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Summary: Correction To Previous Review And My Comments
Review: First of the main caractor in the thirds section is not, as stated in one of the previous reviews, the same as the main charactor in the first section. He is a charactor in the first section, but he does not play a starring roll. On a more personal note this is the best Asimov book I have read so far and it far excells the quality of his earlier works in the innovativeness, science, and writting.
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Summary: Perhaps Asimov's best novel
Review: I have been a fan of Asimov's fiction as well as his science essays since childhood. I've read his Foundation novels, Robot novels, and various unrelated fiction and factual material. While most of his works have usually appealed to me, I can say with little reservation that "The Gods Themselves" is my favorite Asimov novel - and certainly earns a prominent spot in my personal "Top 10".One of the things I like about this novel is the way the Friedrich von Schiller quotation "Against stupidity, the [very] Gods themselves contend in vain" is worked into the story. The three phrases that make up this quote - "Against Stupidity...", "...The Gods Themselves...", and "...Contend In Vain?" are used as chapter titles - and, what's more, these titles are quite appropos to the theme of each chapter. One of the most enjoyable parts of the novel is the second chapter, which portrays a most unusual, and wholly believable and consistent alien race. Science fiction authors often struggle with the difficulty of portraying an alien race that is different enough from humans to be believable as aliens, yet similar enough to make their motives and culture graspable by a human reader. Asimov succeeds brilliantly in this task, something I can say for only a few other SF titles. At the risk of sounding PC, I was also pleased that Asimov introduced a strong female supporting character, something not usually found in most of his works. The "Selene" character introduced in the third chapter is reminescent of the strong female leads found in many Heinlien novels. Any fan of Asimov's works - or, for that matter, any fan of good science fiction should add this book to their essential collection. There is a good reason why this novel was awarded both the Hugo and Nebula awards after it's initial publication. Unlike many modern winners of these awards, "The Gods Themselves" is both a good AND entertaining story. It's clever and stylish enough to appeal to the "artsy" types that issue such awards, while being entertaining enough to appeal to the meat-and-potatoes reader.
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Summary: Asimov IS GOD!!!
Review: I'm serious when I say, the man is either in league with the devil or with god, because too many of his books are so good they seem like they were written by the hand of god. The Gods Themselves is YET ANOTHER piece of absolute divinity that Asimov has churned out with ease. The novel is divided into three stories, "Against Stupidity," "The Gods Themselves," and, "Contend In Vain?" Against Stupidity starts off on Earth with an Earth scientist struggling against complacent and pompous professors to prove his Earth shaking discovery. Very interesting throughout, and so depressingly true. The Gods Themselves takes place in a conjuctive universe to ours with these WEIRD aliens and describes their society, their entire universe, and IT IS ABSOLUTELY HOLY in its power. Contend In Vain? finds the same person, (as far as I can remember, I read the book a year ago), battling the same stubborn fools yet again when he discovers that his previous discovery, which the combative professors who disbelieved him eventually took credit for, is endagering the entire Solar sytem and eventually the universe. Until you have read this, do not even bother trying to call yourself a serious Science Fiction reader.
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Summary: not HIS best, but better than most
Review: After reading this novel, I didn't have the same sort of awed sense of completion I did after finishing the Foundation trilogy or the first three robot novels. However, I did recognize the quality of alien depiction in the middle section, and this novel is pure Asimov-- a must for his fans, a definite for sf fans, and a probable good read for anyone else, except those so pretentious as to consider anything less than Shakespeare as "beneath them."
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Summary: The best alien mentality in the literature
Review: This book includes the best alien mentality I've read anywhere: most decidedly non-human, yet credibly rooted in their conditions and circumstances, and sympathetic without being "cute and fuzzy." Science fiction works often require permission for one improbable (even inconceivable) event, situation, or technology, as the set-up for the story line's exploration of some "real reality." The one chosen here is (as is explained in the forward) a rather abstruse nuclear-physics fantasy, rather than the conventional FTL drives or telepathic powers, and some of the explorations wander further into these technical details - it might be too technical for some readers. But Asimov's full persona is here: the gently ironic humor, the technical wonder, and the deeply loving humanity.
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Summary: Awesome Brain Candy for Physics Students
Review: The Gods Themselves is both a riveting story and a catalyst for the minds of young science students. If you have taken some physics classes or read up on cosmology you will love this book. The ideas Asimov came up with conscerning inter-universal energy transfer and suggesting that our universe was spawned from a "cosmegg" that had its physical laws altered blew my mind. If you didn't catch these inferences when reading this novel, you didn't read it thouroughly. I couldn't put it down for 5 minutes.
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Summary: He Can't Write
Review: I have to admit that the Foundation Trilogy completely blew me away. Not only was it entertaining, but I loved the idea behind the books, whether or not they are realistic. But I still say he cannot write. He is not Hemingway, Shakespeare, or Austen. This book is the quintessential example of those oh-so-many SF authors who have mediocre-to-great ideas but just can't seem to convey them effectively and beautifully. The prose borders on the quality of high school essays and "The Gods Themselves" was certainly not an exception. His ideas were marginally interesting, but the book was written so incredibly badly that I barely got through half of it before I threw it down in disgust. Don't waste your time with it.
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Summary: Excelent for those who know the science.
Review: I found this book to be quite good on two levels. First, the story and theme of this book is quite intriguing. The story isn't exactly a page turner, but none-the-less engages the reader in a strange way. The theme of this book sugest that rather than preventing human stupidity, one should rather use their own wisdom to counter it. The second level of this book, the science, is quite interesting for those who have the background to understand it. The only trouble with this book I found is that those who do not know Asimov's style or the science behind the plot will be utterly confused. For such people I recomend Reading the Robot and Foundation novels befor atempting this book.
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Summary: Tremendouse raelity
Review: Isaac Asimov is no doubt the finest of all sci-fi writers. The way he builds up completely different realities, completely possible in his mind, and the way he puts these realities to writing, are by all means a heavenly godlike experience. One might actually think he lives in such realities, thus understanding the finest details in every word chosen and all the acting characters themselves.
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Summary: SF fans, enjoy. Literature fans, keep looking.
Review: Admittedly, Asimov is not often compared to Nabokov or Melville or Bronte, but if you've found yourself wondering why not, this book should clear up the matter in your mind. If you're a lit fan and want to sample the best of the SF genre, you'll do yourself a favor to look elsewhere (like maybe Dune or The Martian Chronicles). According to the forward, Asimov's inspiration for the novel was essentially a self-imposed dare. He inflated it from a short story to convince himself he could still write a novel after not having written one for 10 years and it shows. Characterizations and a story that barely would have sufficed for a short story have been spread to complete transparency over 8th grade prose. The whole thing feels very forced.
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