Foundation: The greatest science fiction series of all time, now a major series from Apple TV+: Book 1 (The Foundation Trilogy)

“Foundation” is the first part of a trilogy and comprises five short stories (four of which were published several years before the book) which are interrelated and fit nicely as a single novel. The novel is based approximately 50,000 years in the future when the Galactic Empire presides over twenty-five million planets inhabited by a quintillion human beings. Hari Seldon, a psychohistorian (an imaginary branch of science that predicts future events), foresees the demise of the Empire within five centuries and a period of thirty thousand years to rebuild a second empire, which he hopes to shrink to just a thousand years. The administrators of the empire send him away to a planet called Terminus at the fringes of the galaxy to work on his plans along with a hundred thousand people. He creates the first Foundation there while a second one (which is not discussed much in this book) is set at the other end of the galaxy. The rest of the book covers the next 150 years and is about the efforts of Salvor Hardin - mayor of Terminus, Hober Mallow - a trader, and others to ensure Seldon’s plans are executed, making the Foundation more and more powerful. Quotations from the “Encyclopaedia Galactica” fill the reader in, as the story leaps through time. “Foundation” has many of the typical elements of science fiction. It is set in a futuristic world and has tropes such as hyperspace travel, ultra-wave beams, televisors and others. But other than that, it is also a commentary on human psychology and behaviour — the secondary role that nature plays to technological advancement (the key city of Trantor has 40 billion people but no greenery), the fall of an empire due to rising bureaucracy and reducing curiosity, the use of religion to control humans and the eventual might of economic power over religion. And this commentary provides the book with a soul and makes it interesting reading. It is light on the action elements that we have got used to in science-fiction movies and it will be interesting to see how AppleTV+ interprets the book when they televise it later this year. I had read this book when I was much younger (and remembered very little) and was pleased to see that the book still feels modern despite the seventy years of significant technology advancement and the umpteen dazzling sci-fi movies that I have seen in the past few years. One glaring feature, however, is the absence of women in any pivotal role in this book, possibly a reflection of the times in which it was written (the trailer of the TV show seems to be correcting that though). I look forward to reading the next two books of the original trilogy (more books have been written since then) and watching the AppleTV+ show! Pros: A grand landscape, interesting plot, human psychology at the centre, contemporary feel Cons: A complete absence of women in the plot

Wow

Read and see

The most addictive book I laid my hands on till date. The first book of a series that explores a time when humans have colonized the galaxy. The foundations of sci fi are strong with this one, and the storytelling mastery of Isaac Asimov is visible in all its splendor. I'd suggest taking a couple of days off work when you purchase this, so as to prevent people around you thinking this book is all that matters in your life, because while it does not end, it will be.

Thanks to the seller and Amazon for delivering the book in excellent condition with great packaging. The quality of the cover, binding, spine, and pages is great despite it being a used copy. The book is an excellent science fiction story with fantastic plotline.

Received the book in poor condition. Used pages, folded pages, torn pages too. Never expected such a book from Amazon. The book seems to be a copy of the original, with filmsy cover and pages, that are thin and flimsy. As soon as I got the book, i knew it wasn't an original. Hence I have requested for a replacement. Will update after that

Gud

The binding and printing does justice to this classic.

Ao reler mais uma vez Fundação, eu fiquei com uma impressão estranha de que acabara de reler Baudolino, de Umberto Eco. Talvez a fantasia fantástica num panorama de um mundo mergulhado nas trevas da ignorância após a derrocada de um antigo império. Talvez a abundância de religiosidade patética e misturada ao poder secular. Talvez o paralelo entre protagonistas anti-heróicos que desejam apenas escapar da grande confusão em que se meteram, e usam de uma criatividade inesperada para o mundo onde vivem. Talvez a sabedoria oculta no conhecimento. Talvez nada realmente, só um delírio meu.

Una gran saga que va mejorando con cada entrega, siendo esta la primera, y yo diría que la más sencilla. Hoy día puede que no parezca gran cosa como ciencia ficción, no es muy revolucionario que digamos, pero para su época estaba bien. Además, lo mejor de estos libros no es la ciencia en sí, sino la trama, y uno no puede dejar de leerlo yendo de una sorpresa tras otra. Sobre la edición en si, no hay mucho que decir, no es "para coleccionistas" pero yo era lo que buscaba, formato de bolsillo con tapa blanda sin excentricidades.

Foundation by Isaac Asimov is the first book in the Foundation trilogy, set about 50,000 years in the future. The second and third volumes in the trilogy are Foundation and Empire and Second Foundation . With many, many reviews describing the books, there is little need for a description of the plot here. Instead, I'll give a few incidental notes on the SciFi ideas embedded in Foundation trilogy and my recommendations for potential readers. "Foundation" is from the 1940's, when some of the ubiquitous ideas of modern science fiction were born. In the 1940's, it was already clear that the universe was a very large and complex place (though it is even larger and more complex now than was known then!). So, writers, including Asimov, invented the devices of transport and communication faster than the speed of light. This brought the stars within "reach" and opened wide horizons for imagining how the future might develop if such technologies existed. "Foundation" and its original trilogy brought forth one of Asimov's unique contributions to the imagined future of science: "psychohistory." The concept of psychohistory is that large-scale social and political events can be mathematically forecast in the form of event probabilities. Asimov's various writings use these assumptions to write stories dealing with social, political, and individual challenges of an imagined future. Asimov adroitly mixes the large- and small-scale human events into richly entertaining stories. "Foundation" and other novels of the trilogy are composed of related vignettes, reflecting their original publication in serialized form. I find this style works well for these and other Asimov books, with small-scale stories adding together to convey a sweep of events. The whole adds up to more than the sum of the parts. For readers who have little experience with SciFi novels, I think "Foundation" would be an excellent place to start. The writing is direct, crisp, and clear, and is fine for YA or adult readers. The original Foundation trilogy is almost completely free of profanity and sexual themes. Violence is limited to the occasional murder and wars at a distance. If you are already a SciFi fan, and have not read some of Isaac Asimov's work, this is an excellent place to start, although it is not the "beginning". A semi-rational path for readers new to Asimov would be "Foundation", followed, if you like it by the two other members of the original trilogy, "Foundation and Empire," and "Second Foundation". From here, if you want a little more, try either the Robot series or the expanded 7-book Foundation series. If you are game for a lot more, and want to see Asimov's "future history" in a roughly (future) chronological order, I'd suggest looking at Asimov's main set of future history works that comprise the Empire series, the Robot series, and the expanded Foundation series. I'd rate "Foundation" as Must Read for all except those who are severely SciFi-phobic!!

Boyfriend had been wanting this. Good buy

Yes, it is the greatest Consistently brilliant writing, a fully fleshed world and clever, detailed storyline - read them all.