15 best books by Isaac Asimov

*Overview of the best according to the editors of Healthy Food Near Me. About selection criteria. This material is subjective, is not an advertisement and does not serve as a guide to the purchase. Before buying, you need to consult with a specialist.

Books of the fantasy genre are able to immerse their reader into another reality, an incredible world invented by the author, whose writing talent determines the overall impression of the work. Among the outstanding science fiction writers, Isaac Asimov stands out, who made the greatest contribution to the development of the now super popular genre. Together with A. Clark and R. Heinlein, he is one of the three luminaries of the science fiction segment of English literature.

More than 500 works have come out from the author’s pen, among which, along with science fiction, are detective stories, scientific works on astronomy, genetics and history. Bachelor of Chemistry and Professor of Biochemistry Isaac Asimov paid tribute to literary criticism, often communicated with readers, invented new terms, engaged in scientific research and substantiated the important role of science fiction in uniting humanity.

Readers are amazed by the writer’s skill and virtuoso command of the word, the creation of a whole system of worlds and new terms that have firmly entered the vocabulary of modern literature. Ordinary people are surprised by his comprehensive activity – after all, he went down in history as a brilliant writer, a talented popularizer of scientific knowledge, research scientist, founder of the Committee of Skeptical Research, which was engaged in exposing the erroneous, but firmly rooted postulates of pseudoscience.

It is difficult to choose the most successful from a large number of brilliant works of the author, however, our experts, after analyzing the opinions of readers, made a small selection. Thus, we have compiled a rating of the best books by Isaac Asimov, the most popular among the modern audience.

Best books by Isaac Asimov

End of Eternity

Rating: 5.0

In the work of the author, this work is considered the best. The plot does not refer to the usual and traditional space travel for him, but to time travel. “Eternity” is not a category of abstract chronology, which has no start or finish, but a powerful organization of the same name, created 7 centuries after our time. Its foundation coincides with discoveries in physics and mathematics, the creation of a temporal generator and the stretching of a narrow field to move into the future, where the Sun has already ceased to be a yellow dwarf and has turned into a supernova.

The logic of the text lies in the eternal confrontation between those who have seized power and those who have the right to it not by birth, but by ability. The plot also captures a love line that determines the scenario for the destruction of a powerful organization. From the first to the last paragraph, the reader remains in suspense due to unexpected plot twists and transparently understandable author’s speech. Several editions were published in the USSR and Russia, more than 1 million copies were sold.

Base

Rating: 4.9

A whole series of novels – three books, to which one more was later added. Awarded the Hugo Award for Best Fiction Series of All Time. The readers of the magazine “Locus” by their vote awarded the grandiose epic a place in the top ten. The name of the cycle in different translations sounded like “Academy”, “Organization”, “Foundation”, and this is not accidental. The action begins in the mighty Empire, the collapse of which is inevitable, despite all the might of the superpower. A mathematician, confident in the inevitability of a catastrophe, creates an organization for the salvation and revival of world civilization.

The cycle covers a large time period, each novel keeps the reader in suspense. For those who are familiar with the work of Isaac Asimov, it will be a pleasant surprise to see the logical continuation of the exciting story in works about galactic history (“Foundation Universe”) and in cycles about the Empire of Trantor. After the death of the author, his followers wrote prequels – “Fears of Foundation”, “Triumph of Foundation” and “Foundation and Chaos”.

I am a robot

Rating: 4.8

Includes a collection of short stories about robots. The first work was created in 1939. The most popular to this day remains the story “Round Dance”, written by the author in 1942. It formulated the unspoken rules for the behavior of artificial intelligence. Further disclosure of these postulates are the rest of the stories from the book, for example, in “Mirror Reflection” describes the catastrophic consequences of their violation. It is interesting that the story from the series about detective Elijah Bailey and the robot organically fit into this cycle and is perceived as an integral part of it.

The uniqueness of these short works, united in one series, is in paradoxical situations, original terminology and interweaving of the plot. Better than the most intricate detective story, they force the reader to follow the course of the author’s thought. In a composition perfect in design and execution, there are no weak or random elements. This book brought its author worldwide fame.

The coming of the night

Rating: 4.7

Translated into Russian, the name sounds rather mysterious and even frightening – “And the night fell …”, “Death of the Sun”. Despite the fact that the story dates from 1941, the short masterpiece is still on the list of the best fantasy stories. The novel consists of three parts. The story intertwines the cyclic existence of civilizations, the immutability of the fall of empires and the return to barbarism, religious cults based on observations of celestial bodies. The central figure is a scientist who manages to solve the riddle of the planet with 6 suns, but he cannot convince the population of the planet of the correctness of his guesses.

The gods themselves

Rating: 4.6

The novel was created in 1979. It consists of three parts, each of which is an excerpt from Schiller’s quote “Against stupidity, the gods themselves are powerless to fight.” The first part tells about a scientist reaping the undeserved fruits of fame as the author of someone else’s great discovery – the Electronic Pump. With its help, it became possible to exchange environmentally friendly energy between parahumans (inhabitants of another universe) and earthlings. Its inept use leads to imminent disaster, but neither the impostor nor those who unearthed his secret can prevent the disaster.

The second part describes the unique inhabitants of the parauniverse – Soft and Hard. Of particular interest are the Soft type of living beings – they have a changeable body shape and consist of three parts (emotional, pestun and rational). Although they may exist separately, the soft ones form a single triad. Their mission is reproduction, the creation of new triads, which subsequently serve as Hard. The main idea of ​​the book is the opposition of the Soft to the tyrannical framework established by the Hard.

The third part describes the colonization of the moon and the devices created to prevent imminent disaster. The novel is interesting for its artistic presentation of hypotheses about the structure of the Universe, the transformations of matter, the interaction of thinking beings located in opposite dimensions. Behind them, the stated problems of mankind on a common planet are clearly visible.

nine tomorrow

Rating: 4.5

A collection of nine stories, invariably published under a common binding. There is evidence that the author himself united them into a single block, according to the principle of unity of a common meaning – each of them tells about the near future. The book raises not only scientific problems, but also universal ones. The reviews invariably mention the author’s ability to keep the reader in constant suspense, the refinement and completeness of each work.

naked sun

Rating: 4.5

Isaac Asimov’s novel The Naked Sun, published in the late 50s, is a sequel to The Caves of Steel. It is part of a cycle of stories about detective Elijah Bailey and the robot Daniel Olivo. The novel will be equally interesting to both lovers of detective stories and fans of science fiction with space surroundings.

The work is based on the investigation of the murder of a man on the isolated planet Solaria, where people run the household together with robot assistants. The case is taken by detective Elijah Bailey, who was specially called from Earth to solve a mysterious crime. The detective, together with his old friend, the robot Olivo, will investigate, as well as resolve conflicts between earthlings and astronites.

S. Lem was sure that Asimov borrowed the main idea and characters from HG Wells. However, in our opinion, the similarity is only in the eternal contradiction between those in power and those who do not have any benefits – neither material nor spiritual.

Profession

Rating: 4.5

Science fiction story was originally conceived as an independent work. It was first published in the late 50s in one of the literary magazines. Subsequently, it was included in the collection “Nine Tomorrows”, as it tells about one of the options for the development of the future of mankind in the field of education.

Of particular interest is the described process of instant brain training by a computer. A. Clark subsequently explored the concept of a brain-computer interface. However, Asimov’s emphasis is on the need for certain qualities in order to become a professional in the chosen field. He is sure that simply recording from a computer to brain neurons, like on a magnetic tape, is not enough. You need the ability to make decisions and the desire to improve professional skills – everything that makes a professional, regardless of the method of acquiring knowledge.

Way of the Martians

Rating: 4.4

It is also found under the name “Martian Way” (depending on the quality of the translation). There are two search options – an author’s collection compiled in the mid-50s or a story of the same name. Both are of undoubted interest to the modern reader – beautiful language, exciting, capacious, non-trivial images (not at all similar to the predecessors’ books on this topic).

The work tells about the inhabitants of Mars, who are forced to use earthly natural sources for their further existence. Due to pressure from the earth’s authorities, the transportation of water from Earth is becoming increasingly difficult, which can subsequently lead to the death of the entire Martian colony.

The author himself admitted that this is one of the masterpiece stories written on an exciting earthly theme – the persecution of dissidents, total pressure on the population, although to some extent it was also a prediction of the development of space objects.

Two hundred years old man

Rating: 4.4

The work touches on the theme of robots, beloved by the author, and introduces a new trend – the humanization of artificial intelligence. Won the Locus, Nebula and Hugo Award for Best Short Novel. Considering that this is an objective tripartite assessment (from readers, critics and fellow professionals), the story deserves an indispensable reading.

The plot is based on the robot Andrew, who got into the Martin family as an au pair. Soon it becomes noticeable that the robot has feelings, strives for knowledge, learns science, masters various professions. As a result, he wanted to become a man, while defending the rights of robots.

Of particular interest is not the description of the technologies of the future, but the raising of the eternal problems of humanity, tolerance, freedom and slavery, the need to fight for the rights of any oppressed. Hence the film adaptation of the plot at the end of the XNUMXth century.

Pebble in the sky

Rating: 4.3

The author’s longtime fans may be known as “Shard of the Universe”. This novel is one of the components of the trilogy about the Galactic Empire, but can also be considered as an independent, dynamic and logically sound work. Of course, a more complete impression of the author’s intention remains after reading two other books – Cosmic Currents and Stars Like Dust.

The book tells about the distant future, where, as a result of a thermonuclear war, our planet becomes uninhabitable and is just a pebble in the sky. People have settled throughout the galaxy and are under the tyrannical yoke of the planet Trantor, which controls the entire universe. But earthlings do not give up and enter into a confrontation with the established system.

The most interesting topics were raised in the work – adventures, transformations over time in the spoken language, movements from the future, uprisings and a deadly virus created to influence alien inhabitants.

Second Academy

Rating: 4.2

Alternative versions in Russian translation “Second Foundation” or “Second Foundation”. The third part of the epic “Foundation”, which should be read in order to feel the chronology of events.

In the center of the plot is the ruthless ruler of the Union of Worlds – the Mule. He completely subjugated the entire galaxy and plans to continue to conquer new territories, thereby threatening the well-being of the “Foundation”. To confront the Mulu, the Second Academy was created, consisting of psychologists. They will fight desperately with the tyrant, and then with the First Academy, which is made up of physicists.

Robots and Empire

Rating: 4.1

Release date is mid 80s. This is the fourth (final) novel in the famous series about detective Elijah Bailey and the robot Daniel Olivo. By the time of the events described in the book, the detective had already died for two centuries, the robot was bequeathed to Solarian Gladia Delmar, Bailey’s lover. She, along with the rest of the spacers, is desperately trying to resist the earthlings, who intend to subjugate all the planets of the Galaxy.

The novel is a kind of link connecting this cycle and the epic about the Academy.

space currents

Rating: 4.0

Another part of the famous series about the Galactic Empire, which includes “Shard of the Universe” (A Pebble in the Sky) and “Stars as Dust”. Critics’ opinions are mixed. The novel has been called both top-notch entertainment and Asimov’s least effort. However, everyone recognized the undeniable superiority of this part of the trilogy over any other space sagas.

In the center of the story are two planets – Sark and Florinia. The Florian workers are under the command of the squires in charge, harvesting a special kind of cotton for them. A researcher flies to the planet from Earth in order to change the established way of life. However, he is captured and subjected to a psychoprobe procedure, resulting in complete memory loss. Subsequently, the earthling becomes an ordinary worker on the planet Floria. Everything would be fine, but over the years his memory began to partially recover.

Last question

Rating: 4.0

The second title – “The Last Problem”, dates back to the mid-50s. Asimov himself called it his favorite story, and there are several documentary evidences of this. The story, which fit on 10 pages, was included in the collection “Nine Tomorrows”. Starting with a seemingly ordinary dispute, he raised the problems of religion, philosophy, time and space, the inevitable or preventable death of the universe, the future of mankind. The story is seen as a summary of the concept of the worldview of the world famous author.

The above rating includes the most famous, memorable and original works of the author. Some of them have been filmed, many are included in separate cycles that form the “History of the Future” – the unique world of Isaac Asimov.

Attention! This material is subjective, is not an advertisement and does not serve as a guide to the purchase. Before buying, you need to consult with a specialist.