William Gibson, Mona Lisa Overdrive

Tatiani Rapatzikou (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 3.1.2: Canadian Writing and Culture (Anglophone): The Twentieth Century and beyond, 1900-present.
Vol. editors: Sarah Henzi (Simon Fraser University), Kerry Myler (Newman University), Glen Nichols (Mount Allison University), Wendy Roy (University of Saskatchewan), Denis Salter (McGill University), Karis Shearer (University of British Columbia)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1988

Places

United States (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Novel
Science Fiction

Resources

Mona Lisa Overdrive (1988), the third novel in Gibson’s Sprawl Trilogy after Neuromancer and Count Zero, did not meet with the same ecstatic reception amongst his fans that the first two had enjoyed. The numerous crisscrossing plots, the toned-down references to cyberspace, and the multiple and unconvincing characters left readers confused and perplexed as to the message this book attempted to convey. Gibson, as quoted in Mikhal Gilmore’s review “The Rise of Cyberpunk” in Rolling Stone (1986), said that this novel “won’t be an exactly linear sequel. Actually, it’s my hope that when I finish this, I will have three books that work independently of one another, that can be comprehended separately …

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1201 words

Citation: Rapatzikou, Tatiani. "Mona Lisa Overdrive". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 07 February 2005 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=10551, accessed 26 November 2024.]

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