SP: Two-thirds of the way into your novel,
    Seveneves – in fact, on page 569 – you do
    something kind of crazy. The story suddenly
    skips ahead 5,000 years. What’s the idea here?

It took me maybe a week to read the first 2/3's of the book, and about three weeks to read the last 1/3. In many ways, these two parts feel like completely different books, one of which is significantly better than the other.

Also, I was occasionally distracted at the beginning when snippets of dialog from Anathem were reused in the form of exposition in Seveneves.

But, that said, I think the book is worth reading, especially the first 2/3's.

My personal, quick, rough ranking of Stephenson's bibliography:

    * Anathem
    * Snow Crash
    * The Diamond Age
    * Seveneves
    * Cryptonomicon
    * The Baroque Cycle
    * Zodiac
    * Reamde
    * The Interface
    * The Big U

Haven't Read

    * The Cobweb
    * The Mongoliad