As he did in Snow Crash, Neal Stephenson once again constructs a bizarre dystopian world composed of an eclectic combination of future technologies and ancient traditions and uses it as the backdrop to tell a unique story. At its core this is a coming of age tale about a young girl named Nell who comes to possess a very special book known as the Young Lady's Illustrated Primer. This book is an engineering marvel that is fully interactive and capable of customizing itself to match its reader in order to prepare them for the challenges they will face on their journey to adulthood. In Nell's case the book ultimately winds up raising her in place of her parents and it enables her to survive amid the chaos that eventually comes her way from the unpredictable society around her.

Despite the wondrous technologies present in this future, like matter compilers capable of creating almost anything and cities with their own nanite based immune systems in the air, it is the Primer that takes center stage in the story.  Stephenson uses it to explore the role that technology could play in raising children in the future and the potential impact that would have on society.  You should know going in that this book ends abruptly and one is left to draw their own conclusions as to the ultimate impact on society caused by the Primer. if you want a nice ending where all the loose ends are tied up then this book is not for you. However, if you like the weird technological societies that come from the mind of Neal Stephenson then I would suggest you pick this one up and draw your own conclusions about the meaning of the ending.

Jennifer Wiltsie did a decent job narrating the audiobook and her voice was an excellent fit for the young female protagonist Nell.