UNSONG

A novel that takes the kabbalistic idea of divine names literally: in an alternate 1960s-onward America the sky cracked, magic works, and the Names of God are intellectual property, so the world fills with programmers, Talmudic scholars, angels and lawyers. Written and published as a free web serial by the author of Slate Star Codex, and very funny about theodicy.

Context: the a16z list’s own summary is the best short description of it — “the world is populated mostly by computer programmers, mystic Jewish scholars, and celestial beings. Oh and magic is real. And Richard Nixon is involved” — and admits the book is hard to describe. It sits in the Fantasy section as its own entry, and is the only title on the whole list that began life as a blog.

Connections

• a16z Infra Reading List — the list this came from; Fantasy section, its own entry.
• Scott Alexander — the author, who already has a page in the wiki.
• Slate Star Codex — the blog the serial was written alongside, and the audience it was written for.
• a16z — the firm whose infrastructure team curates the list.