3001: the Final Odyssey

Rating:
Summary: Unusual and excellent sequel!
Review: A very unusual book for a sequel. 3001 is a very quick read and has some Arthur C. Clarke touch of 2001. Plus, the same character barely mentioned in the original is completely developed here, constructing him into the central character. In my opinion, this is the most underrated book of all time. There is no reason for the many negative ratings it has received. The very best new edition of this has recently been released, coming out as a well made but cheap paperback edition.
The story chronicles Frank Poole's revival and exploration of the new technology in the year 3001. After visiting the technology of the ship he is rescued by, he attempts to contact David Bowman by landing on Europa. I will not tell you anything that happens from here, as the rest is the most exciting part of the book. Pick this up AFTER you read 2001 and 2010.

Rating:
Summary: Long on future talk. Short on plot
Review: After reading this book, I decided to read through 2001 and 2010, then never got around to 2061. On the plus side, just watching the movies is enough for you to know what's going on. Plus, there is at least one entire chapter lifted from 2010, and multiple references back to the other books, so you in no way need to read the other books to know what's going on. On the other hand, there's an entire chapter lifted from 2010, and several other instances where entire sections were pasted in from his previous books. Yes, I listed that as a plus, but I also definitely felt a bit short changed by the fact that Clarke had basicaly padded the book by cutting and pasting from previous works.

Also, as somewhat of a nitpicker for details, I picked up on multiple instances of continuity problems between this book and the rest of the series. Clarke timeshifts events in 2001 A Space Odyssey forward several more years to apparently try to maintain some continuity with real life technology. Yet this is a horrible thing to do, considering that he named the books after the years they take place in. There are also a number of other events that take place in the previous books that are altered so as to better fit with the plot in 3001. In reality, it's almost better if you read 3001 as a stand alone book, as if you read it as part of the series, you'll end up scratching your head over the constantly changing details.

It is, however, a facinating view on how far (or how little) we'll have come in 1,000 years. And you do get an explanation behind what the Monoliths are really there for. But once I got past the

Rating:
Summary: A meander down memory lane
Review: As usual for Clarke, the science is pretty good. Unfortunately, there's so much time spent dropping names of famous scientists, events, etc, that it's distracting. By analogy, could we discern between the important people at the end of the 10th century as opposed to those in the 9th or 11th? Of course, not, unless you're a professor of history specialising in that time period. There is such a character in 3001, but it seems tacked on. More interesting is the subplot with the monolith and the contact with Dave/Hal.

Sure, there are incosistencies, as pointed out by others, but none so major as the Saturn/Jupiter shift between 2001 and 2010 (i.e. 2010 is a sequel to 2001 the movie, not 2001 the book), but, like Asimov, Clarke never lets a little thing like continuity get in the way of writing a story the way he thinks it should be written at the time he's writing it. That he's forthcoming and honest about it makes me tend to ignore it.

Looking at the total of the story at the end, you can't help but feel a little nostalgia for this particular little universe Clarke has created. While not up to the standards of 2001 and 2010, I don't think it would suffer a comparison with 2061. It really is time for this storyline to terminate, and I am encouraged that he's called this one the Final Odyssey.

Rating:
Summary: Just barely OK
Review: I figure if you're a Clarke reader you come to his work tolerant of his short-comings as a writer: weak characterization and weak dialogue. You come to Clarke for his speculative ideas and interesting plots. 3001 begins well enough; the ideas are abundant and the plot builds, albeit, a bit slowly. There is a bit too much of revived Discovery astronaut Frank Poole's recovery time devoted to the minutiae of fourth millennia technology. When Poole finally gets back into space and pursues the continuing mystery of the monoliths the book really gets rolling. Unfortunately, and inexplicably, Clarke rushes the conclusion, and I believe undercuts the powerful image of the Monolith he has challenged our imaginations with from the beginning of the Odyssey series. The supposed conclusion to the series leaves readers more confused than ever and trivializes one of the most potent images in sci-fi lit. Very disappointing and unsatisfying. I wish he hadn't even made the attempt.

Rating:
Summary: Not worth the wait...
Review: I grew up on Clarke. His novels and short stories fuelled my avid interest in science, evolution, and academic pursuits. It used to be that I could not wait to read the latest Clarke edition.

But the last good books Mr. Clarke has written were 2010 and Fountains of Paradise. All subsequent books by Mr. Clarke, including 3001 have lacked the ingenuity and sense of wonder present in his earlier work (i.e. Childhoods End, Rendezvous with Rama, Expedition to Earth). I thought that 2061: Odyssey Three was low point of Clarke's writing, but 3001 is nothing more than a "cut and paste" job from all the intruiging ideas explored by Mr. Clarke in previous books. The notes at the end of 3001 are more interesting that the actual story, and most of those notes appeared in the much earlier (and brilliant) Fountains of Paradise.

My advice to those that loved 2001 and haited 2061, give this book a miss.

Postscript

I originally reviewed this book anonymously in 1997, right after it came out. I reread it again recently, and had to stop. It really was not worth it.

Rating:
Summary: Crap
Review: I really tried to like this book, but in the end I have to say that it is crap.

Rating:
Summary: Conclusion of a Space Odyssey
Review: I recently finished Arthur C. Clarke's 3001: THE FINAL ODYSSEY. Like all of Clarke's later books, 3001 was very entertaining and also thought-provoking. This volume completes Clarke's speculative series. Each book stands alone in its time line but are related by common themes. They are really four versions of one story each told from a different point in the story. For instance, in 2010, Jupiter becomes a sun that burns for thousands of years. In 2061, the Jupiter-Sun burns out. In 3001 the Jupiter-Sun is still burning brightly.

Frank Poole's body has been found drifting in space and then revived. The last thing Poole remembers is being on a mission to Jupiter. Now he finds himself in a world a thousand years later. The ban keeping humanity away from Europa is still in effect. Because of Poole's relationship with Bowman, it is suggested that he might be able to land on Europa. Poole tries and is successful. He is contacted by what was Bowman. Later, in another contact Bowman brings distressing news. The nearest center of the intelligence that created the Monoliths is about 450 light-years away. That means that the events of 2001 have made it there, a decision has been reached and the answer is almost here. Bowman also knows of a link between the Monolith makers and a nova that has been puzzling scientists. It appears that a planet exploded and that triggered the nova. A similar fate might be in store for humanity. The forces of Earth, aided buy Halman (Bowman and HAL), put together a plan to survive. The most destructive computer viruses ever devised will be fed into the Monolith by Halman. The plan proves to be successful.

3001 is billed at the final Odyssey but it really opens up more questions than it answers. Now that Earth and Humanity have the attention of the Monolith builders how can we expect them to ignore us? I don't think they would but Clarke is done writing in this series. Maybe Gentry Lee will pick up the torch and continue the run. Another amusing aspect is the continual references to Star Trek. Clarke has also taken the opportunity to update some of the technology and history that Frank Poole should be familiar with. All in all it was another fine effort from possibly the greatest science fiction writer still writing. The book also contains an extensive afterword detailing scientific research, history and plot similarities with other projects. If you have read any of the other Odyssey books I recommend reading this one as well.

Rating:
Summary: Conclusion of a Space Odyssey
Review: I recently finished Arthur C. Clarke's 3001: THE FINAL ODYSSEY. Like all of Clarke's later books, 3001 was very entertaining and also thought-provoking. This volume completes Clarke's speculative series. Each book stands alone in its time line but are related by common themes. They are really four versions of one story each told from a different point in the story. For instance, in 2010, Jupiter becomes a sun that burns for thousands of years. In 2061, the Jupiter-Sun burns out. In 3001 the Jupiter-Sun is still burning brightly.

Frank Poole's body has been found drifting in space and then revived. The last thing Poole remembers is being on a mission to Jupiter. Now he finds himself in a world a thousand years later. The ban keeping humanity away from Europa is still in effect. Because of Poole's relationship with Bowman, it is suggested that he might be able to land on Europa. Poole tries and is successful. He is contacted by what was Bowman. Later, in another contact Bowman brings distressing news. The nearest center of the intelligence that created the Monoliths is about 450 light-years away. That means that the events of 2001 have made it there, a decision has been reached and the answer is almost here. Bowman also knows of a link between the Monolith makers and a nova that has been puzzling scientists. It appears that a planet exploded and that triggered the nova. A similar fate might be in store for humanity. The forces of Earth, aided buy Halman (Bowman and HAL), put together a plan to survive. The most destructive computer viruses ever devised will be fed into the Monolith by Halman. The plan proves to be successful.

3001 is billed at the final Odyssey but it really opens up more questions than it answers. Now that Earth and Humanity have the attention of the Monolith builders how can we expect them to ignore us? I don't think they would but Clarke is done writing in this series. Maybe Gentry Lee will pick up the torch and continue the run. Another amusing aspect is the continual references to Star Trek. Clarke has also taken the opportunity to update some of the technology and history that Frank Poole should be familiar with. All in all it was another fine effort from possibly the greatest science fiction writer still writing. The book also contains an extensive afterword detailing scientific research, history and plot similarities with other projects. If you have read any of the other Odyssey books I recommend reading this one as well.

Rating:
Summary: Long on future talk. Short on plot
Review: I will admit, I haven't read the books 2001 or 2010, but with the release of 3001, I decided I would give Arthur Clarke a try. On the plus side, just watching the movies is enough for you to know what's going on. It's also a facinating view on how far (or how little) we'll have come in 1,000 years. And you do get an explanation behind what the Monoliths are really there for. But once I got past the "golly-gee, so this is what the future could be like" moment, I realized there wasn't much plot going on. Most time was spent explaining things like a ring constructed around the planet or on efforts to terraform other planets. When it came down to the actual plot of the book, it seemed like a passing thought. The ending especially seemed tacked on, and devoid of any imagination. It was as if Clarke had finished talking about the future, wanted to be done with the project, and just threw in a rather cheap, hardly explained, and a bit difficult to believe resolution, and called it a day.

If you're looking for one man's view on mankind in 1,000 years (and recall that he was a tad optimistic on where we'd be in 2001), then this is a pretty good book. If you're looking for an exciting sci-fi adventure, you should really keep looking.

Rating:
Summary: OK
Review: Its not nearly absorbing as the other books, but as the other 261+ people have said already, it is simply an OK book.. reccomended to readers wanting to continue and end the Odessey Books.