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The Last Theorem [Special Edition] [Hardcover]

Arthur C. Clarke , Frederik Pohl
1.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)

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Book Description

16 Nov 2008

This deluxe illustrated edition features five exclusive full-colour paintings, a specially reset text and is housed in its own slipcase. Limited to just 500 copies, it is signed by Frederik Pohl, Brian Aldiss, who provides a foreword, and the artist, John Harris. Arthur C Clarke's signature appears as a facsimile.

30 light years away, a race known simply as the One Point Fives are plotting a dangerous invasion plan, one that will wipe humankind off the face of the Earth…

Meanwhile, in Sri Lanka, a young astronomy student, Ranjit Subramanian, becomes obsessed with a three-hundred-year-old theorem that promises to unlock the secrets of the universe. While Ranjit studies the problem, tensions grow between the nations of the world and a UN taskforce headed up by China, America and Russia code-named Silent Thunder begins bombing volatile regimes into submission.

On the eve of the invasion of Earth a space elevator is completed, helped in part by Ranjit, which will herald a new type of Olympics to be held on the Moon. But when alien forces arrive Ranjit is forced to question his own actions, in a bid to save the lives of not just his own family but of all of humankind.

Co-written with fellow grand master Frederik Pohl, The Last Theorem not only provides a fitting end to the career one of the most famous names in science fiction but also sets a new benchmark in contemporary prescient science fiction. It tackles with ease epic themes as diverse as third world poverty, the atrocities of modern warfare in a post-nuclear age, space elevators, pure mathematics and mankind’s first contact with extra-terrestrials.

This deluxe quarterbound edition features five stunning colour plates by acclaimed artist, John Harris, which were specially commissioned for this edition, and a foreword by fellow SF grandmaster Brian Aldiss. The book features the fully reset and corrected text, is signed by all contributors (Arthur C Clarke’s signature appears in facsimile) and is limited to just 500 numbered copies; it is housed in a matching slipcase and will be a treasured addition to any collector’s library.



Product details

  • Hardcover: 336 pages
  • Publisher: Harper Voyager; Deluxe edition edition (16 Nov 2008)
  • ISBN-10: 0007304684
  • ISBN-13: 978-0007304684
  • Average Customer Review: 1.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 4,717,791 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Product Description

Review

‘Clarke is one of the greatest imaginative writers of hard science fiction’
New Scientist

‘Arthur Clarke is one of the true geniuses of our time’
Ray Bradbury

‘Arthur C. Clarke is the prophet of the space age’
The Times

‘A one-man literary Big Bang, Clarke has originated his own vast and teeming futurist universe’
Sunday Times

‘Arthur C. Clarke is blessed with one of the most astounding imaginations ever encountered in print’
New York Times

‘One of the truly prophetic figures of the space age… the colossus of science fiction’
New Yorker

‘The most consistently able writer science fiction has yet produced’ Kingsley Amis on Frederik Pohl

‘In his grasp of scientific and technological possibilities, Pohl ranks with Asimov and Clarke, but he has greater originality than either’ Sunday Times

‘I want to be remembered most as a writer - one who entertained readers, and, hopefully, stretched their imagination as well’ Arthur C Clarke

Book Description

A major science fiction event: the first solo novel in a decade from Science Fiction's grand master.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
14 of 14 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars Disjointed - contractual obligation novel 8 July 2009
By zargb5
Format:Hardcover
I am a long time SF reader. I picked this gem up for a mere £1 (for the hardback version) I think i paid too much for it to be honest. The bits which are obviously Clarke (about 33% of the novel) are the dullest parts. Pohl's contribution raises the bar a little. The only really interesting parts of the novel are the brief descriptions of math tricks and problems (of which there are too few to sustain the readers interest through the turgid conservative middle class dialogue and what passes for a plot.

The plot consists of old ideas patched together which were done far better in their original forms years previously. Pohl occasionally adds a bit of gritty realism (ie torture sequences) but these when contrasted against the grand absurd theme of the grand galactics just show the novel to be even more unbelievable and ridiculous.

The super intelligent aliens (the grand galactics)come across as ill thought out and would have been better portrayed as in a comic parody ala HGTTG.

The book is a disjointed affair, the last theorem has nothing at all to do with the main plot at all. The main plot is also not worth the ink or paper used to print it on.

Overall a sad ending to Clarke's brillant career and Pohl does little better. But he has't written anything decent for 20 years either.

Heaven forbid that any new readers to Clarke & Pohl get their hands on this travesty. Please new readers to these authors please check out Clarke's "2001:A Space Odyssey" "The City & The Stars" "Rendezvous with Rama" and Pohl's "Starchild Trilogy" "Man Plus" & "Gateway" to name just a few classics. They are way above the level of this monster.

I read all of this novel and by the time i got to the end i wished i had not wasted my time and had read something more worthy. The whole thing comes over as a contractual obligation exercise. Avoid at all costs.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars A sad disappointment 15 May 2009
Format:Paperback
When I saw this, I thought it sounded promising with its talk of Alien invasion and the World being on the brink of nuclear war.
Instead of the exciting thriller that was expected, it delivered an insipid, at times downright boring tale during which I spent the entire time waiting for some decent plot development instead of lots of pointless little side stories that amounted to nothing.
One of the most frustrating things about this book, was the so called "Alien threat" Rather than the menacing invasion promised on the back cover, it was presented as an almost comedic event and dismissed in a really abrupt and unconvincing manner.
It would also have been nice if the main character solving Fermat's Last Theorem was somehow relevant to the rest of the story, but it just seemed like a red herring.
As a big science fiction fan, over the years I have read and enjoyed many of Clarke's classic stories. Sadly this was a real disappointment.
I'm just glad this isn't the book he will be remembered for.
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27 of 30 people found the following review helpful
2.0 out of 5 stars The ninth billion name of god has been called 25 Aug 2008
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
There is some sadness here, while the last of the three great science fiction writers from the so-called "Golden Age" has passed away. Of the Big Three (the other being Robert Heinlein and Isaac Asimov) Arthur C. Clarke was the more gentle writer, as such famous stories as "The Nine Billion Names of God" or "The Star" can attest to. His grand galactic and spiritual vision (obviously from the "school" of Olaf Stapledon's transhumanism) found its way in such novels as "The City and the Stars", "Childhood's End" and "2001: A Space Odyssey"; they belong to the best of science fiction of that period.

Clarke has cooperated with other writers, notably Stephen Baxter, and for this last novel, with Frederik Pohl, another well-known and respected science fiction writer.

The story of finding a contemporary solution of Fermat's Theorem (that is: with mathematics within the time-span of that mathematician), coupled with aliens knocking at our door, is written with obvious love of Sri Lanka and its people in the forefront. But, just as Asimov and Heinlein before him, he tried to twine the various strands of earlier novels and worlds, such as "Fountains of Paradise", "The City", "Childhood's End" and "2001" into this book. And, predictable, he (and/or Fred Pohl) failed to convince. The Great Galacticans, a glittering utopia hanging before our eyes, and world problems solved with the stroke of a paragraph, it is all a bit too much contrived. It is a 'feel good' book, with much empathy but not with much depth, and a rather plodding plot.

And that is sad. Was Shakespeare really the only one who got better with age? At any rate, Clarke has started his own odyssey into the unknown, and there is much written by him to be fondly remembered. But not this last theorem.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars A Sad Ending
Agree with everything said here.
I must also add I have tried to read the Clarke/Baxter books which are just as bad.. but, Stephen Baxter on His own is absolutely brilliant. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Nj Walton
1.0 out of 5 stars Terrible book
Being something of a fan of Clarke's earlier books but not having read any of his later ones, I picked this up while on holiday from a service station, and I wish I'd left it... Read more
Published on 6 Aug 2010 by Varnor
3.0 out of 5 stars Near future invasion
The Last Theorem stands at the opposite end of the 'Earth under attack' spectrum to Independence Day. Read more
Published on 20 July 2010 by Mr. G. Battle
1.0 out of 5 stars Dull from start to finish, read anything else
Picked this up in the airport and as others have already noted, the blurb on the back cover does a great job of making a mountain out of a molehill. Read more
Published on 29 April 2010 by Shannon
1.0 out of 5 stars more like "The last thorurm errm, what shall we write now'
I agree with 90% of people here, how could the old Grandmaster of Sci fiction turn out this mess. He wrote the Rama series!! a classic of its time. Read more
Published on 19 April 2010 by M. Williams
1.0 out of 5 stars A huge let down ...
Having read and loved the "Rama" books, I was immediately drawn to this, evidently one of the great Mr Clarke's final novels. Read more
Published on 15 Oct 2009 by V Patel
1.0 out of 5 stars Clarke Pohl-axed
Sadly, Clarke's last book was the only one I have thrown into the recycling and not kept to be read again and again as with his own earlier books. Read more
Published on 15 Sep 2009 by A. J. Parsley
1.0 out of 5 stars Absolute Guff!
Like a number of people reviewing this book I was very disapointed. I enjoyed the relationship with Clarke and Baxter and looked forward to this one although to be honest I thought... Read more
Published on 25 Jun 2009 by S. A. Lindsay
2.0 out of 5 stars Clarke's Worlds, Revisited
I wish I could say that this last book by one of the greats of the field is a masterpiece, but unfortunately it's not. Read more
Published on 18 May 2009 by Patrick Shepherd
2.0 out of 5 stars Great ideas, but not very well told
If you're a Clarke fan (as I have been since childhood) then 'The Last Theorem' is required reading, if only because it is his last novel. Read more
Published on 19 Mar 2009 by Adrian Horsman
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