Although not as good as his "Mars" trilogy (each of which won either a Hugo or Nebula Award), still a very good book. Stylistically, with its use of intertextual excerpts and lists, the book reminded me of John Brunner's "Stand on Zanzibar" (and, as it turns out, Robinson decided to use this approach after writing an introduction to a reprint of that book, and then John Dos Passos' "USA" trilogy, which Robinson says invented the format). While it requires careful attention from the reader, ultimately this device works to provide both the historical setting for the story and an insight into one of the important plot lines--the development of quantum computers. As with Robinson's other work, the scientific grounding is either solidly based in reality or indistinguishable from reality, with plausible extrapolation of future discoveries. Well worth reading.