Foundation (original 1951; edition 1991)

I'm sure this was groundbreaking when it was first published, but I'm not sure it's necessarily a great story of itself. The Galactic Empire is in decline when Hari Seldon, a great mathematician is put on trial for predicting the empire will fall. He predicts that the duration of the dark ages that follow can be reduced if the entire store of human knowledge is documented into an Encyclopedia. So of they trot to some remote corner of the galaxy and start writing their book. Only things aren't quite that simple. A crisis comes along when the neighbouring planet systems start breaking away from the Empire and declaring themselves Kingdoms. The Exiles face a crisis, the first of 3 in this book, where the role of the society undergoes a change in leadership or societal organisation.
It's an interesting surmise, that a society will go through a series of phases (this book has kingdoms, religion and trade as the means of controlling society and expanding an empire). But this is also the books weakness, you move from one crisis to the next, with no character development inbetween, they each spring fully formed to play their parts but there's nothing of what drives them or makes them interesting as people. Each crisis section was, of itself, interesting, but just too brief to be really interesting. The idea that society can be described by mathematical rules is interesting enough, but it would be a more engaging rad if the characters had been more engaging or well presented, instead of being 2 dimensional cardboard cut outs with made up names. ( )

I'm glad this was not my first introduction to Asimov because it would have turned me off for good. The characters are wooden, superficial, and virtually all men. The story leads the reader along with no surprises. It's just not very fun or interesting. ( )

The 1st book of foundation series was interesting but little bit slow because this is the starter from isaac !1 ( )

The 1st book of foundation series was interesting but little bit slow because this is the starter from isaac !1 ( )

My brother lent this book and I was eager to read it. There’s something really nice about reading a book that I know my late father read. It’s like communing through time and space. I like Isaac Asimov. His guide to the Bible (which I picked out of the Barnes & Noble discount rack years ago) is invaluable. This novel, maybe not so much. In some ways, it’s closer to the script from a play. Nearly every chapter is two characters talking (sometimes more, but not often) with very little exposition and almost no interiority. The ideas are cool: the prediction of the future through mathematics, the use of religion as a control mechanism (wonder where he got that one), and the occasional reappearance of the reanimated pseudo-prophet Hari Seldon. I just wish it had been more involving as a whole. ( )