margaretefg's review against another edition
3.0
I liked the historical sweep at the beginning of the novel, the whole family set up of how Rong Jinzhen came to be who and where he was, the politics of late 19th and early 20th century China. It gets more difficult as he becomes the main character because he is so distant and the top secret cryptography makes him even more distant, and then it seemed like it should be over for a long time before it actually ended. Reading it was a bit of a decoding process for me, I guess.
lilipls's review
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
andrew61's review against another edition
3.0
What a curious book ! I can't remember where I heard about it but it made for an interesting read although I have to confess by the end I was a bit at a loss as to what had happened.
The first part of the book had a conventional arc as we were introduced to a Chinese dynasty of mathematical geniuses. In late 19th century a member of the Rong family is sent abroad to learn in the US from a master how to learn to interpret dreams, the young man returns to set up a Mathematics university and the reader then learns the family tree that eventually leads to rong Zilai (Jinzhen), the illegitimate offspring of the black sheep of the family. Adopted by a European living in the family compound he is recruited in to the Cryptography part of The Chinese secret service. I enjoyed this narrative section with a host of fascinating characters such as the various ancestors ,the European Mr auslander, the secret agent who recruits Jinzhen 'Zhening the Gimp' , and the double agent maths professor Liseiwicz. The middle section however became very abstract with the exploration of how jinzhen cracks the cypher of opposing state X named PURPLE becomes feted in the regime before cracking under the strain of decoding Cypher BLACK. As I read this part I felt a little lost particularly as the finale becomes the narrator interviewing various individuals about Jinzhen's collapse, the craft of deciphering, and an analysis of his final notebook. Thus where the book in the first 100-150 pages was heading to five star I felt it lost it's way towards the end or perhaps I simply lost my way with it. Overall an interesting read but I won't be hurrying to read more even though this is one of the most popular Chinese authors.
The first part of the book had a conventional arc as we were introduced to a Chinese dynasty of mathematical geniuses. In late 19th century a member of the Rong family is sent abroad to learn in the US from a master how to learn to interpret dreams, the young man returns to set up a Mathematics university and the reader then learns the family tree that eventually leads to rong Zilai (Jinzhen), the illegitimate offspring of the black sheep of the family. Adopted by a European living in the family compound he is recruited in to the Cryptography part of The Chinese secret service. I enjoyed this narrative section with a host of fascinating characters such as the various ancestors ,the European Mr auslander, the secret agent who recruits Jinzhen 'Zhening the Gimp' , and the double agent maths professor Liseiwicz. The middle section however became very abstract with the exploration of how jinzhen cracks the cypher of opposing state X named PURPLE becomes feted in the regime before cracking under the strain of decoding Cypher BLACK. As I read this part I felt a little lost particularly as the finale becomes the narrator interviewing various individuals about Jinzhen's collapse, the craft of deciphering, and an analysis of his final notebook. Thus where the book in the first 100-150 pages was heading to five star I felt it lost it's way towards the end or perhaps I simply lost my way with it. Overall an interesting read but I won't be hurrying to read more even though this is one of the most popular Chinese authors.
jasonfurman's review against another edition
5.0
An excellent Chinese novel, it begins as a multigenerational saga about several generations of mathematicians in a N University in the provincial capital C City, but then goes on to focus on one of them--Rong Jinzhen, the son of "the Killer" (a bad offshoot of the family) and a strange woman. At a young age Jinzhen teaches himself arithmetic and then proceeds rapidly to become a rare genius who can solve his way through any math problem. He begins research with a Polish-born professor at N University but is then taken away to work at the highly secretive cryptography section of of Unit 701. When there he brilliantly cracks a code named "Purple" which was devised by his former Polish-born professor. Cracking Purple is described as a glorious historical achievement, but then their adversaries shift to "Black" which, together with an accidental event, ultimately breaks him and drives him mad.
The story is mostly told by a not fully omniscient narrator with extended passages reported as transcripts from interviews. In the final part of the book we get to hear directly from Jinzhen through one of his notebooks.
Not really an espionage story or a thriller or a love story, this book defies genres but provides a convincing depiction of genius and obsession and a window into slices of the last century in China. It also creates larger than life characters and displays a wide range of sympathies.
The story is mostly told by a not fully omniscient narrator with extended passages reported as transcripts from interviews. In the final part of the book we get to hear directly from Jinzhen through one of his notebooks.
Not really an espionage story or a thriller or a love story, this book defies genres but provides a convincing depiction of genius and obsession and a window into slices of the last century in China. It also creates larger than life characters and displays a wide range of sympathies.
msaari's review
3.0
A curious book. Quite unlike the western standards, which feels fresh. The description had me expecting more of a traditional spy thriller, but instead I was served some kind of psychological study to a mind of a codebreaker.
That is all fine and interesting, but the author did take his time approaching the subject. Was all that prefacing and background necessary? I suppose the author thinks it was, as he went through all that, but I was left with a feeling it would be possible to condense this book a bit.
But the best part, the psychology of codebreaking, that sure was interesting.
That is all fine and interesting, but the author did take his time approaching the subject. Was all that prefacing and background necessary? I suppose the author thinks it was, as he went through all that, but I was left with a feeling it would be possible to condense this book a bit.
But the best part, the psychology of codebreaking, that sure was interesting.
jpmg2k's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
yuheng's review against another edition
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
vsbedford's review against another edition
4.0
The narrative falls apart a bit in the final fourth of the book, but it is a truly amazing read.
claudiagreen's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5