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A review by librarybonanza
Foundation by Isaac Asimov
5.0
This book is BEAUTIFUL. I absolutely love Asimov's writing style, especially the way he writes characters not just through their dialogue but the subtle mannerisms and actions they commit. It was also really neat to see characters from the last storyline pop up as references in the future. I was never bored with the story line--possibly because it is a perfect mix of (some) action, thought, and wit. I was challenged while reading it but not turned off by the writing style.
Another thing I enjoyed about this first book is that Asimov either leaves out or radicalizes cultural and social expectations of the 1960s instead of dragging this (even now) outdated, bigoted mentality into the future(*cough Heinlein cough*). And by leave out I mean, yes, he leaves out all women from the story--except for a snooty princess.
"For twelve thousand years the Galactic Empire has ruled supreme. Now it is dying. But only Hari Sheldon, 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 mankind, 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 a fututre generations. He calls his sanctuary the Foundation.
But soon the fledgling Foundation finds itself at the mercy of corrupt warlords rising in the wake of the receding Empire. Mankind's last best hope is faced with an agonizing choice: submit to the barbarians and be overrun--or fight them and be destroyed."
Another thing I enjoyed about this first book is that Asimov either leaves out or radicalizes cultural and social expectations of the 1960s instead of dragging this (even now) outdated, bigoted mentality into the future(*cough Heinlein cough*). And by leave out I mean, yes, he leaves out all women from the story--except for a snooty princess.
"For twelve thousand years the Galactic Empire has ruled supreme. Now it is dying. But only Hari Sheldon, 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 mankind, 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 a fututre generations. He calls his sanctuary the Foundation.
But soon the fledgling Foundation finds itself at the mercy of corrupt warlords rising in the wake of the receding Empire. Mankind's last best hope is faced with an agonizing choice: submit to the barbarians and be overrun--or fight them and be destroyed."