Author: Isaac Asimov
Year published: 1951
Category: Adult fiction (science fiction)
Pages: 244 pages
Rating: 4 out of 5
Location: (my 2025 Google Reading map): Outer space
Summary: For twelve thousand years the Galactic Empire has ruled supreme. Now it is dying. But only Hari Seldon, creator of the revolutionary science of psychohistory, can see into the future--to a dark age of ignorance, barbarism, and warfare that will last thirty thousand years. To preserve knowledge and save humankind, Seldon gathers the best minds in the Empire--both scientists and scholars--and brings them to a bleak planet at the edge of the galaxy to serve as a beacon of hope for future generations. He calls his sanctuary the Foundation.
Review: I have a very good friend, a big science fiction fan, and wanted to read his favorite science fiction book. I don't know if this is his favorite, but it's the first one he has thought of, so here we are. 18,000 people have ranked this novel on Goodreads with an average score of 4.17, so I figured I was in good hands.
This book is really well written. I can picture every aspect and scene of this other world/galaxy where the characters live. The book was written in 1951, and it is definitely a product of its time. Nuclear power and atomic weapons/threats figure large, as does imperialism (especially that based on religion). While they talk of these planets as having kings and queens, they are also concerned with larger powers taking over smaller outposts.
In the beginning, the characters are creating an encyclopedia of human history. Interestingly, if a planet doesn't have nuclear power, it reverts to oil and coal (perhaps Asimov couldn't imagine something else? No renewable energy?). There really isn't anything too futuristic except that everyone lives on many different planets and travels easily between them. It's also a very male-dominated world. No woman was even mentioned until the last fifth of the book, and then only as an object.
This novel is a serious (and much better) version of the Jetsons. Though I really enjoyed reading this early science fiction novel, I started to lose interest by the end. Too many generations/characters got a bit repetitive.
Challenges for which this counts:
- Alphabet Author--A
- Alphabet Title--F
- Bookish--main characters are writing the encyclopedia of the universe
- Cover Lovers--Futuristic scene
- Literary Escapes--Outer space
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