Customer Reviews
Not one of his better works... - By: S. Gilmore, 10 May 2007 
Maybe I expected this to be another Sophie's World, but it's very different. I found that it dragged a bit; while the ideas seemed interesting, there were sections where I felt like I just couldn't be bothered to read on.
The ending is good, & the book itself is generally enjoyable enough (with, as I said, some less inspiring bits).
I admit that the area of biology & evolution & so on isn't as interesting to me as philosophy, so that might account for the book seeming dullin comparison with Sophie's World. Additionally, I found parts of the plot very similar to The Solitaire Mystery, but it just didn't engage me as much.
Overall, I found that I struggled to get through this book.
Yet another masterpiece from Jostein Gaarder - By: Sophie, 20 Jul 2005 
After reading The Solitaire Mystery by Jostein Gaarder & deciding it was probably my favourite book of all time, I did not believe that Gaarder could produce another story which came close, but I was wrong.
Maya is now hot competition for my number 1 book spot. Once more, Gaarder has masterfully combined intriguing fact with an unpredictable & exciting story line. The plot is so thick that you can easily forget which world is reality, and, unlike so many books, the fact does not seem to be there just for the sake of it. Instead of existing alone, it helps to further the story.
A must for all readers, no matter their interests.
Gaarder for beginners - By: Kate, 20 Apr 2003 
As a Fan of Gaarder I was sort of expecting Maya to be for evolutionary theory what Sophie's World was for philosophy. I was pleasently surprised to fine that this was not the case. As always Gaarder weaves a fairly difficult tale & I'll admit that I could only take this bookin short quantities but felt well rewarded by the end. I recommend this book to anyone whoever wondered about the existance of a cosmic plan. The strands of the story are allows to tie upin a very realistic way (relatively speaking)which surprised me. If you like Gaarder you might feel this is a slight break from his previous style. If you haven't read any of his work before, this is probably the best book to ease into it
Gaarder at his best, like sophies world? Love this!! - By: , 11 Oct 2001 Gaarder has a habit of enfolding the reader not onlyin his novels but alsoin his philosophies. In Maya the reader will think about the big questions of life, the universe & everything as well as be beguiled by the sometimes strange & always compelling narrative of the book. It isn't an easy read but it's certainly a fulfilling one. Great!!
Good use of "dialogue" - By: , 26 Jul 2001 It is unfair to criticise J Gaarder for using the charactersin this book as "mouthpieces for different theories". This isin fact a style almost as written language, most notably favouredin this genre by Plato, & seems most effective when the book is taken as a view of philosophyin the form of a book rather than a book that tried to deal with philosophy. And if you understood that, your ready to join us.
