trying to chill

Foundation by Isaac Asimov. Of the books I’ve read thus far, I think this was the most difficult to get through. Not to say that it was bad, but I’m not used to a certain writing style and certain method of progressing through the story. In addition, Foundation was published in 1951, so there are key differences in style and vocabulary. That being said, it was a great book. Asimov’s Foundation series (and in general), as I said, has been and still is the inspiration for many writers.

The Galactic Empire had lasted for 12,000 years and ruled over a million planets. But now it was dying. Hari Seldon, creator of the science of psychohistory, knew that it’s death would be followed by 30,000 years of brutal barbarism and savage warfare. To preserve knowledge and shorten the dark period to a mere thousand years, Hari Seldon set up the Encyclopedia Foundation and staffed it with the best scholars and scientists of the Empire. Then he placed it upon Terminus, a bleak world at the edge of the galaxy. But now the Empire was retreating, leaving the Foundation isolated and unprotected. Around it, little barbarian kingdoms were already beginning their wars in search of dominance. The Foundation knew itself as the only hope of mankind. But what could it do, alone and helpless, against the greed of the warlords who were reaching out to conquer and destroy it.

The novel is actually a series of short stories revolving around a single theme. We continually have to follow different characters and stories that revolve around the Foundation and Hari Seldon’s plan for the future (which we progress through with each chapter/story). I found it a bit difficult at first but once you allow yourself to read the story as if you were watching history unfold, you stop focusing on any single character. The writing is dated, and so is some of the science fiction, but Asimov does a good job putting us through the “history”—the politics of the future. With the end goal being initially described as simply surviving, we learn that it’s much more than that, and of course more exciting.

Asimov takes us through human psychology in politics, one extreme to another, in an interesting and entertaining story. If you like politics, history, and science fiction then I highly recommend this book. Initially this book was the first of a trilogy, but in the 80s he continued the series. I look forward to the next Foundation book: Foundation and Empire.