The Reading Room

Cryptonomicon

Neal Stephenson

Published: 2000

As the old saying goes, never judge a book by its cover (especially if it is actually a book). On the face of it Cryptonomicon looks like a spontaneous airport purchase of a bog-standard trashy but fun thriller. The provenance of its recommendation suggested otherwise. The story was a favourite of the Paypal founding mafia as revealed in Peter Thiel’s book Zero to One (see my review here) and no doubt amongst the broader tech community during the height of the dotcom bubble when it was published.
Set across two timelines – World War II and the present day (late 1990s) there is plenty of thrilling action based on historic events as indicated by the explosion graphic on the cover. This action is however a backdrop to the more technically inclined protagonists who were called upon to make a difference during the conflict. The main characters rub shoulders with fictional representations of historical figures. For instance Lawrence Pritchard is an American mathematics prodigy who works alongside Alan Turing whilst General Macarthur, Herman Goring and Admiral Yamamoto feature amongst others. There are likeable and detestable characters on both the Axis and Allied sides alongside unlikely friendships such as Sgt Bobby Shaftoe of the US Marines and Goto Dengo a Lieutenant in the Imperial Japanese Army.
Science-fiction is often viewed as a precursor to science-fact and the modern timeline centres around Randy Pritchard (Lawrence’s grandson) and his efforts to set up a data haven in the Pacific as a necessary precursor to establish Government-free digital money or digital gold.
Within the story, the Cryptonomicon has nothing to do with currencies but is a compendium of how to decrypt enemy codes. Once the hard work is done, the book enlightens on the extraordinary lengths the Allies went to ensure that the Axis wasn’t aware that Enigma and Purple had been cracked.
The story is exceptional, moving, and in places very humorous. Stephenson uses the narrative to consider a confluence of subject matters ranging from history (for instance what may have the Nazis and Japanese done with all that gold?), mathematics, cultural traditions, the distinction between free markets and corporatism, strategy (the combination of guile and bravery to overcome raw aggression), and the intersection of technology and philosophy. The chapter on the merits of Athena relative to the broader ancient Greek mythological deity universe is particularly worth waiting for.
One can imagine that the main challenge with writing lengthy novels with multiple characters and interconnecting plots and subplots is avoiding anti-climax. The resolution of Cryptonomicon when both storylines ultimately collide is both satisfying and stimulating. Whilst it has proven difficult to write this review without revealing too much, I hope it has gotten across how excellent the book is. On can see why it appealed to the Paypal mafia amongst others who were no doubt not as quick to judge it by its cover like I was.

Amul Pandya
January 2021