Robots and Empire by Isaac Asimov

Finally the Asimov Robot series is at an end.

I stand by my original thoughts on Asimov after reading I, Robot - he was a very clever chap. His books are full of complex scenarios relating to the 3 Laws and at times it is difficult to follow the thread of how and when 1st and 2nd law applies. He obviously knew his subject inside out. There is humour here too, but (and its quite a big but) there is little else other than long scenes of almost entirely dialogue in which the plot plays out.

There is very little descriptive or scene setting paragraphs, so much so that in my head I have almost no idea of what Solaria, or Aurora actually looks like - despite both featuring in 4 books. I read some comments that were made by Asimov about his style in which he wanted to keep his works easy to follow and clear and simple and I agree that he does keep it simple and clear, at least in Caves of Steel and Naked Sun it was simple and clear and short. Robots of Dawn and Empire are long, and become tediously long given the style of writing.

Looking back to I, Robot and all in between the ideas carry the stories along and the short stories are best of all. There was a definite sense of relief after finishing - having set a target of reading all Robots - and I shall look back on Asimov again but for now I'll be reading a variety of authors work, going back to my personal favourite Philip K Dick.

Do you remember the first time?

My first experience of Science Fiction that I can recall was Z for Zachariah by Robert C O’Brien.  This was a book that I read at school as part our English lessons; we would each take it in turns to read aloud to the class a few pages at a time. The exact date and time I am unclear of, but it was probably my first year at senior school – so that would be roughly 25 years ago.  We also read Mrs Frisby and the Rats of Nimh by the same author at around the same time – but no more on that book.

 

I haven’t thought about Z for Zachariah in a long time – and the memory was stirred by this blog - but I got to thinking why I always come back to this genre, what is it that appeals to me, what has influenced my reading habits. I have spent long periods of time away from Sci-Fi (years at a time) but always seem drawn back to it.

Z for Zachariah is classed as post-apocalyptic fiction (a sub-genre in Sci-Fi), and I have read a number of these stories over the years  -The Stand, The Road, The Postman, I am Legend, Swan Song to name a few – and there are many more on my TBR pile.

This book in particular fascinated me, and it’s possibly the lone survivor element that stirs a perverse desire to experience that feeling of being on your own after some catastrophic event. I don’t remember if it was any good, but I do remember that the valley in which they found themselves had a weather system all of its own which meant they were unaffected by the fallout of Global Nuclear Apocalypse– which sounds pretty daft – but the text is aimed at early teens I would suspect.

What I didn’t realise was Robert C O’Brien died before completing the book. It was finished by his wife and daughter from notes he left. I will have to try eBay for a second hand copy and re-read again for old times’ sake and see if I can spot the differences in style.

The Sun Shining on the Bookshops of East Sussex

Having spent a sun drenched week in and around Hastings at the beginning of June I would reflect on (and review) the quality of the bookshops that I visited during the stay. This was not a book buying trip - and thanks to my wife and kids however I was allowed the luxury of browsing around numerous bookshops - in between eating ice creams and building sand castles.

I had done some research before we went and had in mind one particular shop I wanted to visit in Eastbourne the rest were all an added bonus.

Hastings

I visited Albion Books twice and bought 7 books in total. The Science Fiction section was good and there must have been 400-500 and most priced around £1.50. All the books appeared to be in good condition and was happy with the quality, however the shop is very cluttered, with untidy stacks of books all over the floors and in front of shelving making it almost impossible to see the full selection.
If the shop had been busier it would have been a nightmare to navigate.

Bexhill-on-Sea

We hadn't planned on visiting Bexhill so was lucky to stumble across Bestsellers. The shop was very well laid out and again had a healthy selection of Science Fiction.

Purchased 4 books in very good condition for £5 - can't complain.

Eastbourne 

I had read about Camilla's on line before visiting, but was still amazed at the sheer amount of books on sale. I spent more than an hour here, but could have spent several more. The volume of books does mean that they are stacked everywhere. Upstairs, ground floor and downstairs - Science Fiction were on the stairs!

A very large selection of Science Fiction again, and were in neat stacks. I rummaged through them all and selected 8 at a cost of £12. I could and perhaps should have bought more - but I had to budget for ice creams too!

There was a difficult moment when several stacks lost balance and tumbled onto the stairs - no-one came running so I can only assume it happens a lot. The plus side of this was i found a book that i had missed when the towers collapsed.

I only wished i lived closer to visit more often.

Tome bookshop - only a pebbles throw from the seafront - is a very well stocked and laid out bookshop. The Sci-Fi section was not that extensive - but big enough - they did however have a large collection of old Penguin classics - which I picked out 2 John Wyndham novels. I think from memory they advertise all second hand paperbacks at £2 each.

In all 21 classic (or old - probably not all classic) Sci Fi books, spent around £30 and many pleasant hours. When can I go again?

R is for Rocket

I can only imagine what it must have been like growing up in the forties and fifties - particularly in America - with the anticipation and excitement of rockets blasting into space, the great unknown with infinite possibilities.

I am only half way through this collection of stories, but they are a real treat. I just wish I could have experienced these stories as 12 year old boy during this time.

This Preface is probably one of the most moving I have read in a while. Perhaps I missed this when I was growing up, but with 2 young boys of my own I can watch in wonder as they discover Rockets and Space and Planets for the first time, and maybe, just maybe Life outside our own.

The Robots of Dawn

Written almost 30 years after The Caves of Steel and The Naked Sun this novel starts to link the other major works of Asimov (Empire and Foundation). There is also a nod to the past with mentions of Susan Calvin and reference to Andrew Martin (Bicentennial Man) which having read all the short stories prior to this was not lost.

Sex is a prominent theme throughout, and is often dealt with only in dialogue in a very cold and sterile way. This comes about when the clash of cultures and practises collide (Earth, Aurora and Solaria) where living arrangements are all very different.

Elijah is called to Aurora by the eminent Roboticist and politician Han Fastolfe - whom we all met in Caves of Steel. The 'murder' this time is of a Humaniform robot in his service. By his own admission Fastolfe is the only person who could have killed the robot in the manner in which it was killed, but he vehemently denies doing it.

So Elijah has to solve the puzzle yet again. This time he is in the middle of political muddle, as Fastolfe's opposition are rocking the boat, Fastolfe is in favour of settling new worlds using humans (in the same way Earth settled the 'Spacer' planets). Whilst the Robotics Institute of Aurora wants to use Humaniform robots to do the settling first. The only problem is Fastolfe is the only Spacer who has made these type of robots and the blueprints are all in his head.

Overall this book is OK, and I can see where this will link the other Worlds of Isaac Asimov. However it was hard going, and a bit too one dimensional. Had it not been for the final 20 or so pages I think I would have been deeply disappointed with this one. The closing stages do however set up the possibility of an interesting final instalment. On to Robots and Empire then.

The Naked Sun

The second instalment of the Elijah Baley - R.Daneel Olivaw story continues. This time Elijah is called to solve a murder on the Spacer world of Solaria. Solaria is a sparsely populated planet with 20,000 inhabitants and 200 million robots, the inhabitants lead an almost solitary existence and through video type projectors 'view' each other. They are taught from a young age to despise personal contact. Elijah struggles with this open planet (missing his 'Caves of Steel') and agoraphobia is as alien to the Solarians as the concept of solitude is to an Earthman.

The victims wife (Gladia) is the only suspect and can be the only suspect based on the customs and behaviour of Solarian inhabitants. To be killed Rikaine Delmarre had to be 'seen' and not just viewed. The only person that could 'see' according to Solarian practise were robots or his wife. And robots under the Three Laws cannot kill, so Case solved?

No, not exactly and for 200 pages we learn about Solarian society and Elijah interviews his way toward an Agatha Christie style denouement where all the suspects are gathered to hear Poirot's Baley's summing up and ultimate resolution to the impossible crime. Ably assisted by Hastings Daneel in bringing the culprit to justice.

I think this worked better for me than Caves of Steel as a detective novel, with an interesting plot twist at the end. In the grand scheme (Robot Series) we are getting closer to the end now, The Robots of Dawn is up next.

Spending Spree and OCD

This DIY lark has seriously impinged on my spare time and my capacity to get through my To Be Read pile. So much so that I have read only a few chapters of The Naked Sun since before the holiday weekend. That is now complete (and a review will follow, if you can call it a review. It will probably be a synopsis with some commentary on my thoughts) but I really need to up the ante as I have been on ebay again!

When it comes to books my tendencies lean towards OCD. The problem I have (if you can call it a problem) is I Like Books, I Like Them a Lot (substitute Books for Mary).

It is one reason why I don't read using a Kindle type device. It just doesn't feel right. As a book enthusiast rather than a casual reader I would get no pleasure from an electronic version of any of the books in this image.

I think I am turning into a collector too, and will buy or try to buy all of an authors work having read none or only one or two of their books. Partly because I want to read more of their work and partly because I want to have a library where I can pick and choose what I read next. For example I have 9 Robert Heinlein but I am yet to read any, or I have only read The Day of the Triffids but have 7 other John Wyndham to read.

There are over 100 books in my TBR pile not all of which are Sci-Fi, but the majority are. Quite a few are collections of short stories that will be quick reads because of duplication. But at my current rate this would take 4 years to get through, so I'll stop writing now, I can't read and write....

The Caves of Steel

All the short stories now under my belt, it was time to tackle the first novel of the series.

I understand that this novel was partly written in response to his editor John W. Campbell's belief that Science Fiction and Mystery were incompatible. Asimov thought otherwise and 'The Caves of Steel' was the evidence of that. It is essentially a murder/mystery in which we encounter Elijah Baley (the Detective) and R.Daneel Olivaw (an advanced Robot) that looks identical to a human.

The title 'The Caves of Steel' refers to the large self contained cities covered entirely by domes. People rarely venture outside and have no desire to do so, in fact they suffer from severe agoraphobia due to generations of living in these Caves. Everything they would ever need including transport links to other Cities around the country is encased in giant blocks of Steel that has covered in the New York area .  This adds a real gritty futuristic urban feel that features in many Science Fiction stories in print and on screen. Asimov readers will find similarities here with Trantor from the Foundation series.

Elijah has a low opinion of robots and the meeting has the coming together of seasoned detective handpicked for the task and a partner being thrust upon them. In this case its not the plucky young upstart straight out of police training but a Robot sent from the Spacer world in the image of the murder victim. I couldn't help but think back to all the movies and TV police shows where these relationships are central to the plot. Elijah isn't a womanising alcoholic, or a brooding introvert with a closet full of skeletons (or has he? we may find out in later tales?) so here the similarity ends. He is certainly not happy about being partnered with a robot though.

The murder investigation plays itself out against a backdrop of an over populated future earth, the book being set approximately 3000 years in the future where men have colonised 50 planets and live long and healthy lives on sparsely populated worlds.  There is some interesting and often amusing dialogue between Elijah and Daneel - a feature of much of his short fiction - that help lift an otherwise standard whodunit.

I can't say that I was blown away by this one, but it was still an interesting read and as it starts a series within a series (Elijah and Daneel make up the last of the Robot books) there is scope for that relationship to develop further. The Naked Sun awaits...

What the Postman delivered this week

More short stories from Arthur C Clarke and Ray Bradbury. I had always avoided short story collections probably because I always felt a story wasn't a story unless it was 200+ pages.

Since starting my Robot adventure I've been impressed with the quality of the stories, and the depth and breadth of ideas. I think I'm converted. So when I can fit them in they are waiting to be devoured.

The Bicentennial Man and Other Stories

This collection consists of 11 short stories (5 included in the earlier Robot collections - including the title story) and 1 poem.

None of the new stories were on a par with the best of previous collections and I couldn't get into 'The Life and Times of Multivac' at all.

The highlights were 'The Winnowing' and 'Old Fashioned'.

Each story was preceded by an explanation from the author about how the story came in to being. It was surprising that (although perhaps not given the extent of the his back catalogue) he had exact dates for when the stories were begun and for exactly what purpose.

I am amazed by a writers ability to create a story to fit a certain scenario. Asimov discusses how he had been asked to write a particular story for a particular publication and time and again delivered. I have often wondered whether I could write fiction - any fiction - and when I get down to trying there is nothing there. An idea might be present, but translating that to words that are entertaining and follow some sort of logic just seems beyond me.

So, after 6 collections of short stories it is time to start the 'Robot Series' proper with the first full length story - 'The Caves of Steel'. It has a lot to live up to, the motivation for reading all the stories prior was to better understand the logic behind robotics, so I hope it delivers. I've not been disappointed so far, so I am sure it will be fine.