One gift, endless possibilities
Buy used
£6.78
FREE delivery 29 - 31 October. Order within 22 hrs 53 mins. Details
Used: Very Good | Details
Sold by Brit_Books
Condition: Used: Very Good
Comment: Simply Brit – welcome to our online used book store, where affordability meets great quality. Dive into a world of captivating reads without breaking the bank. We take pride in offering a wide selection of used books, from classics to hidden gems, ensuring there’s something for every literary palate. All orders are shipped within 24 hours and our lightning fast-delivery within 48 hours coupled with our prompt customer service ensures a smooth journey from ordering to delivery. Discover the joy of reading with us, your trusted source for affordable books that do not compromise on quality.
Only 1 left in stock.
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet or computer – no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Follow the author

Sir Fred Hoyle
Follow
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

A for Andromeda (The Story-tellers) Paperback – 1 Jan. 2001

by Sir Fred Hoyle (Author), John Elliot (Author)
4.3 out of 5 stars 36 ratings

Ten years from now, from the faraway constellation of Andromeda, a complex series of signals are collected which prove to be a programme for a giant computer. When the computer begins to relay the information it receives from Andromeda, scientists find themselves possessing knowledge previously unknown to man. Knowledge of such a nature that the security of human life itself is threatened.
Not surprisingly from this collaboration between one of the world's most highly regarded astro-physicists and a talented dramatist, A for Andromeda is both a work of scientific interest and a story of originality and excitement. Though it is many years since the original BBC TV version starring Julie Christie had viewers enthralled, it retains its power to stimulate a new generation of science fiction enthusiasts.

Read more
Previous slide of product details
  1. Book 1 of 1
    a novel of tomorrow
  2. Print length
    176 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Souvenir Press
  5. Publication date
    1 Jan. 2001
  6. Dimensions
    12.9 x 19.84 x 0.97 cm
  7. ISBN-10
    9780285635883
  8. ISBN-13
    978-0285635883
Next slide of product details

Product description

Review

This is science fiction at its best. ― Sunday Mail

A For Andromeda... is essential reading for anyone who wants to know what British science fiction was like before the 'New Worlds' writers rose to fame (and before the 'Star Wars' generation infantilised the genre): a time when SF could be both intelligent and popular with a wide audience. -- Amazon Reviewer

A good read. I remember the original BBC version, Julie Christie and all. I have seen the latest version, so it was good to go back to the original book. -- Amazon Reviewer

A first-class novel, original and disturbing. It is a brightly written, really exciting tale with the added inducement of scientific accuracy. ― Weekly Science Diary

Book Description

From two hundred light years across the universe comes a message of terror.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ 0285635883
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Souvenir Press
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ 1 Jan. 2001
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ Main
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 176 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780285635883
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0285635883
  • Item weight ‏ : ‎ 181 g
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 12.9 x 19.84 x 0.97 cm
  • Book 1 of 1 ‏ : ‎ a novel of tomorrow
  • Best Sellers Rank: 1,187,341 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • Customer reviews:
    4.3 out of 5 stars 36 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Sir Fred Hoyle

Sir Fred Hoyle

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read book recommendations and more.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
36 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find the book to be a good read and appreciate its proper science fiction elements. The story quality receives mixed reactions from customers.

Select to learn more

ReadabilityScience fictionStory quality
4 customers mention ‘Readability’4 positive0 negative

Customers find the book to be a good read, with one noting it can be disturbing at times.

"A good read. I remember the original BBC version, Julie Christie and all...." Read more

"...However, it is a vivid and sometimes disturbing read and it remains a seminal work of the science fiction genre." Read more

"Great read..." Read more

"Great, proper science fiction..." Read more

4 customers mention ‘Science fiction’3 positive1 negative

Customers enjoy the science fiction elements of the book.

"...vivid and sometimes disturbing read and it remains a seminal work of the science fiction genre." Read more

"Great, proper science fiction..." Read more

"...For all the 'period charm' of its setting, the science is still frighteningly advanced, and you could fast-forward fifty years and not much would..." Read more

"Outstanding sci fi..." Read more

3 customers mention ‘Story quality’2 positive1 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the story quality of the book.

"...The whole thing is more like a memoir than a novel but the story is absolutely wonderful...." Read more

"...Doubt I'll finish it. Too much messing around and not enough core story, but it was a tv show." Read more

"Good Story..." Read more

Top reviews from United Kingdom

  • B. Bampton
    5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding sci fi
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 29 June 2019
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    I too remember the TV show in 1961, but I'd forgotten most of the plot. As in Fred's other stories the characters are a bit flat and there are too many people to get much a of a feeling for who's who beyond Andromeda, Judy and Fleming. There is no sense of the passage of time, no explanation of how a few scientists could interpret the message let alone build on it. The whole thing is more like a memoir than a novel but the story is absolutely wonderful. Looking back from almost 60 years it's rather nice to see that several of the central roles were taken by women.
    Helpful
     Report
  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars All good, thanks
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 9 June 2021
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    All good
    Helpful
     Report
  • Mr. Geoffrey J. Frost
    3.0 out of 5 stars Stock control - or not
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 23 July 2013
    Verified Purchase
    Twice I have ordered this book from amazon on each time I have received 'A for Andromeda' What more can I say? Anyone want a copy of A for Andromeda'
    Helpful
     Report
  • Geoff KERSHAW
    4.0 out of 5 stars E for Excellent
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 4 October 2014
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    I saw the television series when it first came out in the 1960's, and it has stayed with me more or less ever since. I bought the book partly to 'check against delivery' - and wasn't disappointed.
    As in The Black Cloud, the sublime Fred Hoyle imagines a different and infinitely more subtle kind of alien 'invasion' than you could ever conceive.
    For all the 'period charm' of its setting, the science is still frighteningly advanced, and you could fast-forward fifty years and not much would have changed. Combine radio-astronomy, advanced computing, gene sequencing and ethical dilemmas - give them a good shake....
    Scientifically and politically It's just as challenging now as when it was first written. Try it!
    4 people found this helpful
    Helpful
     Report
  • G. Shaw
    5.0 out of 5 stars Clasic ScFi
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 4 April 2013
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    A good read. I remember the original BBC version, Julie Christie and all. I have seen the latest version so it was good to go back to the original book
    One person found this helpful
    Helpful
     Report
  • A Frequent Customer
    1.0 out of 5 stars Be warned . The typeface is tiny.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 February 2018
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    I was really looking forward to reading this book as an avid SF reader.
    However this edition has tiny print and I couldn't read it. I didn't get beyond the first sentence and have had to return it. Most disappointing.
    Helpful
     Report
  • M. Wilson
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great read
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 September 2015
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    Book arrived on time and as described
    Helpful
     Report
  • Francis A. Andrew
    5.0 out of 5 stars " 'A' For Andromeda". A review by Francis A. Andrew. Zarqa, Jordan.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 3 September 2008
    " `A' For Andromeda" is a thrilling science fiction book co-authored by Sir Fred Hoyle and John Elliot. It was originally published by Souvenir Press Ltd in 1962 and by Corgi from 1963. It consists of 174 pages and is divided into 12 chapters.

    Science fiction, mystery and intrigue are combined and woven into a plot which ensures that there is not a page in the book which is free of suspense and excitement. The story opens with a state-of-the-art radio telescope at Bouldershaw Fell picking up a strange signal from the Andromeda Galaxy. Analysis of the signal clearly demonstrates its artificiality. When Dr. John Fleming, the central character in the story, deciphers the signal, it turns out that it has come from an intelligence superior to that of the human mind. The message from Andromeda consists of a set of instructions for creating artificial life. In order to implement these instructions, Fleming demands nothing less than the best computer Britain has to offer. This computer turns out to be located at the rocket research establishment at Thorness in the western isles of Scotland. After initial trial and error, the computer succeeds in creating a beautiful young woman who is aptly named Andromeda. She proves to be of very high intellect, and as such, possess the ability to absorb information in a fraction of the time it would take a normal human being.

    We can discern in this story a common theme which runs through most of Hoyle's novels - a dialectic between science and politics. In his novels, Hoyle indicates his personal frustration with politicians by endowing his principle characters with an impatience bordering upon contempt for government and political processes: Chris Kingsley fulfilled this role in "The Black Cloud", Thomas Sherwood in "Ossian's Ride" and John Fleming fits the bill admirably in " `A' For Andromeda"; the Minister of Science being referred to as "His Ministership" is an example of how Fleming persistently conveys his contempt for politicians. The political backdrop to the novel is quite clearly the Cold War. The novel's year of publication witnessed the Cuban missile crisis in which a standoff between the Soviet Union and the West threatened to escalate into nuclear conflict. The authors' portrayal of Britain as a nation whose independent options in terms of defence and foreign policy are slipping steadily from its grasp can, with hindsight, be seen as prophetic.

    Hoyle and Elliot have in fact laced their novel with many prophesies. It is these prophetic touches which make this novel as exciting and as relevant today as it was in the 1960's and 1970's. Some of what was science fiction then has now materialised into science fact. The computer's electrocution of Christine and its making use of her DNA in the creation of Andromeda is clearly a foreshadowing of cloning. The ability of missiles to find their target is what we would nowadays call "smart weapons". Hoyle in fact proposed these as far back as the end of the Second World War but his concept of "intelligent weapons" at that time was pooh-poohed by the Admiralty. New tissue applied to Andromeda's severely burned hands prefigures modern skin grafting techniques.

    What gives this novel an additional layer of fascination are the parts which still remain science fiction. Creating living organisms from non-living components still elude us. A synthesis of computer technology and biology to create conscious artificial intelligence seems as of yet to be some way off into the future. In his 1964 lecture "Of Men and Galaxies" and in his book of the same title, Hoyle considered the possibility of creating an artificial human being. While so far we have not developed techniques by which the aging process can be slowed down, these are nevertheless the subject of serious scientific research. And though Hoyle firmly believed that we are not alone in the Universe, those who are involved in the ongoing SETI programme still await a signal which originates from an intelligent source. It is though, these unfulfilled predictions which make the novel not only a gripping read but a means of showing the careful reader that it is as relevant today as it was at the time when it was written.
    One person found this helpful
    Helpful
     Report

Top reviews from other countries

  • Guillermo Dominguez Cañiza
    1.0 out of 5 stars Not as good a The Black Cloud
    Reviewed in Spain on 2 June 2019
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    Not as good as the Black cloud. Not really SF but a cumbersome thriller-plot.
    Report
  • Inge
    3.0 out of 5 stars I thought it would be better
    Reviewed in Germany on 29 June 2016
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    I had high hopes for this book to be honest. But in the end I was kinda disappointed, I didn't like the writing style for example. I read a lot of other sci-fi books, and compared to this one, they were all better.
    The writing style was a bit dull and never captured me in the story, the dialogues or the characters.
    I liked the idea of the story, that was actually great, but I didn't like the rest.
    The book isn't long, but I needed a long time to finish it, because the reading was so slowly going.
    Report
  • Jero Briggs
    5.0 out of 5 stars A sci-fi drama way ahead of its time!
    Reviewed in the United States on 2 September 2023
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    Based on the 1961 BBC miniseries written by astronomer and professor Fred Hoyoe and writer John Elliot, this 1962 novelization is set in the very near future where a new radio telescope picks up signals from the Andromeda galaxy. These signals turn out to be a message sent by another intelligence. Once decoded, it reveals to be plans to construct a very advanced computer. Once constructed and turned on, it creates an organic being which eventually takes on the form of a young woman called Andromeda. But the lead scientist, Dr. Fleming, starts to have doubts about its motives. Has it been sent here to save humanity or to destroy it. There's also some nice subplots involving government cover-ups and espionage.

    I found this novel to be a great piece of science fiction drama that was both intellectual as well as thrilling with some great characters and character development. I also must say, I think it was way ahead of its time and may even have inspired the sci-fi "Contact". Highly recommended!
    Report
  • hwash
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great if you like old-fashioned science fiction
    Reviewed in the United States on 23 May 2009
    Verified Purchase
    I like reading old science fiction novels because they give us a perspective on what people back then thought of the future and the things they hoped for and feared. This book is fun Cold War science fiction, based on a miniseries which I wish I could watch but the videos unfortunately aren't available. I may have to look up the 2006 remake.

    Actually, the first time I read it I must have been barely seven or eight (I was born in 1983). Someone had thought to edit an abridged children's version - which might sound peculiar but you have to give kids credit for being able to grasp complex ideas even if they can't read complex language easily. Or maybe it was intended for adult English as a Second Language readers. Anyway, it was one of my favourite science fiction novels and I was happy to find a full edition recently. Much better than Hoyle's other novel which I read, "The Black Cloud".

    The outline of the plot is a "First Contact"/SETI story. Essentially, however, it's a morality tale about how the lust for political and military power can lead to unwise decisions about the use of technology. I think most similar stories from this era would focus on technological weapons with overt power - i.e. the atom bomb or metaphors for it. This is something more insidious, a computer which subverts its human operators despite seeming like an innocuous calculating machine, perhaps an advanced version of the Golden Records that we sent out on the Voyager probes.

    Most of the characters are pretty stereotypical, including the hero John Fleming as a hotheaded young genius. Even though Judy Adamson is fairly minor as a player in the plot, she's more interesting as the Ministry of Defense's spy with a troubled conscience. The character of the humanoid Andromeda only appears in the latter half of the book. She falls into the science fiction category of half-alien/-mechanical persons discovering their human side, and I happen to like that sort of thing too.

    The only major complaint I have about it is Hoyle and Elliot's biological howlers, but as a biology grad student I'm used to that from science fiction novels written by physicists. The sexism toward female characters (the only one granted the courtesy of being referred to by her surname and not being called "girl" is a crusty, butch old biochemistry professor) is expected since it's from the early 1960s...half a decade before we saw female officers on Star Trek: TOS.
    Report
  • Desert Rat
    4.0 out of 5 stars Good read. Original premise. Some age shows.
    Reviewed in the United States on 29 May 2016
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    The basic premise is very original. That's not so surprising since when published in 1962. The public was just beginning to be aware of and to "get" computers. It also addresses the a fundamental SF problem, "how can we interact dramatically with distant extra solar cultures given that the speed of light cannot be exceeded." The usual solutions are FTL flight or suspended animation. Hoyle's solution is very clever.

    The 21st century reader needs to be a tolerant of Hoyle's perfectly natural assumption that computers become more powerful by becoming physically larger. Yet his description of the architecture of the computer in question shows he had more than a superficial understanding of how a computer works though reading the "specs" is a bit amusing as the memory and speed characteristics he describes would fit in your iPhone rather than a warehouse. And like nearly everyone else up through the day before yesterday he under-appreciates just how tremendously hard cracking the AI nut is going to be. In addition understanding DNA and how it works has turned out 50+ years later to be deeper and more complex that the story line suggests.

    I think Gene Roddenberry must have read this. The interaction between Fleming and Andromeda/André may have inspired more than one Kirk & alien bimbo plot.

    Reading this book I couldn't help visualizing it as a black ans white British B SF movie. Tweed, pipes, sherry, pubs, fading empire, neolithic male/female roles, etc. I'm old enough to get nostalgic. Younger reader may be a tad puzzled.

    Nonetheless it is really ripping yarn with at least one unique core idea and encourages reading in through one sitting.
    Report