I finished Cryptonomicon today. As with most long books that I've really enjoyed, I was sad to be done with it--the characters had become part of my daily life, since I progressed through the book slowly by reading on the bus ride to and from work, a few pages each way. Throughout the experience of reading it, I was struck more than once by the skillful way the characters intertwined, even (especially) across three generations and all the way around the world. The central character of the modern plot line is the grandson of one of the principals of the '40s plotline, and their stories converge as the book progresses, with parts of the puzzle falling into place up until the last few pages. I grew fond of Stephenson's writing style (spending a couple pages at least on the particular way in which one of the characters eats his Cap'n Crunch), though at times I was so engrossed in the plot that I was reading so fast I hardly noticed the words.

I really liked this book a ton. I've been told to pick up Quicksilver next, as it is a sort of 'prequel' to Cryptonomicon. I will, though there are quite a few books in line, and our bulging bookshelves already don't have room for Cryptonomicon's 900+ page hardcover.