"Anathem," the latest invention by the "New York Times" bestselling
author of "Cryptonomicon" and "The Baroque Cycle," is a magnificent
creation: a work of great scope, intelligence, and imagination that
ushers readers into a recognizable--yet strangely inverted--world.
Fraa Erasmas is a young avout living in the Concent of Saunt
Edhar, a sanctuary for mathematicians, scientists, and
philosophers, protected from the corrupting influences of the
outside "saecular" world by ancient stone, honored traditions, and
complex rituals. Over the centuries, cities and governments have
risen and fallen beyond the concent's walls. Three times during
history's darkest epochs violence born of superstition and
ignorance has invaded and devastated the cloistered mathic
community. Yet the avout have always managed to adapt in the wake
of catastrophe, becoming out of necessity even more austere and
less dependent on technology and material things. And Erasmas has
no fear of the outside--the Extramuros--for the last of the
terrible times was long, long ago.
Now, in celebration of the week-long, once-in-a-decade rite of
Apert, the fraas and suurs prepare to venture beyond the concent's
gates--at the same time opening them wide to welcome the curious
"extras" in. During his first Apert as a fraa, Erasmas eagerly
anticipates reconnecting with the landmarks and family he hasn't
seen since he was "collected." But before the week is out, both the
existence he abandoned and the one he embraced will stand poised on
the brink of cataclysmic change.
Powerful unforeseen forces jeopardize the peaceful stability of
mathic life and the established ennui of the Extramuros--a threat
that only an unsteadyalliance of saecular and avout can oppose--as,
one by one, Erasmas and his colleagues, teachers, and friends are
summoned forth from the safety of the concent in hopes of warding
off global disaster. Suddenly burdened with a staggering
responsibility, Erasmas finds himself a major player in a drama
that will determine the future of his world--as he sets out on an
extraordinary odyssey that will carry him to the most dangerous,
inhospitable corners of the planet . . . and beyond.
General
Imprint: |
HarperCollinsPublishers
|
Country of origin: |
United States |
Release date: |
August 2009 |
First published: |
August 2009 |
Authors: |
Neal Stephenson
|
Dimensions: |
170 x 104 x 43mm (L x W x T) |
Format: |
Paperback - Mass market
|
Pages: |
981 |
ISBN-13: |
978-0-06-147410-1 |
Categories: |
Books >
Fiction >
General & literary fiction >
Modern fiction
|
LSN: |
0-06-147410-X |
Barcode: |
9780061474101 |
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