Against the Fall of Night

by Arthur C. Clarke

Other authors: See the other authors section.

Series: Fall of Night (1)

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979	14	21,321	(3.76)	48
Fiction. Science Fiction. HTML: The renowned science fiction author's landmark novel of the last human born on a far future world�??and his quest for the truth about existence. Living in the ten-billion-year-old city of Diaspar, Alvin is the last child born of humanity, and he is intensely curious about the outside world. But according to the oldest histories kept by the city fathers, there is no outside world�??it was destroyed by the Invaders millions of years ago. One day, Alvin finds a rock with an inscription seemingly meant for him: "There is a better way. Give my greetings to the Keeper of the Records. Alaine of Lyndar." This cryptic message takes Alvin on a quest to discover humanity's true past�??and its future. Originally published in the November 1948 issue of Startling Stories, Against the Fall of Night is a rich and intensely poetic vision of a distant future that's sure to delight fans of Clarke and science fiction as a genre. "[Clarke is] one of the truly prophetic figures of the space age." �??The New Yor… (more)

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Showing 1-5 of 13 (next | show all)

This is touted as a sci-fi classic? Comic book characters caught up in a comic book story supposedly set a billion years in the future yet playing out like an episode of Buck Rogers. Maybe I should have read the rewrite by Benford instead...? (

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NurseBob | Feb 24, 2024 |

This book dope AF.

m3talman | Nov 23, 2022 |

Can't get enough of it

A story that takes place a billion years in the future? A billion years! That's just insane. Clarke was a true master. (

)

jakatomc | Dec 30, 2020 |

A young man goes out to see the world, and discovers that there are two distinct cultures on his planet, and they had better work out how to co-exist. (

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DinadansFriend | Jan 19, 2020 |

It's so difficult to review a book like this. I read it when I was ... goodness, eleven years old or so? As I recall I got it via the old Scholastic Book Service at my school, but that memory could be a fragment. Of course I LOVED it then ...! I loved anything with the name "Arthur C. Clarke" on it, because of 2001 ... well, with the possible exception of "Tales from the 'White Hart'" which I thought was silly.

This novel was later revised into _The City and the Stars_. I read both, loved both, but I'd really need to re-read them, perhaps side by side, to provide a new zoo review ... (I intend to do so - please don't flag this as 'not a review'!). (

)

tungsten_peerts | Jun 1, 2017 |

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Author name	Role	Type of author	Work?	Status
Clarke, Arthur C.	—	primary author	all editions	confirmed
Baxter, Stephen	Introduction	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Engle, Robert	Cover artist	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Giancola, Donato	Cover artist	secondary author	some editions	confirmed

▾Series and work relationships

Belongs to Series

Fall of Night (1)

Belongs to Publisher Series

Delta Pocket (13)

Delta Science Fiction (13)

SF Masterworks: Golden Age Masterworks

Ullstein 2000 (3103)

Is contained in

The Lion of Comarre and Against the Fall of Night by Arthur C. Clarke

Against the Fall of Night / Beyond the Fall of Night by Arthur C. Clarke

Is expanded in

The City and the Stars by Arthur C. Clarke

Beyond the Fall of Night by Arthur C. Clarke

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Canonical title

Against the Fall of Night

Original title

Against the Fall of Night

Alternative titles

Original publication date

People/Characters

Important places

Diaspar (Imaginary place)

Important events

Related movies

Epigraph

Dedication

To Johnnie

First words

Not once in a generation did the voice of the city change as it was changing now.

Quotations

Last words

(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)

Disambiguation notice

First appeared in the November 1948 issue of Startling Stories.

Gregory Benford later wrote a sequel with Clarke's approval: Beyond the Fall of Night

Against the Fall of Night was later rewritten and issued under the title The City and the Stars. The Benford novel does not agree with this newer version.
Please do not combine different versions.

Publisher's editors

Blurbers

Holmes, H.H.

Original language

English

Canonical DDC/MDS

Canonical LCC

▾References

References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English

None

▾Book descriptions

Fiction. Science Fiction. HTML:

The renowned science fiction author's landmark novel of the last human born on a far future world�??and his quest for the truth about existence.

Living in the ten-billion-year-old city of Diaspar, Alvin is the last child born of humanity, and he is intensely curious about the outside world. But according to the oldest histories kept by the city fathers, there is no outside world�??it was destroyed by the Invaders millions of years ago.

One day, Alvin finds a rock with an inscription seemingly meant for him: "There is a better way. Give my greetings to the Keeper of the Records. Alaine of Lyndar." This cryptic message takes Alvin on a quest to discover humanity's true past�??and its future.

Originally published in the November 1948 issue of Startling Stories, Against the Fall of Night is a rich and intensely poetic vision of a distant future that's sure to delight fans of Clarke and science fiction as a genre.

"[Clarke is] one of the truly prophetic figures of the space age." �??The New Yor

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Book description

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