The Baroque Cycle

So I finally plowed my way through an awesome 3000 page epic. The series is called The Baroque Cycle, written by Neal Stephenson. I have read many of Neal's books and been delighted by all of them. Even when his witting is not science fiction, it is written for geeks. The Baroque Cycle in this case is set right around the dawn of the 18th century and for the most part employs no science fiction or fantasy except in one very small area. The series is long and I would generally be at a loss to give a good explanation of the series that doesn't devolve into an incoherent rambled retelling of the various plot lines and characters that would do the books no justice. Fortunately, The Weekly Standard has done the work for me with this book review.

I would highly recommend this book, but I am slightly skeptical anyone in the family has the time and will to plow through 3000 pages besides me. If you would like a slightly lighter read by Neal Stephenson (though still weighing in at around 1000 pages), I would highly recommend Cryptonomicon.