Exegesis

by Astro Teller

Book Overview

------------------------------------------------------------------ Date: Sun, 16 Jan 2000 14:27:39 (PST) From: edgar@cyprus.stanford.edu To: Alice@cs.stanford.edu Subject: Hello... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 037570051X
• ISBN13: 9780375700514
• Release Date: August 1997
• Publisher: Vintage
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.2" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

a review of Exegesis (Vintage Contemporaries)

This short book is a series of emails between Edgar the "computer" and Alice the "creator of Edgar". I have no idea what I expected, but this certainly wasn't it. It was not a story, but a dialogue. That being said, I read straight through the book without getting up and was very disappointed when I was finished (not with the book, but with being done). I definitely highly recommend for a quick read.

unique and imaginative

I don't usually go for these kind of books, but this one caught my eye. It held on to my attention from the start- and being entirely written in e-mail, it was a fast read. The author gives emotion and a personality to an object--The computer has a mind of its own and can make decisions for itself. I haven't found anything else with a similar plot, Exegesis is truly unique -- I don't know how else to explain it. I would recommend this to anyone who is tired of the same old fiction book, or anyone who wants a short, creative read. It's a great book.

WoW! 2 days? 7 hours! GREAT BOOK!

I really enjoyed this book... in fact, I picked it up around 4 PM, and was done with it before I went to bed at 11 PM. True, this book uses a format that makes for a fast read, but I read it with a fury that most books do not install in me. I became so enthralled with this computer/human relationship that I was unable to stop reading! It is hard to really explain how this book worked with me, but if you love computers, read it and I think you should be able to understand what makes this book so good. I truly hope that Astro Teller creates a sequel, or at least continues writing with such cutting-edge style and format. And I mean come on, how couldn't you love a book with a :) on the cover? Heh.

A GREAT novel.

I think this book is pretty cool. People interested in computers and what they can do, will enjoy this book. Edgar and Alice have a weird, yet familiar relationship, even though Edgar is a computer program. I kept turning the pages, for this book kept me intrigued. It made me see how AI can be far more advanced than a mere human. If you have not read this book yet, go out and buy it. It would make a GREAT Xmas gift!!!!

Exegesis works on many levels

Like all satisfying writing, the author elicits as much from the reader as he puts into the piece himself. This book works on so many levels that I am still finding them, two weeks after reading the book. The Christ and Frankenstein myths are obvious. But I am particularly interested in the relationship between Alice and EDGAR and Alice and her father (who is only briefly aluded to). Also, Alice and the man who made all the material available to her. Is his a selfless act akin to EDGAR's? And Alice and her thesis advisor; who or which is the prime mover in this story? Note also that Mr. Teller has left open the possibility of a sequel. A friend and I are still trying to decide if there are two EDGARs left or only one. The e-mail format is deceptively simple. It reads as quickly or intricately as one has the patience for. A close reading of the headers is instructive.