By the end, I got tired of playing the "who's a double agent/who's brainwashed/who's doing the brainwashing" game, but overall, this is some top notch sci-fi. Also, there seem to be some theosophical underpinnings. I wonder if Asimov read The Secret Doctrine. ( )

By the end, I got tired of playing the "who's a double agent/who's brainwashed/who's doing the brainwashing" game, but overall, this is some top notch sci-fi. Also, there seem to be some theosophical underpinnings. I wonder if Asimov read The Secret Doctrine. ( )

Peculiar stuff. It's striking to see Asimov steadily become a better writer over the course of the series, but the overall trilogy just isn't that good. Better off reading one of the trilogy's descendents, like Parker's Engineer trilogy or Dickinson's Traitor Baru Cormorant. ( )

This series solidified my love of classic sci-fi and Asimov's work, especially his robot stories. I read all these books over 25 years ago and they are still awesome. ( )

3½ stars. Sadly this BBC audiobook adaptation of Asimov's classic trilogy suffered from some sound quality issues (variable volume ranging from almost inaudible to too loud; annoying sound effects). It is also much abridged.

An acceptable way to recall the books but I wouldn't recommend it as a replacement for reading them (or listening to an unabridged audiobook). ( )

Coming into this series, the bit of Asimov I had read was not terribly impressive, so my expectations were not very high. As a result, I was pleasantly surprised. It is easy to see how and why the strength of the ideas presented in this series have so powerfully informed all science fiction to follow. The quality of the prose is much higher than I expected, it is not overly flowery or descriptive, but still conveys a clear sense of place and is filled with sparkling dialog. The focus is not on character, but on ideas and concepts, as is common with fix-up SF which was originally written for magazine publication.

SYNOPSIS
Foundation (book 1) The Galactic Empire of the human race is in the early stages of collapse. Using a field of science called Psycho-history, which predicts group behaviors, Hari Seldon forsees the coming collapse, and the 30,000 years of chaos and anarchy that will follow, and establishes The Foundation at the outer rim of the galaxy to guide mankind through these dark times, thereby reducing the duration of the dark times to 1,000 years. In order to avoid influencing the actions of the humans who live during that time, the predicted Crisis events (known as Seldon Crises) are not revealed to the public until after they have occurred.

Foundation and Empire (book 2) introduces a character called The Mule, a mutant human who throws a wrench in the works. Because psycho-history cannot predict individual behavior, the actions of an individual have the potential to derail the Foundation's mission. This book has two main parts, so the character and story could be developed a bit more deeply than in the first book. This was my favorite book of the trilogy, particularly because of the ending, which powerfully reframes the story we just finished.

Second Foundation (book 3)focuses on the existence of the Second Foundation, which Seldon formed on the other end of the galaxy from the first foundation. Where everyone knew where the first Foundation was located, though, the location of Second Foundation remains secret. The first half of this book follows closely after the second half of book two, and once again this installment is basically two stories, in terms of cast and timeframe. The galactic war started by The Mule threatens the success of the First Foundation, leading various characters to seek out the Second Foundation, either to ensure Seldon's defeat or to strengthen his odds of success. One of the main characters is a teenage girl, which was unexpected in a classic 1950's SF title. While this book does not entirely wrap up the story begin in Foundation (which is why Asimov later expanded the series), I did find that it provided a satisfactory conclusion to the trilogy, and did not leave me hanging.

THOUGHTS
Asimov effectively creates a sense of scale for the Galactic Empire, using a relatively small cast of characters. Rather than using a sprawling tale of numerous characters and interweaving story threads, which almost invariable causes confusion and disconnect for the reader, he carefully selects the characters and locations used, to make things easier to follow without it feeling small like a TV movie. The story does jump a bit through time and place, especially in the first book, since the story spans centuries.

I was struck by the number of references to this series which pop up in Star Wars. The concept of a Galactic Empire, which is central to SW, originated in Foundation, of course, but also Coruscant is lifted directly from Trantor, the city-planet which is the seat of Galactic government. A number of character names are also pulled directly, including Han, Bail, Avakim (Anakin), and Korellians.

Overall, the scientific concepts on display here were excellent and intriguing, the quality of prose was above average, thanks to the second and third books the characters were stronger than I expected, and it was properly fun and enjoyable. I can understand why it won the Hugo for Best Series of All Time. ( )

Great sci-fi trilogy. I've heard the Star Wars empire was sort of based on this. Shows ups and downs of power struggles, etc. ( )

I fell in love with Asimov's brilliant mysteries. This is trilogy is the first SciFi of his (which he is most famous for) that I have read. And it was so tough for me to rate. I finally settled on three stars for one reason: it took me several months to finish because I kept putting it down. I didn't care about a single character; the structure of the novel precludes that. I kept reading because the ideas were so grand and ahead of our times, even 75 years after Asimov came up with them, that I wanted to see them unravel.

Hari Seldon developed psycho-history: a mathematical analysis that has refined probability to the point of predicting the behavior of masses of people. The science of mobs. He predicted the First Galactic Empire would fall. (The current Emperor was none too pleased). To mitigate the ensuing barbarism, he creates a Foundation that would evolve over one thousand years into a Second Empire. Then he dies and our story jumps forward fifty years. The first of many such jumps.

Each jump has a new protagonist/hero that will lead Foundation through a crisis and expand its influence. Salvor Hardin dominated using Foundation's advanced atomic science as religion to control their hostile neighbors. In the next jump, Hober Mallow has established Foundation power in trade when religion no longer holds sway. The first two heroes are so clever and charismatic, I found myself rooting for them. But then they were gone. You don't stay with any character long enough to get to know them or form a connection. The first book abruptly ends with Mallow and the First Foundation after 200 years.

Foundation and Empire, or rather the fall of both. Seldon's predictions are based upon mob mentality: what happens when one person influences everything? The secretive Mule that no one has seen and everyone fears, brings down the Foundation with one blow because he is a "mutant". But again, there's no real development. The Mule is a boogeyman filtered through our protagonists. He's a card board stand in to present ideas through. That psychohistory can be thwarted by individuals. This book is mostly a big chase disguising info dumps as our heroes flee from one location to another. And it literally ends with the villain telling us how he did it! The main purpose is to introduce the concept of a Second Foundation that everyone wants to find.

Second Foyndation is a clever and satisfying ending to the trilogy that arises from the very nature of the two Foundations. First Foundation thrives upon mastery of physical sciences; Second Foundation via mental sciences (mastery of self). Which is the true Foundation that will birth a new Empire? Of the trilogy, this is the strongest because it stays with the same people and time throughout with no time jumps. The grand ideas come to fruition, but not a new Empire. There are still six hundred years out of a thousand left to go.

These were written in the fifties, when the spectre of atomic annihilation was fresh and social mores somewhat antiquated. But, the greater ideas easily survive that (instead of "atomics" why not fusion, or even arc reactors). I found this worth reading, just not as entertaining as hype led me to expect. It does make me eager to see the tv show and how they tackle the story structure. ( )

I only read Foundation. I plan on reading the others at a later date. This is the first book by Asimov that I've ever read. It was a bit touch and go there. Interesting political dialogue. The time jumps are obviously annoying to a first time reader, but necessary. Three stars to Foundation. ( )

SF has to involve some kind of imagining of a different world (even if the difference is so small, that it it is superficially indistinguishable from our world at first glance), and this difference has to be rooted in, or have implications for, science or technology. The last part is essential: it's why Frankenstein is SF, but Dracula isn't, for example. It's not just down to the environment it's set in. I think that it's more that SF is often an "active" narrative, "Action" in film parlance while "classic literature" is much more passive. It doesn't have to be this way, but a big part of the SF audience historically has been the teenage male - and they are attracted to the action style of narrative.

“Foundation” is modelled on the fall of the Roman Empire. But it's narrated by what men (and it's almost always all men) are doing. You can imagine the English teacher with their red pen "but describe what the antagonists are feeling". One (at least I) intuits their feelings from their actions.

“1984” is much more closely related to the classic novel. Obviously the cast "does things" but that is a vehicle to narrate their feelings. Right down to the last chapter where the message is the welcoming of the bullet, not the shooting of the bullet.

(the 1st volume of the pack)

Imagine “Foundation” rewritten in the classic style, the broken trustees admitting to Hardin that they were wrong and he was right. It could have emotion and pathos but, to paraphrase, it gets "I won, you lost, get over it" treatment (I can’t wait to see the TV Show when it premieres). Or Hardin's trip to Anacreon. As I this I've already forgetten the name of his assistant left behind on the Foundation to hold the fort (I'm an old geezer like Hari Seldon himself...). He is tortured, he doesn't understand why Hardin is doing what he's doing, he possibly even thinks Hardin is doing the wrong thing. All Hardin needs from him is for him to keep things ticking over, delay, delay, delay, but he barely gets a mention. In a "classic novel" he would be the focus and Hardin's trip to Anacreon would be a side note - possibly even the solution would be described before Hardin left and the suspense would be whether the assistant can hold strong and stick to the guidance that Hardin gave him or whether he will set his own path and, inevitably, ruin everything.

The opposite view however might be that SF appeals to some contemporary SF authors who can’t be bothered to do the research into the "real stuff". They’d sooner just make shit up than have to do the hard yards (Yoon Ha Lee's “Ninefox Gambit” comes to mind).

Asimov’s “Foundation trilogy” still a solid 4 stars in 2021.



SF = Speculative Fiction. ( )

I am not going to be able to add anything new to what so many others have said about this series. I think it is brilliant and I so enjoyed how Asimov wove in his other series (robots and galactic empire) into this overarching future history. It really is brilliant. I have every book in this future history that includes this original Foundation Trilogy except for the three that were written by Gregory Benford, Greg Bear and David Brin. I need to read this entire series over again starting with I, Robot including those by these three authors.

Beginning a re-read after watching the first season of the ATV+ adaptation. After the first couple of chapters I can say that this book is still a worthy read and is far more interesting than the streaming series. The ideas and solutions in Asimov’s book are far more interesting than the action depicted on ATV+. This is a novel for thinking people who appreciate mysteries and problems that are solved by brains rather than brawn.

I like this rating system by ashleytylerjohn of LibraryThing (https://www.librarything.com/profile/ashleytylerjohn) that I have also adopted:
(Note: 5 stars = rare and amazing, 4 = quite good book, 3 = a decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful.) ( )

I really enjoyed the first section of this book, was indifferent to the middle, and didn't care for the final section. ( )

The Foundation Trilogy is an epic science fiction series written over a span of forty-four years by Isaac Asimov. It consists of seven volumes that are closely linked to each other, although they can be read separately. The premise of the series is that mathematician Hari Seldon spent his life developing a branch of mathematics known as psychohistory, a concept devised by Asimov and his editor John W. Campbell. Using the law of mass action, it can predict the future, but only on a large scale; it is error-prone for anything smaller than a planet or an empire. It works on the principle that the behavior of a mass of people is predictable if the quantity of this mass is very large (equal to the population of the galaxy). ( )

Loved this one as a kid, always thought it would make a good movie adaption, the idea of Psychohistory is quite interesting, the writing does not hold up upon revisiting as an adult, but then not much Sci-Fi does. An example of Sci-Fi that most certainly does hold up is The Book of the New Sun. ( )

A brilliant classic sci-fi trilogy, set in a future that is at times terrifying. Yet reading this, one cannot help but wonder if some of the stories aren't a thinly veiled commentary on the government and state of affairs in today's world.

-library book ( )

Science fiction that teaches sociology by dividing humanity into groups and allowing them to grow independently. Illuminating, entertaining.

Great to have this audio version, though it comes across as very stilted now, and so many of the voices are indistinguishable. ( )

It's all very orchestrated, but then that's the plot. It goes that way because it must go that way.

Foundation: Women are part of the painted backdrop and barely even that until he needs someone to be entranced by a bauble.

Foundation and Empire: Women actually have a role. Well, woman. Someone needs to be caring without limit to the point of possible foolishness, so a woman can do that.

Second Foundation: Now we can have something like a strong and smart female character! And the comments that go on? Said to her father, should she find a husband, the best thing to do for him would be to kill him. That's right, would be better to be murdered than to be married to a smart woman. Say what? ( )

Hey, this is FOUNDATION. It's a classic for a reason. If you like sci-fi and are curious about the staples of the genre, you should probably read it. Some say the series hasn't aged well, and they're not exactly wrong; the text does feel dated at times. Nonetheless, there are enough interesting sci-fi ideas that it should keep you engaged all the way through. Actually, I would say the sci-fi elements are really top-notch; it's Asimov's characterizations that fall a little flat. Plus, the novels are short and sweet.

The copy I picked up was a magnificent leather-bound hardcover edition found at Barnes & Noble's. It looks very nice on the bookshelf. Definitely a good buy. ( )

First, I think it should be noted that this review is for a QUARTET of books: Foundation, Foundation and Empire, Second Foundation, and Foundation's Edge. I just couldn't bear writing four separate reviews, so please, forgive me for this all-too-brief synopsis of a truly epic experience.

Now, I first read the Foundation series when I was 12 or 13, and while I didn't "get" the gist of the book, I still found it hugely entertaining, enough so that I plowed through all three of them and when I happened upon a boxed set at a local used book store at a reasonable price, I had to have them, and they had to go to the top of my reading list. Of course now it's 40 years later and Isaac is long since passed on to the next plane of existence, but before he left, he wrote four additional books to go along with the original three.

I'll leave Asimov's own intros to explain the genesis of the novels (it's fascinating and makes great reading all by itself!) but suffice to say, this is not Star Wars or Star Trek. It's not space opera. It's very talky, a lot of dialog between a lot of characters who seem to appear out of nowhere and disappear without warning, especially in the first book. Take Hari Seldon, probably THE central character...he's mentioned throughout the series... and he's actually only alive for the first thirty or forty pages of the first book!

Weirdly, it all works if you stick with it. It's fascinating, and you can't keep from pushing on and on to see what's going to happen next. That's the mark of a truly great story, and when it lasts well into the thousands of pages...hey, few could've pulled this off but the great Asimov. There's a reason it has long been noted as the "Best Science Fiction Series of All Time". If you haven't read it, and you're a sci-fi devotee, you're depriving yourself of a treat. And if you have read the first trilogy but not the later additions to the series, I bet you'll enjoy at least the fourth book, which is a very worthy successor. I am now in the process of hunting down the "prequels", which I hope to read before I finally get the last book of Asimov's own Foundation books.

And then there's the additional books written by other luminaries that expand the series...but, that's another story, for another day... ( )

Come scrivono Fruttero&Lucentini nell'introduzione, questo è un libro di fantascienza sui generis: contrariamente alle aspettative (alle mie, se non altro), Asimoov ha in questo caso lasciato che la fantasia si scatenasse sull'intreccio e non sulle possibili invenzioni e innovazioni tecnologiche. Come se fosse un libro di storia scritto tra milioni di anni che ripercorre le vicende di un'ipotetica umanità nell'arco di qualche secolo. Un bel libro, anche se i protagonisti si succedono di pagina in pagina senza lasciare il tempo di conoscerli né, tantomento, di affezionarsi. Un bel libro, che si legge come un bignami di storia arricchito di qualche vicenda umana. Un bel libro, che mostra come dagli anni '50 in fondo in fondo, tecnologia dello stato solido a parte, sia cambiato ben poco. ( )

(review originally written for Bookslut)

I have always been a fan of science fiction. Let's face it, when you have a father who reads Dune and the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy to you as bedtime stories, what other choice do you have? Given that, I really don't read that much of it anymore. Let's face it, there is a lot of crappy science fiction out there, and unless I really devote myself to the genre, it's hard to just go into the book store and pick up something that isn't going to be terribly lame. You can weed out all the books with large-chested women who are falling out of their uniforms on the cover (unless it's written by Heinlein), but that can still leave you with entire rooms full of books to wade through. The science fiction section at my favorite used book store is bigger than the entire fiction and literature section. The fact that most of it is not classified as fiction or literature should tell you something. Let's just say that I have been burned by quite a few terrible science fiction purchases. And this was back in high school, when I was still devouring Harlequin serial romance novels without blinking.

Despite all that, the well-respected name of Isaac Asimov should immediately put all fears to rest. If that isn't enough for you, there is always that the Foundation series is the winner of the Hugo Award for best all time science fiction series. Of course what really sold it for me was the fact that my sister is the one who nominated the series for the 100 books list, and she's even more skeptical of science fiction than I am.

Although there are now several Foundation novels, the original trilogy, Foundation, Foundation and Empire, and Second Foundation, was written thirty years before pressure from fans and his publisher forced Asimov to return to the series. When the Hugo Award was given, only these first three books existed. By the time I learned all this, I was eager to find out what all the fuss was about.

The first book, Foundation, is more a collection of short stories than a novel. Despite the fact that women are virtually non-existent in this book (except for one wife whose only purpose in the plot is to be fascinated by some new-fangled jewelry), it is by far my favorite. The fact that many science fiction authors, who can conceive of wholly alien cultures and technologies no one has even dreamed of before often cannot conceive of a purpose besides boobs, is a source of constant irritation for me. But that's a rant for another place and time, as Asimov redeems himself with the fabulous female characters in the other two books. Foundation is a collection of near misses. It tells the story of a civilization on the fringes of the universe, strong in science but weak in resources in ships. What sets it apart from the bulk of science fiction stories, and what makes it so refreshing, is the way the Foundation men use their wits to outsmart each warlord and government that threatens them, often without a single shot being fired. At the beginning of the book they are possibly the most vulnerable planet in the galaxy. By the end, they are the ruling planet of a flourishing empire.

The second book, Foundation and Empire, is really two novellas. In the first novella, the empire of the Foundation collides with what is left of The Empire, which once ruled the entire galaxy, but is now crumbling. This may be the least satisfying out of all the Foundation stories, as its resolution depends not at all on the genius or cunning of any one person. In the second story, the Foundation is menaced by a mutant, the Mule, something unforeseeable by the Seldon plan, which predicts that the Foundation will eventually rule over the entire galaxy. Although I was a trifle disappointed by how easy it was to guess the secret identity of the Mule, the way in which one woman discovers his identity and single handedly thwarts his effort to destroy all that the Foundation has worked for makes the story well worth it.

The final book, Second Foundation is also really two novellas. This book holds its mysteries closer to its chest. The only frustrating thing about it is that the end does not bring us to the promised age of the Foundation's rule over the entire galaxy. It is for this reason that so much pressure was put on Asimov to add to the Foundation series.

So if you're going to read science fiction, read the Foundation series. Or at least the trilogy. Or at least Foundation. Because this is good stuff, folks. This is what science fiction should be. Not just cool gadgetry and neat-looking aliens, but an inquiry into human behavior and civilization, the forces that hold it together and eventually tear it apart. And this series is a lot more entertaining than The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire, trust me. ( )

I have not read The Foundation Triology since I was 10 years old. It made a huge impression on me at that time and I thought it was time to reread the classic series - one of the most honored and cherished science fiction series ever to be written.

Well, it hasn't aged well, Asimov's characters are wooden and one-dimensional and not developed at all. The dialogue is, shall we say, 50's pulp fictionish. The plot throughout the books wanders around like a drunken sailor looking for a good time.

Still, Asimov does one thing so right it completely redeems the entire series and makes the books well worth reading. His vision of a galactic empire encompassing MILLIONS of worlds is enthralling and spins my geekness on it's ear. His idea of pyschohistory - the ability to predict future events based on large groups of people is equally interesting.

Worth reading due to the contributions to science fiction and the ideas presented. ( )

Quite simply this is the finest work of science fiction that I have ever read. Asimov had a way of really bringing the characters to life and making you empathize with them.

For me the story was so captivating that I hardly put the book down. And the best part of all is that it was so well written that I did not have a clue how it would end until the last two sentences of the book. Predictable it was not.

I have read this trilogy twice already and it is on my list for another re-read. ( )

In his seminal Foundation Trilogy, Isaac Asimov channels Edward Gibbon's The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire as he envisions mankind's future. Psycho-historian Hari Seldon, mathematically predicting "the developing decline and fall of the Galactic Empire" (Foundation, pg. 28), creates the Foundation as "the means by which the science and culture of the dying Empire was to be preserved through the centuries of barbarism...to be rekindled in the end into a second Empire" (Foundation, pg. 85) as well as to lessen the interregnum between the fall of the first empire and the rise of the second from a period of 30,000 years to 1,000. The three novels cover the first 400 years of this period. Asimov's portrayal of the future galaxy draws upon popular portrayals of a Middle Ages perspective of Ancient Rome. At one point, a character thinks of the superstitions regarding the relics of the Empire, musing, "There was this superstitious fear on the part of the pygmies of the present for the relics of the giants of the past" (Second Foundation, pg. 156), showing a clear sense of something having been lost to the world. Finally, without giving away spoilers, the riddle of the Second Foundation borrows from a popular saying about the Roman Empire.
While Asimov's writing inspired numerous other authors, this particular series left its mark all over the Star Wars franchise. From the "Korellian Republic" (Foundation, pg. 139) to the planet Trantor, which Asimov described, writing, "the lustrous, indestructible, incorruptible metal that was the unbroken surface of the planet was the foundation of the huge, metal structures that mazed the planet" (Foundation and Empire, pg. 72), and which clearly influenced Coruscant. Further, the Visi-Sonor described in Foundation and Empire is the obvious precursor to the Holophonor in Futurama. Those with any background in European history or a prior knowledge of science fiction will recognize what influenced Asimov and what he, in turn, influenced through Foundation. It's no wonder the Hugo Awards declared this the best science fiction series of all time. Even those who have not yet read it have surely read science fiction that felt its influence. ( )