From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Anathem Reamde and Cryptonomicon comes an
exciting and thought-provoking science fiction epic?a grand story of annihilation and survival
spanning five thousand years. What would happen if the world were ending? A catastrophic event
renders the earth a ticking time bomb. In a feverish race against the inevitable nations
around the globe band together to devise an ambitious plan to ensure the survival of humanity
far beyond our atmosphere in outer space. But the complexities and unpredictability of human
nature coupled with unforeseen challenges and dangers threaten the intrepid pioneers until
only a handful of survivors remain . . . Five thousand years later their progeny?seven
distinct races now three billion strong?embark on yet another audacious journey into the
unknown . . . to an alien world utterly transformed by cataclysm and time: Earth. A writer of
dazzling genius and imaginative vision Neal Stephenson combines science philosophy
technology psychology and literature in a magnificent work of speculative fiction that offers
a portrait of a future that is both extraordinary and eerily recognizable. As he did in Anathem
Cryptonomicon the Baroque Cycle and Reamde Stephenson explores some of our biggest ideas and
perplexing challenges in a breathtaking saga that is daring engrossing and altogether
brilliant.