It’s not really taking me forever – but I was confused by the mass market paperback repackaging of this book. Confusingly, the mass market edition (think “pocket size” though that would be some pocket) is titled “Quicksilver, vol 1” just like the “trade paperback” edition – except the full sized trade paperback contains books 1-3 whereas the mass market edition contains only book 1 – and “vol 2” is being sold as “King of the Vagabonds”. Do yourself a favor and spring for the full sized “trade paperback” or better yet, buy a used hardback.

I’m halfway through “book 2 of vol 1” and I’m loving the story. Stephenson does a great job with the material he’s bitten off and his characters are portrayed in ways that are both colorful and generally accurate (I studied this period of English as a history grad student in England).

I’ve already bought “The Confusion” and I’m looking forward to losing a couple months to Stephenson’s story.

I just finished this book and enjoyed it greatly. Now for volume II.

I’ve now completed the first two sections and am on the third and final one. I really hated the end of the second section but, not to give too much away, I had grown somewhat attached to the characters. Hopefully the third section will end better.

I’m now about 415 pages it and it is only getting better. Half-Cocked Jack Shaftoe is a very enjoyable chatacter though at times somewhat implausable.

For all the flack this book gets, I am 220 pages in and find it quite enjoyable. Of course Neal Stephenson’s writing style is a bit dense and filled with trivia. However I have found this book, so far, to be an easier read than Cryptonomican was.

I had a tough time getting through this. And now I’m having an even tougher time with the second volume. There’s parts of it that are really interesting, but there’s also a shocking amount of unnecessary, irrelevant, uninteresting detail. Overall, I’d recommend it to people who enjoyed his other work, or who are really into historical fiction.

Didn’t get through it. Tiresome and showoff-ish.

I’m not really reading this edition, but allconsuming doesn’t know about ISBN:0-09-941068-0

Got it from the pub lib just before our week’s holiday in Williamsburg! Halfway through and liking it.

This is a huge book, and slow, complete with lengthy flashbacks and staggering amounts of detail. I’ve been reading it a section at a time, which means it’s going to take me forever to finish, but I’m enjoying taking my time; there’s a lot to digest.

I really want Stephenson to start writing real history books. I find his style to be very engaging, and if my any of my textbooks were this good, I would have done a lot better in school.