Foundation (The Foundation series) (Paperback)

If you're unfamiliar with the Foundation work, they are basically a series of short stories taking place over a number of centuries that chart the rise of an intergalactic civilisation from humble origins to a vast galactic power, and the trials and tribulations that shaped it, narrated from the perspective of its major historical figures, such as prominent civic leaders, military heroes, merchant traders, brilliant scientists etc. Underpinning all this is the strange figure of genius Hari Seldon, who predicted the whole course of future events through his discipline of psychohistory, a science that predicts the actions of whole civilisations and societies over a grand time-scale.

Each chapter starts with an excerpt from the fictional Encyclopedia Galactica on the events portrayed in the following scene as if the whole series is a look back at history from some undisclosed future. It lends a wonderful sense of grandness to the stories as well as being an original and novel way of introducing the new setting. As I mentioned earlier, each chapter takes place several decades after the previous one so characters who were 'upstart young rebels' in one story become 'noble visionaires' in the next scene, and 'legendery heroes' in the one after that. The chapters all focus on a Seldon Crisis, which are a series of predicted crises that would mark a new stepping stone to greatness, and are accompanied at the conclusion of the section by the appearance of the long dead hologram of Hari Seldon popping up every few centuries describing the events that have just occured.

The character of Seldon and the way he evolves from crackpot theorist, to brilliant but misunderstood genius, to an almost prophetic role is wonderfully moving, as are the other important characters throughout the novel, and the development of the Foundation and its gradual dominance through various means (including religion, trade and war) is spell binding. Asimov touches on many themes here: the role of religion as a tool of conquest, the magicianry associated with any highly advanced technological society, the inevitable bureaucracy that any establishment eventually succumbs to, the predictability of mob-mentality. Unfortunately, many of these wonderful themes are only lightly touched upon, which is a shame although Asimov's clear simple writing style and light humour make his work accessible to anyone.

If you can ignore the surface details and the slightly comic-bookish settings then you will enjoy one of the most pivotal and ambitious science fiction series written. I also highly recommend the two sequels.

Here is the work of a unique genius at the age of 22. Over the next seven years, he was to complete a period of enlistment in the Army and gain a Doctoral degree; paid for by the publication of these and many other stories, including those of the classic, 'I, Robot'.

32 years and over 150 books later came the next 'Foundation' story. 'Foundation's Edge' published in 1982 won the Hugo Award for the best Science Fiction Novel, hit the New York Times Best Seller list at once and stayed there for half a year. Three more 'Foundation' stories were to follow. Here then is a unique opportunity to compare and enjoy the creation of a Grand Master, at two ends of his long career.

I first read the 'Foundation' trilogy in the Fifties and was enthralled. Fifteen years later, on the next serious reading, the magic was undiminished. Thirty years later after reading the new trilogy, I returned to my old favourite to be spellbound once again. Small wonder that it is regarded as a classic.

The story begins in Trantor, capital of a Galactic Empire spanning 25 million inhabited worlds after 12,000 years of Imperial progress. The Empire seems prosperous, strong and stable. Yet one man predicts its fall and the subsequent 30,000 years of chaos, before a second Empire could emerge. Using his science of Psychohistory, he also developed a plan, which could shorten the 30 millennia of misery into just one! That man is Hari Seldon and the plan becomes known as the 'Seldon Plan'.

The plan requires the establishment of Foundation, a community dedicated to the compilation of all human knowledge in the form of an 'Encyclopaedia Galactica'. The 100,000 Foundationeers are banished to Terminus, an insignificant planet at the edge of the Galaxy. While the encyclopaedists toil with their mammoth task and the Foundationeers struggle to survive in a barren world, civilisation crumbles around them. Soon enough, they face their first major crisis when the warlord of a neighbouring world threatens to take over.

'Foundation' is a story on a stupendous scale narrating the first two centuries of survival and revival. It's a story of deadly conflicts, interplanetary intrigues and galactic gamble. Will the fledgling Foundation survive? Will the Foundationeers live up to the expectations of the prophetic Hari Seldon? How long can the fiercely independent 'Traders' hold off the greedy warlords who act to enslave the 'Foundation' and claim its scientific rewards for themselves?

Read this fantastic book and experience the magic.