Science Fiction Aficionados discussion

Have a hair appointment-wow that does not sound cool coming from a man, but it's the truth- anyway, this authors section is rather sparse, so I'm taking it upon myself to populate it. Unfortunately, lack of time prevents me from doing more than just getting some names up. Hopefully the group can pick up my slack.

I've just finished reading Asimov Foundation and Foundation and Empire. I've enjoyed reading them. The first book is great (considering when there were written). F and Empire got a little slow at points, but I am going to keep going.

I like his robot series too starting with The Caves of Steel. He had the most realistic approach to the idea of artificial life that I have ever read.
Another book that I like is The Gods Themselves. It's strange and a little out there. But the aliens in here are very different and interesting.

Traci wrote: "I like his robot series too starting with The Caves of Steel. He had the most realistic approach to the idea of artificial life that I have ever read.
Another book that I like is ..."

+fraking ONE, nobody does robots like Asimov. I wish I had time to re-read them, maybe someday.

I've just dug out "Asimov's mysteries (1969) which I remember reading years ago. I'll put it on my read again list! Along with Caves of Steel
(how does you insert the book hyperlink? - I'm new to goodreads)

click the link directly above the comment box that says "add book/author" then search for the title or author, then click "add", it will create a link in your comment box.

Pax Rolfe

I've just dug out Asimov's Mysteries which I remember reading years ago. I'll put it on my read again list! Along with The Caves of Steel

Thanks Pax -Obvious When One Know How!

Peter wrote: "...Thanks Pax -Obvious When One Know How! "

Took me a bit to figure that one out too.

Peter wrote: "Another book that I like is The Gods Themselves. It's strange and a little out there. But the aliens in here are very different and interesting."

I am huge Asimov fan! I've got all the books that make up the Foundation universe (from the first Robot novel, the Empire series, the traditional Foundation series, and the new/non-Asimov Foundation trilogy) but I must say that The Gods Themselves is one of my favorite books ever. As Peter says, the writing is a bit strange (three parts, three totally different viewpoints) but the aliens are so very original! The story moves so well that it is just amazing.

Check it out.

I started reading his short stories, Nine Tomorrows as a great collection. His story 'The Gentle Vultures' was an amazing story. He defiantly took me places as a reader that I had never known.

I got into Asimov during the Golden Age of Science Fiction - I was 12 years old (yeh, old joke, I know).
ASIMOV'S MYSTERIES, I,ROBOT, THE MARTIAN WAY antho, CAVES OF STEEL, NAKED SUN, THE GODS THEMSELVES - as I found them, they were devoured. I sort of dropped off, but I started up again reading his silly short stories in ASIMOV'S SF mag about the old guy with the demon in his pocket (named Azazael?) in the early 1980. This will be heresy to many, I know, but I found the original FOUNDATION books to be a snooze and when Asimov started ret-conning his robot novels to be part of the Foundation universe I ran very far away in the other direction. Ironically, just about my single favorite old-school non-digital piece of SF illustration is Michael Whelan's cover for SECOND FOUNDATION.

Here's a link to said illustration:

http://www.michaelwhelan.com/catalog/...

This one's my favorite from that series:

http://www.michaelwhelan.com/catalog/...

Jaime wrote: "I got into Asimov during the Golden Age of Science Fiction - I was 12 years old (yeh, old joke, I know).
ASIMOV'S MYSTERIES, I,ROBOT, THE MARTIAN WAY antho, CAVES OF STEEL, NAKED SUN, THE GODS THEM..."

I found the Foundation series to be pretty slow too, almost put me off reading any more Asimov!

I agree with the comments that have been made regarding The Gods Themselves. Fantastic book, and the aliens (or para-men if you will) are absolutely fantastic. Made me laugh and at times it even got a little dusty in my house.

Don't see where anyone has mentioned The End of Eternity, which I recently read. Leave it to Asimov to somehow make time travel make sense. Loved the plot, and continue to be amazed at how he can weave each separate novel into his universe and make it fit.

I love asimov big time fan. And, I am so glad a lot of his books are coming to the NOOK which I can rebuild my library though I wish they would get around to releasing FOUNDATION'S FRIENDS.

also looking for the following series:

ROBOT CITY
ROBOTS AND ALIENS

@ Nathan, Asimov can make anything make sense. And this coming from someone who thinks of hard science like magic...actually nevermind sometimes magic makes more sense. Lol. I'm kidding...mostly.

The Gods Themselves is one of my favorite science fiction books. Haven't read The End of Eternity...yet. Love Asimov. Love time travel. I'll have to look into that.

If you enjoy Asimov and time travel, there is absolutely no way to not enjoy that book. :)

I just bought Nemesis which will be my first Asimov.

Besides writing many fine novels, it's hard to top his short stories about robots. His rules of robotics and the situations that develop from them are great reading. One of the first science fiction books I ever read was Nine Stories from the Rest of the Robots (now out of print) which convinced me this was a topic I'd enjoy. One day when robots become commonplace I hope they name a model after him.

I read most of the foundation series years ago, and now I have all the mass market paperbacks sitting on my shelf. Down the road I will read them. Also I was recently gifted a first edition first print copy of I Robot minus the dust jacket!!! I'm going to have to research it a little more. Looking forward to bringing it into my scifi group this Saturday to show it off.

Well, I ended up being disappointed with Nemesis. I loved the ideas behind it but the dialogue was very unnatural sounding. I don't know if Asimov thought people would talk like that in the future (how depressing) or if he just didn't have an ear for how people spoke to each other. He also tended to over-explain things.

I wouldn't be averse to trying something else of his, though.

Scott wrote: "Well, I ended up being disappointed with Nemesis. I loved the ideas behind it but the dialogue was very unnatural sounding. I don't know if Asimov thought people would talk like that in the futur..."

Dialogue is always a weakness for Asimov, and he always likes to explain stuff.
His best work, I think, is when the material actually fits his style.
[Although he is capable of moments of character insight now and then]
He's probably at his best in the short stories.

I just finished reading I, Robot and I was expecting the material to have a dated feel to it, but I was rather surprised at how awkward his writing is. I don't like bashing a sci-fi legend here, but it was a struggle to finish the book.

Read the two short stories, "The Last Question" and "The Last Answer" as a kid and absolutely LOVED them. Sadly I hadn't read anything else of Asimov's until now.

Discovered that Robot Dreams was the only time these stories were printed together, and I'm halfway through it today.

Also ordered a proper leatherbound copy of Iasac Asimov (Goodreads typo) which compiles the Foundation and Robot novels.

Every MULTIVAC story has been a winner so far. Just finished "The Machine That Won The War." Looking forward to the rest!

Jo Ann ❤ wrote: "I just finished reading I, Robot and I was expecting the material to have a dated feel to it, but I was rather surprised at how awkward his writing is. I don't like bashing a sci-fi legend here, b..."

I, Robot I found a bit hard to slog through as well at some points. Last year though I read The Complete Robot and that collection of short stories is really entertaining.

Read Nemesis last month, wasn't my favorite. Not sure what I will tackle next from him. Reading other authors for the moment.

http://www.lapl.org/collections-resou... Good to see Asimov still getting the recognition he deserves

I am a long time Asimov fan. I did not like Nemesis--but he was such a prolific author, there are bound to be a few less popular books.

His Robot books are my favorites, especially The Caves of Steel and The Naked Sun.

And, his short story collections are often overlooked, and imho his short stories were very good also. I recommend Nine Tomorrows.

I am a long time Asimov fan. I did not like Nemesis--but he was such a prolific author, there are bound to be a few less popular books.

His Robot books are my favorites, especially The Caves of Steel and The Naked Sun.

And, his short story collections are often overlooked, and imho his short stories were very good also. I recommend Nine Tomorrows.

He wrote some truly great books, also some not so great, but considering the number of books he did, that's no wonder.

One of my all time favorite audio book is The Last Question and Other Stories where Asimov reads a few of his best short stories and talks about them.

Here's a postcard Isaac Asimov sent to me, way back in 1979 ...

A simple question. I am totally new to Dr. Azimov!!

Where to begin? "I, Robot" ? "Caves of Steel"? "The Gods Themselves"? "Foundation" ?

Which stories/novels represent Asimov at the height of his imagination thus suitable for a newcomer?

Either The Caves of Steel, Foundation, or The End of Eternity - depending upon whether you most like robots, sweeps of history, or time travel.

After I read all the Asimov fiction I could get my hands on in our local library when I was in my late teens, I read his autobiography... 2 massive volumes!

Fave Asimov books are the Foundation series.

In Memory Yet Green and In Joy Still Felt - treasure troves.

Good discussion of the Foundation trilogy here http://io9.com/what-absolutely-everyo...

Foundation on TV...I'm skeptical.

These lines from that io9 aticle triggered my deepest suspicions:

"But, the main question on everyone's minds is whether this will this work as a TV series. There isn't much action in the Foundation books, which are heavy on exposition and light on character development...But Nolan's devotion to the source material seems genuine..."

**shudder**

Where have I heard that before? Oh, yes, just before the release of Peter Jackson's LotR train wreck. (I know, I'm in the minority, but I couldn't help saying it!)

Back in 2012, J.P. wrote: "One day when robots become commonplace I hope they name a model after him."

Uh... http://asimo.honda.com/

It is quite deliberately and obviously named after him.

EDIT: oh, Honda claims it is a coincidence, and their name comes from elsewhere. Hmmm...

My affection for Asimov goes so far that his flaws are just endearing at this point. Awkward dialogue, horrible romance angles, logic chopping- they all just feel like the familiar quirks of an old friend.

As long as he stays with robots, and do not try humans, history or humanities in general he's pretty good.

(Yes, I'm sniping at The Foundation series - anyone with the least insight into the humanities will know that humans and history do.not.work.like.that.)

Was it Asimov who wrote the story of the planet that had never seen night before and then goes crazy when all the suns set one night? Great story. Also, I really liked The Robots of Dawn. Must get around to reading the rest of the Robots books.

Niels wrote: "I'm sniping at The Foundation series - anyone with the least insight into the human..."

The Foundation series is founded on the premise that humanity's problems can be solved with algebra. It's the nerdiest thing I can imagine, and I love it.

Laz wrote: "as soon as I finish reading all these new books, maybe I'll re-read those."

That would be ambitious. There are fifteen works in the series now if you want to stick to the Asimov-written works alone, thirty-two if you incorporate the partial duplicate robot books, short stories, and ten authorized novels written by other authors in the series. Here is the order of the 15 series books as given by Asimov in internal chronological order:

1. The Complete Robot (1982) and/or I, Robot (1950)
2. Caves of Steel (1954)
3. The Naked Sun (1957)
4. The Robots of Dawn (1983)
5. Robots and Empire (1985)
6. The Currents of Space (1952)
7. The Stars, Like Dust (1951)
8. Pebble in the Sky (1950)
9. Prelude to Foundation (1988)
10. Forward the Foundation (1993)
11. Foundation (1951)
12. Foundation and Empire (1952)
13. Second Foundation (1953)
14. Foundation's Edge (1982)
15. Foundation and Earth (1986)

Most Asimov scholars think Asimov made an order mistake though and that novels six and seven should be read in the reverse order stated.

I'm pretty sure I've read the entire series but when I go back and read the summaries for "Currents of Space" and "The Stars, like Dust" they do not resonate with me. Then again I started reading more than 30 uses ago when I was a mere teen!

MadProfessah wrote: "I'm pretty sure I've read the entire series but when I go back and read the summaries for "Currents of Space" and "The Stars, like Dust" they do not resonate with me. Then again I started reading m..."

I read them 20 years ago, and I can't remember them either. Not his most memorable efforts.

Are you sure you read them? I haven't. I read the Caves of Steel series (numbers 2-5) and the Foundation series (numbers 9-15) back in the 1980s when Asimov was revisiting and adding to his series. They were NYT bestsellers in the 1980s, so many of us did then. I later picked up some version of #1 about ten years ago when the Will Smith movie came out. However, I never got around to reading numbers 6-8. They weren't listed as belonging to the series back in the 1980s. Number 8 is the first novel Asimov published! It's hard to believe these three books wouldn't be memorable.

Apparently they're not very good. Asimov thought "The Stars, Like Dust" was his worst book.

On the other hand, if you can find a vintage Turkish translation of "Pebble in the Sky", you get one of the great SF covers, as seen here.

Yes, that is a colossal space-squid having some sort of molestation-orgy with eight dead women in space.
No, that has nothing at all to do with the plot.
And yes, they've changed the title to "Sinister Planet Galactica". Presumably the thinking was that naked women, space octopuses and Battlestar Galactica were all popular at that time...

Dan wrote: "Are you sure you read them? I haven't."

Yeah, I'm sure. They're definitely the least impressive of the three series he stitched together into his future history timeline. I was really pumped after reading the Foundation books, but they totally lacked that sense of scale. All I remember is bland protagonists navigating uninteresting situations.

Caves of Steel might be my favorite out of the whole series, though. Either that or the Mule story from Foundation and Empire.

I really enjoyed Robots of Dawn. Interesting combo of mystery and sci-fi.