I love the three (or four) act structure with a time gap in between the parts of the story. Doctorow's characters grow during the interludes and the story does a real good job discussing what can be done by geeks with resources.

I'd read Little Brother and Homeland before this, and Makers is in the same theme. Doctorow definitely puts forth a proposed "Let the geeks at the free market" solution to a ton of what's happening today, even if the results aren't always the rosiest. Definitely an excellent book.