Rating: 
Summary: The "War and Peace" of science fiction.
Review: I still remember being intimidated by this book when I was in grade school. You see, Asimov was what "smart people" read. I also remember the summer that I read the entire trilogy, it was the first time that I was completely immersed in a satisfying, intelligent, alternate reality.
Epic, is the only way to describe this opus. Starting in a Galactic Empire that is starting to slip into decline, then on to the monastic settlement of the Foundation and it's mission to preserve the best of the old civilization, then on to the recivilization of the ruins of the old Empire. If I recall correctly, it takes around 1000 years, but without the foundation it would have meant 10 times more chaos and darkness. It is the sense of mission and purpose that holds the whole thing together. And if you like mysteries and surprises, there is the matter of the Second Foundation....
Asimov wrote this when he was pretty young. He still had an unshakable faith that science could accomplish anything. Indeed, he saw a traditional clockwork universe that a sufficiently great mind, like Hari Seldon, could mathematically unlock. Later on in his writing Asimov matured- until he saw the galaxy itself as a living, evolving organism- a grand Gaia hypothesis.
One other thing, having grown up in New York, I think young Asimov saw himself as Hari Seldon in seeing a decadent and declining civilisation before anyone else. You know, he may just have been right....
Rating:
Summary: Classic
Review: Really picks up in the second book with the introduction of "The Mutant", but the area where Asimov succeeds is the creation of a new philosophy--psychohistory--that is fairly realistic and plausible. Great high concept storytelling. Very rewarding novel.
Rating:
Summary: An All-Time Classic
Review: The concept of psychohistory, and the corresponding efforts to try and save the universe by predicting the future, represents one of the great landmarks in science fiction. Sure, it's possible to quibble: some of Asimov's characters lack depth, and the trilogy owes a considerable debt to Gibbon's "Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire." Don't quibble. Read and enjoy a work of science fiction that belongs in everyone's list of the all-time ten best. (But skip Asimov's more recent efforts to extend the Foundation story. He should have known better.)
Rating:
Summary: A good place to start with Issac Asimov
Review: This contains the three books I would recommend to any person new to Issac Asimov. There are many more to read, but I like this series best. This is a great book for people of all ages!
Rating:
Summary: A good place to start with Issac Asimov
Review: This contains the three books I would recommend to any person new to Issac Asimov. There are many more to read, but I like this series best. This is a great book for people of all ages!
Rating:
Summary: Best Sci-Fi series of all time?
Review: This series generally has total enthusiastic acclaimation. Those very few who criticize the Foundation "Septology", are nit pickers. They are so enthralled with the concept behind the story, that all they can do it find the flaws, which include a detached perspective (it is written as history after all!), lack of depth of female characters, etc. The reality is, how many books can you give a 10 year old, or a 70 year senior, and be ensured both will enjoy it equally, even if they already have read it?Asimov was in his early 20's when he wrote this, and modern readers forget this was pulp fiction. My only negative is the complete lack of insight as to our society's current computerization, leaving this subject vague and mysterious. It is refreshing to read a series so fresh in its approach, and "psychohistory" is still an incredible, yet realistic, concept. The Seldon moments, which are a highlight of the series, contain an unexplained mystery, namely "Did Seldon create his Hologram appearances beforehand, just letting the Second Foundation-ers time their release, or were the Holo-appearances complete fabrications created by the Second Foundation-ers to keep the Psycho-Historical time line on course?" So not only read this initial series, but all of the books around it! If you read Sci-Fi, this is one of the MUST reads for ALL Sci-Fi readers. the worst you will come away with is "wow, incredible, but maybe if it also had...". You will be thinking about the book afterwards for weeks or even months. really.
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Summary: The Foundation of science fiction
Review: YOU MUST READ THE FOUNDATION TRILOGY!!! The Foundation Trilogy proved to be a milestone and gave science fiction-literature of the 50's a complete face-lift almost overnight. This new type of science-fiction literature was much more profound and intellectual and focused more on the human psyche rather than green-eyed monsters with ray-guns. Eventually, others followed Asimov's steps, the most famous being Frank Herbert. What Asimov accomplished was truly amazing, and that explains why the Trilogy won the Hugo Award for the best science-fiction series of all-time. There are four more novels in the series, read them and I'll guarantee you'll enjoy them
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