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Rating: Summary: Asimov IS Science Fiction Review: Isaac Asimov is arguably the most famous science fiction author. He was certainly the most prolific. He also wrote numerous non-fiction tomes, the subjects ranging over everything from an annotated guide to the Holy Bible to introductory chemistry and physics texts. But, so the introduction claims, this is the only book that is a combination of the two -- a series of essays wherein Asimov discusses science fiction itself: its authors, its history and its flavor. Asimov is rather strict in his definitions and rigid in his opinions, but I didn't find this a hindrance. On the contrary, even the passages I disagreed with made me think further about my own positions and opinions. The mark of a good persuasive essay is not that it necessarily persuades, but that it provokes thought. ASIMOV ON SCIENCE FICTION is three hundred eighteen pages long, made up of fifty-five essays which are categorized into eight sections. These subjects are: science fiction in general, the writing of science fiction, the predictions of science fiction, the history of science fiction, science fiction writers, science fiction fans, science fiction reviews, and science fiction and I (Asimov). These essays are primarily reprints from previously published material. The majority of them are editorials from his eponymously titled science fiction magazine, while the rest are taken from introductions to various collections or magazine articles or previously unpublished essays. There's a slight bit of repetition at times since there's a fair amount of overlap in the scope of these individual essays. But for the most part this is a nicely broad look at different aspects of science fiction. The book is as intelligent as one would expect from this author. Asimov doesn't limit himself to speaking only on science fiction. Rather, he compares the genre and its history to changes in society and mainstream literature. In lighter moments, he also has some good-humored fun at the expense of both himself and his fellow writers. Virtually everything he says about the genre itself is reflected in his actual fiction. Not surprisingly to anyone familiar with his work, he is very much in favor of emphasizing the 'science' in 'science fiction'. While I may find this approach occasionally limiting as a reader, his argument does make for interesting reading. The best thing I can say about this book is that it gave me a huge list of classic science fiction novels and authors that I need to check out soon. (I weep at the thought of the free time I will have to acquire if I'm going to get all this new reading done.) Asimov has an obvious love for the genre and he's familiar with virtually everything about it. And there are a few genuine surprises within these pages -- to whit, his critical drubbing of George Orwell's 1984 or his analysis of the science fiction that was coming out of the Soviet Union. Asimov always had interesting things to say. I remember seeing him in a documentary made by a New Jersey PBS station about the television series "Doctor Who". Asimov, at a local convention, is discussing science fiction in general and angrily decrying those who would dismiss the genre as mere child's stuff. "Anything can be just kid's stuff if it's read by people with the mentality of children." His finger is dramatically stabbing the air. "I invite those people to actually read it themselves. Assuming, of course, that they know how to read." At this point the trajectory of his finger reaches its apex. "Which is not always a foregone conclusion!" That clip basically sums up this book. Opinionated, forceful, amusing and deeply loyal to his genre of choice.
Rating: Summary: Essays on science fiction Review: The reason why Asimov compiled this book was, as he says in the introduction, that he had never written a book on science fiction. He had, of course, written a lot of science fiction stories and novels, and a seemingly endless amount of books on just about every other conceivable subject, but he had never written a book about science fiction. This book, Asimov on Science Fiction, was the result of his desire to rectify that situation. The book is a collection of essays, 55 in all, most of which have been previously published in various magazines. A lot of them are editorials from Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine. They are divided into eight categories: Science Fiction in General, The Writing of Science Fiction, The Predictions of Science Fiction, The History of Science Fiction, Science Fiction Writers, Science Fiction Fans, Science Fiction Reviews, and Science Fiction and I. Together they comprise most of what Isaac Asimov has ever had to say about the subject of science fiction, all of it gathered into one place. For the science fiction fan, Asimov on Science Fiction is a small treasure trove covering almost all the aspects of the field of science fiction. There are advice for aspiring writers, reminiscences about the past, views about the future, tributes to some of the other greats in the world of science fiction (for example, Arthur C. Clarke and Ray Bradbury), and much more. For the fans of Asimov, this book is of course essential, but it's also recommended for fans of science fiction in general.
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