Reviews and Comments

Almost leisurely until the not-intensity-but-something-like-it slams into you. Like a mirror rushing towards you but it's a mirror so you don't really see it coming and it hits you and shatters and you're left stunned, looking through broken reflections to the beyond, wondering where to go from here.

The kind of book you need take a long walk after reading, or perhaps a good cry (though you're not really sure why).

Science fiction like only Becky Chambers does it.

It started a little slow, but about a third way through the story really took off and it became hard to put down.

Enjoyed the plot (techno-thriller) but I found everything else (characters, settings, etc) very underdeveloped and skeletal. People and relationships seemed very flat and one-dimensional, so the story didn't have much depth. The plot is interesting and topical, and certainly open to more depth but Doctorow doesn't go there.

Not being a tech or finance person I could have used a bit more explanatory handholding at points to better grasp the implications of certain events in the story - I had to set aside some questions I had and just go with the flow.

I very much appreciate Doctorow's social media and blog posts, but this was the first time reading his longer works. There was enough here to try another one, but if this is typical of his style it just might not be my type.

Compelling story of 4 intertwined lives from WWII through the decades that follow. Unique narrative voice. Handles well both the raw tragedy of the Holocaust and the defiant acts heroism and humanity. A poignant mix of family dynamics, cultural belonging, and the ways people respond to the tragedy of war.