Rating: 
Summary: Sporadicly fascination, but often boring.
Review: I'm sure this book is a great example of what being in space is really like since it's so dull so much of the time. Still it has its strengths and a very interesting premus. All and all a worthy effort but by no means the classic so many say it is. It is better than the movie whose appeal has always dumbfounded me.
Rating: 
Summary: Dated, but still very good
Review: I read this novel when I was about 13, and at that time thought it was great. But after rereading it many years later, I have to revise my opinion. It, unfortunately, is showing its age. One thing that Clarke does (and it is very tiresome) is portray aliens as God. The late Carl Sagan did the same thing. For all the science and supposedly rationality in science fiction, it is in many ways a religious genre. Another problem (and it is another tired cliche) is the belief we were engineered by these God-like aliens. Somehow Clarke portrays early Man as so astonishingly stupid he can't figure out he can eat animals--even though he sees animals see people all the time. Then there is the problem of HAL, the sentient but murderously insane computer. Mechanical Artificial Intelligence is apparently an impossibility. On the other hand, biological AI may be possible. Clarke can be forgiven this, since he wrote in the middle 1960's. There are much better science fiction novels that deal with similar themes, notably Alfred Bester's _The Stars My Destination._ But to pick this book up in your early teens--oh, yes, it is worth it. It stretches your mind, introduces you to concepts that have never occured to you, gives me the 'sense of wonder' that is inherent in good science fiction. But if you've already read a lot of science fiction, and _then_ read this, you may be mildly disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: 2001: A Space Odyssey
Review: This excellent book stretched the boundries of my imagination. Based on what was known of the planet Jupiter back then, Arthur C. Clarke did a wonderful job of bringing you there (quite accurately). I recommmend this to all armchair astronauts, like myself, whoever dared imagine what the outer reaches of our solar system looks like.
Rating: 
Summary: Amazing
Review: I am a 10th grader and I was assigned to choose a book for a book report. I heard of 2001 and I decided to try it. The book was so symbolistic and so amazing that I re-read it twice. Just the plot of the story is amazing. Imagine, an alien life far more advanced than ours, and they helped to create US. I reccomend this book for anyone who loves science fiction, and mostly anyone who doesn't.
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Summary: A novel the makes us think about our existance in Universe
Review: This is the best science-fiction book I've read! Arthur C. Clarke is a true visionary of the future! Almost all the fields knowledge are here, from History to new techonologies. And, if you think of the evolution of technology over the past 30 years, you see that in many aspects Arthur C. Clarke predicted how it would be. Just to give you an example: the approach maneuvre of the spaceship Discovery to the planet Saturn was exactly the same approach used by the Voyager probe! Fantastic!Other interesting aspect of this novel is the story of the evolution of the human being. Ironically, it can be more credible than the myths of any religion! I could pass my whole time talking about this excellent novel, and it still wouldn't be enough. I'll give tou just one advise: read it! It's worth it! Thank you Charles!
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Summary: 2001 Is a Sci-Fi Immortal!
Review: 2001 is an increadible science fiction novel that takes you on an adventure that points to the creation of mankind. When a mysterious monolith is discovered on the moon, it is dug up and points a signal to the outer solar system. A manned mission already headed that way is altered to discover what exactly the signal leads to. I loved the book, and recomend it to anyone that likes science fiction.
Rating:
Summary: Thought and emotion provoking story.
Review: This book makes you think about life, death, other forms of reality, and mankind in general. The frightfulness of Hal (The artificialy intelligent computer who turns into one of the books great mysteries) generated much fear in my mind. I've never been fearful of a computer in a book before and I don't think I ever will again. A great book to make you think about how we got here and why.
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Summary: THIS IS WHAT SCIENCE FICTION IS AT ITS BEST
Review: Wonderful, majestic, and mind blowing
Rating:
Summary: A Thought Provoking Read
Review: Arthur C Clarke's 2001 is probably his most famous book to date due to the remarkable movie made by Stanley Kubrik, but it is definitely not his best. To me, it is written in the same vein as his earlier novels such as Childhood's End and the City and the Stars, but for sheer majesty of language and relevence today, 2001 cannot stand up to his previous works. I agree that 2001 was an extremely enjoyable and oftentimes thought provoking read. However, this cannot disguise the fact that several portions of the novel have not dated very well. The portions about the NASA scientist's flight into orbit and docking at moonbase seemed rather mundane in the face of recent technological developments, though admittedly at the time of publication, 5 years before the moon landing it must seem spectacular. Much more successful are his descriptions of the dull monotony of the mission to Saturn, which ultimately ends in disaster. HAL 9000 is enigmatedly wrought and even at the end we are still unsure of whether he indeed developed intelligence. To me, the most successful portion of the novel is the ending, which is truly awe inspiring. I found his descriptions majestic, so much so that I myself had difficulty envisioning such wonders. 2001 is definitely a thought provoking read. Clarke makes us wonder as to the nature of evolution with his revelation that humans received extraterrestrial help in prehistory. We wonder if man is to advance further, he must receive help from the stars. It is true that 2001 develops rather slowly, but I rather liked the way it was written, slowly revealing the answer to the monolith, only for us to uncover even more enigmas. The ending is rather enigmatic and for me chilling, when the starchild mirrors moondancer's words at the end of the first section of the book: He was now the master of his world. He did not know what to do, but in time he would find out.
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Summary: This book was awesome, but I may be too young...
Review: I did love this book, but I'm only 11 years old and it was a little skippy at times. My favorite types of books are science fiction, but this one may have been a little too high for me. I have never seen the movie, and I will shortly, because then the story might come a little more clear to me. Awesome Book!
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