Rating: 
Summary: Earth in the Empire
Review: In this novel, a great deal depends upon a science fiction element not used very often by Asimov: time travel. A strange accident transports an innocent middle-aged man thousands of years into Earth's future from his native mid-twentieth century. Earth is much-changed in this future, as a poisoned backwater world of no importance in the Galactic Empire. The citizens of this Empire not even aware that Earth was the original home of humanity, despite that very assertion by Earth's inhabitants. An archaeologist seeks to end this dispute by visiting Earth to find proof one way or another about Earth's place in humankind's past. And he happens to be visiting shortly after the arrival of our hapless 20th century American. But things are not to be that easy. This novel details the efforts of the archaeologist to solve the mystery, the travails of an unintentional time traveler adjusting to his fate, and the others they encounter. Asimov also uses a plot element to be found in both the Robot Novels and the Foundation Novels: Psionics, obviously a favorite concept of his. The storyline becomes entangled with the politicians of Earth and their feelings toward the Empire as a whole, especially their rancor at being despised by the Empire. Unlike the previous two Empire Novels, this story does not read as a mystery. Rather this novel is more an adventure in the future, with some romantic elements thrown in. Among the three Empire Novels, this is my favorite. The story may start a bit slow, but once it picks up it does not slow down until the conclusion, where Asimov pretty much sums it up as one might see coming. There was not really anything difficult to anticipate, but the concepts are wonderfully applied. I recommend this book even if you have not read any of the other Empire Novels, as you will really not miss out on anything.
Rating:
Summary: Earth in the Empire
Review: In this novel, a great deal depends upon a science fiction element not used very often by Asimov: time travel. A strange accident transports an innocent middle-aged man thousands of years into Earth's future from his native mid-twentieth century. Earth is much-changed in this future, as a poisoned backwater world of no importance in the Galactic Empire. The citizens of this Empire not even aware that Earth was the original home of humanity, despite that very assertion by Earth's inhabitants. An archaeologist seeks to end this dispute by visiting Earth to find proof one way or another about Earth's place in humankind's past. And he happens to be visiting shortly after the arrival of our hapless 20th century American. But things are not to be that easy. This novel details the efforts of the archaeologist to solve the mystery, the travails of an unintentional time traveler adjusting to his fate, and the others they encounter. Asimov also uses a plot element to be found in both the Robot Novels and the Foundation Novels: Psionics, obviously a favorite concept of his. The storyline becomes entangled with the politicians of Earth and their feelings toward the Empire as a whole, especially their rancor at being despised by the Empire. Unlike the previous two Empire Novels, this story does not read as a mystery. Rather this novel is more an adventure in the future, with some romantic elements thrown in. Among the three Empire Novels, this is my favorite. The story may start a bit slow, but once it picks up it does not slow down until the conclusion, where Asimov pretty much sums it up as one might see coming. There was not really anything difficult to anticipate, but the concepts are wonderfully applied. I recommend this book even if you have not read any of the other Empire Novels, as you will really not miss out on anything.
Rating: 
Summary: Early Asimov still beats par
Review: It is really an enormous tragedy that so many of Isaac Asimov's greatest Science Fiction works remain out of print. The three 'Empire' novels by Asimov are a great example. All three books are wonderfully written and fill the gap between The Robot novels and the Foundation series beautifully. These novels are also a glimpse at the state of science in the fifties. If you are an Asimov fan and see any of the Empire novels available for loan or purchase please do so. You will not be sorry. To clear up some confusion on the part of some, the reason these novels are called 'Empire' novels is because they take place just before the Empire began, during its infancy and at its peak. Very much fun indeed.
Rating:
Summary: When I finished it, I thought I was a Galactic citizen!
Review: My enthuziasm for "Peeble in the Sky" comes from reading this book when I was 14. It was a Romanian translation (apologies for subtleties lost), but when I finished it, I thought I was a Galactic citizen! In case you wonder, I started with Gerard Klein's "Les seigneurs de la Guerre" -- a classic French Sci-Fi that's missing from Amazon.com ... Fifteen years later, I re-read "Peeble..." (found it at an antiquariat in University City, St. Louis MO) and by this time, I had already covered the Foundation trilogy, Foundation's Edge and Foundation and Earth. By comparison I think "Peeble..." stands as an equal to the original Foundation Trilogy -- at least in tempo and characters, if not in concepts. Even Isaac cannot easily surpass Psychohistory, a true peak in Sci-Fi literature... "Peeble..." has tempo, and will absorb you in genuine Asimov style. So, from someone who read this book twice, in two languages, a well-deserved five-stars for "Peeble in the Sky"!
Rating: 
Summary: Third in the Galactic Empire series.
Review: Obviously written in the late 1940's, this novel heralds back to the birth of the sci-fi novel. It is rooted in post-war phrasing and ideology.
This, like most of Asimov's works, is safe sci-fi reading for any age bracket.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic Early Asimov
Review: Pebble In The Sky is probably the reigning titleholder of "Undiscovered Classic" in Isaac Asimov's impressive lexicon. It may take a little searching to locate this book, but believe me, it's well worth it. Dr. Asimov constructed a huge universe that traces humanity from the near future (the Robot stories) to its first creaking footsteps into the unknown (the Robot novels), to the founding of a Galactic Empire (the Empire novels), and finally to the ultimate destination of mankind (the Foundation novels), although this was not his original intention - the Robot universe and Empire/Foundation universe were knotted together by later books. Anyway, of these four categories, the Empire novels are easiest the weakest. This is partly because it is very early Asimov (but Foundation and I, Robot, both classics, are equally early), and partly because the idea behind it all maybe isn't as inspired as the others. However, Pebble in the Sky is a true work of literary genius. It is set on Earth in the year 827 of the Galactic Era. A man called Joseph Schwarz is found by a farming family, who find that he cannot communicate. They take him to a doctor at the city of Chica, Dr. Shekt, who uses his new Synapsifier to increase intelligence. Soon, they discover that Schwarz is in fact from the year 1949 AD, an era thousands of years back. Schwarz is equally amazed to find himself thousands of years in the future. And what a future he finds waiting for him... I will not give any further information because it may well spoil the plot for you. It is a well-written enjoyable book. It showcases Dr. Asimov's incredible ability to render cultures, as his portrayal of Earth is one of the most haunting things I have ever seen. It is only a shame that he never wrote later Empire novels (maybe team Schwarz and R. Daneel Olivaw together!) to add to this forgotten chapter in his works. Finally, a quick word about the contradictions. This work was written in 1949 and published in 1950, and so Dr. Asimov's knowledge of nuclear physics was a little rudimentary, as was anyone else's. Only four years removed from Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the idea of a fullscale nuclear war seemed a very real possibility, and this was the reason that the Earth was radioactive. However, when Asimov wrote a later book entitled Robots And Empire, he realized that this was impossible and devised a more scientific solution. Everyone's belief in the story that it is because of a nuclear war can be put down to folklore - after all, the book does seem to say that much of our knowledge has been forgotten. Read Pebble In The Sky and enjoy it as the classic that it truly is. You won't be disappointed. 5 out of 5 stars.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic Early Asimov
Review: Pebble In The Sky is probably the reigning titleholder of "Undiscovered Classic" in Isaac Asimov's impressive lexicon. It may take a little searching to locate this book, but believe me, it's well worth it. Dr. Asimov constructed a huge universe that traces humanity from the near future (the Robot stories) to its first creaking footsteps into the unknown (the Robot novels), to the founding of a Galactic Empire (the Empire novels), and finally to the ultimate destination of mankind (the Foundation novels), although this was not his original intention - the Robot universe and Empire/Foundation universe were knotted together by later books. Anyway, of these four categories, the Empire novels are easiest the weakest. This is partly because it is very early Asimov (but Foundation and I, Robot, both classics, are equally early), and partly because the idea behind it all maybe isn't as inspired as the others. However, Pebble in the Sky is a true work of literary genius. It is set on Earth in the year 827 of the Galactic Era. A man called Joseph Schwarz is found by a farming family, who find that he cannot communicate. They take him to a doctor at the city of Chica, Dr. Shekt, who uses his new Synapsifier to increase intelligence. Soon, they discover that Schwarz is in fact from the year 1949 AD, an era thousands of years back. Schwarz is equally amazed to find himself thousands of years in the future. And what a future he finds waiting for him... I will not give any further information because it may well spoil the plot for you. It is a well-written enjoyable book. It showcases Dr. Asimov's incredible ability to render cultures, as his portrayal of Earth is one of the most haunting things I have ever seen. It is only a shame that he never wrote later Empire novels (maybe team Schwarz and R. Daneel Olivaw together!) to add to this forgotten chapter in his works. Finally, a quick word about the contradictions. This work was written in 1949 and published in 1950, and so Dr. Asimov's knowledge of nuclear physics was a little rudimentary, as was anyone else's. Only four years removed from Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the idea of a fullscale nuclear war seemed a very real possibility, and this was the reason that the Earth was radioactive. However, when Asimov wrote a later book entitled Robots And Empire, he realized that this was impossible and devised a more scientific solution. Everyone's belief in the story that it is because of a nuclear war can be put down to folklore - after all, the book does seem to say that much of our knowledge has been forgotten. Read Pebble In The Sky and enjoy it as the classic that it truly is. You won't be disappointed. 5 out of 5 stars.
Rating:
Summary: Pebble is a Worthy Conclusion to the Galactic Empire Trilogy
Review: Pebble in the Sky is the last of Asimov's Galactic Empire trilogy, which precedes events described in the masterful Foundation Trilogy. Pebble adds further detail about the Empire of Trantor and the place of Earth within it, thousands of years in our future. Humanity is spread across the Galaxy, inhabiting a hundred million star systems and numbering in the quadrillions. Yet atomic warfare has reduced Earth to a radioactive backwater, despised by the other imperial citizens. This is the world where Joseph Schwartz, a complacent and mild-mannered tailor, finds himself after being catapulted forward in time as a result of an accident in a nuclear lab in mid-20th century Chicago. He soon meets two brilliant scientists: Dr. Bel Arvardan, who is intent on proving that Earth is humanity's birthplace, and Dr. Affret Shekt, physicist and inventor of the Synapsifier, which can boost intelligence in astonishing ways. They team up to foil a plot that could destroy nearly every human alive in the Galaxy. The book is not without weaknesses. The future science that drives the plot is often a bit dodgy and far-fetched. Schwartz is propelled into the future as a result of an experiment with crude uranium gone freakishly awry, but how exactly this happens is never explained. Nor does Asimov convincingly describe how the biological WMD at the heart of the plot could actually spread across the Galaxy so quickly without the many technologically-advanced worlds of the Empire discovering a way to stop it. Then there is some of the dialog. Even though most of the book takes place so far in the future that humans have evolved miniature appendices and no longer grow facial hair or wisdom teeth, the characters sometimes lapse into dialog reminiscent of American slang straight out of a bad 1950s detective novel. Dr. Arvardan, for example, after knocking down an obnoxious Galactic lawman who has slapped him, asks: "Any other .. think he can play pattycake on my face?" Ughh. These weak spots make suspension of disbelief a bit challenging at times. As with the other books in the trilogy, however, Pebble's strengths outweigh its shortcomings. It is a worthy addition to Asimov's pre-Foundation future history and a fun read to boot.
Rating:
Summary: Decent Asimov but not as good as his others
Review: So far I've read Asimov's four Robot novels and all three Empire novels. I haven't read the Foundation series yet. Pebble in the Sky is the last of the Empire trilogy. It's a good read but I didn't enjoy it as much as the other Empire books or the Robot series. I feel that science fiction is most enjoyable when it's somewhat believable, but Asimov nonchalantly combines three far-fetched concepts in this work: time travel, telepathy/ mind control, and a weapon of extreme mass destruction. It's a bit too much! A man named Joseph Schwartz is for no reason warped in time to the far future when the Trantorian Empire (introduced in The Currents of Space) has conquered and brought general peace to the entire Milky Way galaxy. The novel takes place wholly on Earth but the Earth of the future is a shattered and largely radioactive planet that bears little resemblance to what it is today. There is no space travel in this book. After the random time travel event, Schwartz proceeds to acquire superhuman powers and uncovers a conspiracy that threatens the Empire, helped by a couple people who really just end up being the supporting cast for Schwartz's show. The viewpoint of this book is interesting: the "good guys" are the vast and powerful galactic Empire and the "bad guys" are some militant activists on Earth! Overall, this book was a letdown after The Currents of Space, my favorite of the seven Asimov novels I've read so far. Still, it gives you an interesting perspective on the Empire at the peak of its power. From what I've heard, the Foundation series is where the Empire begins to crumble. So read the Empire series if you want to get a better idea of what life in the early Trantorian regime was like!
Rating:
Summary: Sub-par for Asimov
Review: The amazingly prolific Isaac Asimov wrote over 500 books in his career, some of the best science fiction novels and stories ever written among them. Pebble In The Sky, unfortunately, is not one of the great ones. To be sure, it is not a bad book: it is suspenseful, fast-paced, and quite entertaining. But Asimov is a great writer, and this book must be weighed against his other works, many of which are great. This book falls short of them. It is the third novel in the now out-of-print Empire series, which comes between the Robot series and the Foundation series in the Asimovian hierarchy (don't worry: it's not as confusing as it sounds.) The novel does a good job of furthering the story of the Galactic Empire, picking up where the previous Empire novel, The Currents of Space, dropped off, and setting the way for the Foundation series. Unfortunately, this book is just not as inspired and well thought out as the best of the good Doctor's works. Asimov is known for his highly complex plots, which often mix mystery elements with plausible science. He often writes with a dramatist's flair, however, which serves to make his books extremely suspenseful and entertaining -- and, thus, appealing even to the non-science fiction reader. But, in this book, the author stretches the reader's credulity a bit too far. For example, the transmigration of the protagonist from circa 1949 into the far future is never adequately explained: it just kind of happens. I was expecting some kind of return to the perspective of the past at the end of the book to explain the situation -- but, alas, it never comes. Some of the characters and their actions also too clichéd at points. This is definitely below the high Asimov standard. As it is out of print, anyway, I recommend that only hard-core Asimov fans seek it out, in order to complete their Empire series collection, as the first two books in the series are excellent. Otherwise, one would do much better to grab up some choice Asimov: The Gods Themselves, and any of the Robot novels or the original Foundation trilogy.
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