsound, WA 98245) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
I thoroughly enjoyed the book once I accepted that it is primarily about systems and concepts, not people and events. I call it "math fiction" (as opposed to science fiction). Some of the systems he writes about are: the logic behind all those beheadings and imprisonments, the reasons for seemingly pointless invasions and alliances, Dutch vs. French business practices and why Amsterdam businessmen were so rich, the difference between different religious factions in England, motivations behind French court etiquette, why fashion exists, how to make hangings less painful, etc. He continually asks why and how rather than who what when, and in that sense he gives a math perspective to history.

Nowhere else have I read such careful (and enlightening) descriptions of capitalist systems such as money-minting, banks, stock exchanges, and the selling and transport of goods. Stephenson shares with us not just the intrigues and excesses of the nobility of 17th century Europe but also his analysis of the systems that made all that wealth (and war) possible.

More importantly, he reveals the day-to-day work of Royal Society scientists. In describing the failed experiments, fires, smells, persecutions, and other dramas of their quest for knowledge he gives a human face to the development of science. And he shows how one might think mathematically and scientifically to solve problems in the real world.

Is it great fiction? No. Stephenson needs editing, but no one is capable of quite keeping up with him enough to dare shorten what he has to say. Is he an interesting author? Absolutely! Think of the book as an extended, wide-ranging dinner conversation. You won't get a word in edgewise, but exhausted as you are at the end, you'll be up all night thinking.

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38 of 40 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Re-packaged as an eight-volume set, February 21, 2006
By David M. Maymudes (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: Quicksilver: The Baroque Cycle #1 (Mass Market Paperback)
Beware, this edition only contains one third of the original first volume of the Baroque Cycle. Spend an extra few dollars and get three times as many words!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Simultaneously Amazing and Burdesome
Finally finished it. In many ways this book was amazing and in others it was burdensome.

I have to say that it took me longer than usual to finish this book, and I am... Read more
Published 11 days ago by Michael P Mccullough

2.0 out of 5 stars Stephenson's departure from the path to greatness begins here
Neal Stephenson is packing serious talent and smarts, as 99% of Cryptonomicon readers will surely agree. Read more
Published 23 days ago by Joseph The 43rd

5.0 out of 5 stars Thought Provoking and Entertaining
I just finished reading Quicksilver for the second time, and it was no less interesting, absorbing, and amusing today than when I first read it five years ago. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Captain Dave

5.0 out of 5 stars Astoundingly great book!
I won't go into the plot-- it's a swashbuckling, world-trekking, panoramic tale with way too much going on to summarize. Read more
Published 2 months ago by S. Goodwin

5.0 out of 5 stars One For The Desert Island
Quicksilver is the start of the three volume Baroque cycle, a long complex and entertaining historical fiction set in the 17th century that is unlike any book I have ever read... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Earthling

4.0 out of 5 stars Mercurial Mayhem
I read this book inadvertently. Let me explain. I was looking for something to read and found it on my husband's nightstand. Read more
Published 3 months ago by A reader

5.0 out of 5 stars Enlightening
I'd intended to give it 4 1/2 stars rather than five for only one reason: This book sat on my shelf for two years or more before I read enough of it to get hooked on the story,... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Randle Brashear

5.0 out of 5 stars Hold on to your hat
The first book of "The Baroque Cycle", a three volume set of novels serving as a prequel to Stephenson's "Cryptonomicon", "Quicksilver" is a wild romp through the 17th and 18th... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Steven P. Tidwell

2.0 out of 5 stars Only for some readers
I couldn't finish this book. I forced myself to finish the first third of the book about Waterhouse and Newton. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Jeremy Casterson

5.0 out of 5 stars Even better on the second reading - It is dense but worth the effort!
Neal Stephenson's Baroque Cycle is one of the most ambitious series of historical fiction in recent years and he does an excellent job of bridging the distance between 17th... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Peter J. Ward

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