Frequently Asked Questions about Isaac Asimov

This FAQ is compiled by Edward Seiler (seiler@nibbles.gsfc.nasa.gov) and John H. Jenkins (John_Jenkins@taligent.com).

This HTML version was produced by Soh Kam Yung (sauron@ee.nus.sg)

The original is at www.lightside.com.

Suggestions, modifications and corrections to information in this FAQ should be directed to Edward Seiler or John H. Jenkins. Suggestions and modifications to the format of this HTML document should be directed to Soh Kam Yung.

Copyright notice: This document is copyrighted by the above people. You may distribute this document in whole or in part as long as the above attributions remain intact.

This document answers frequently asked questions about Isaac Asimov and his works. It is posted regularly to the USENET newsgroup alt.books.isaac-asimov. It is organized as follows (questions whose answers have changed since the last posting of the FAQ are marked with an asterisk).

Last modified: August 1, 1994

HTML document last modified: August 6, 1994

Table of Contents:

  1. For starters
    1. Where can I get a list of all of Asimov's books? Is there an FTP site for this information?
      1. Lists available from books.
      2. Lists available on Internet.
    2. Where else can I find Asimov stuff on the net?
    3. Is this FAQ accessible through the World Wide Web?
  2. Biographical (non-literary)
    1. How do you pronounce "Isaac Asimov"?
    2. Is Asimov really dead? When did he die? Where is he buried?
    3. When and where was he born?
    4. Who are the other members of his family?
    5. Was he married? Did he have any children?
    6. What are the titles of Asimov's autobiographies? Where can I get them?
    7. What books and articles about Asimov have been written by others?
      1. Books.
      2. Articles.
    8. What religious beliefs did Asimov have?
    9. Did Asimov do anything other than write all day and all night?
    10. Is it true that Asimov had a fear of flying?
    11. What other notable quirks, fears, and pet peeves did Asimov have?
  3. Biographical (literary)
    1. When did he start writing?
    2. What was his first published story?
    3. What awards did he win for his writing?
  4. The Foundation/Robot Series
    1. What is this Forward the Foundation I keep hearing about?
    2. Did Asimov really write Forward the Foundation? Didn't he die before it was done, so somebody else really wrote it up from notes?
    3. What about the contradictions between Forward the Foundation and other Foundation books?
    4. What is the chronological order of the Foundation books?
    5. What is the order in which the Foundation books should be read?
  5. Other writings
    1. What is the relationship between the movie Fantastic Voyage and Asimov's novel?
    2. What did Asimov write besides the Foundation and Robot books?
    3. What is the source of the title of the novel The Gods Themselves?
    4. *Is there an index of his science articles for the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (F&SF)? Of his editorials in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine (IASFM)?
    5. *What is the Asimov-Clarke treaty?
  6. More than books...
    1. What records, audio tapes, videotapes, and software are available?
      1. Records and audio tapes.
      2. Videotapes.
      3. Computer Software.
  7. Coming attractions...

For starters

Where can I get a list of all of Asimov's books? Is there an FTP site for this information?

Lists available from books.

Asimov published lists of his books periodically through his life, in his three Opus books (Opus 100, Opus 200, Opus 300) and the three volumes of his autobiography (In Memory Yet Green, In Joy Still Felt, and I. Asimov: A Memoir).

The lists in Opus 100, Opus 200, Opus 300, In Memory Yet Green, and In Joy Still Felt include an official number for the books listed, indicating the order of publication. The catalogue in I. Asimov: A Memoir does not number the books listed and is known to be incomplete. Official numbers for the books not listed in the other volumes are not available.

As of the time of his death, Asimov had published some two hundred books without official numbers. Many of these can be found by going through such sources as Books In Print or the Library of Congress card catalog [which can be accessed by telnet to locis.loc.gov during the hours (U.S. Eastern Time) 06:30-21:30 Monday-Friday, 08:00-17:00 Saturday, 13:00-18:00 Sunday]. However, since Asimov often did not count as "his" books those on which a publisher merely slapped his name, and because a number of his books were published in limited editions by obscure presses, these sources cannot be taken as complete. The compilation of a truly complete list is not a casual undertaking.

Lists available on Internet.

There are two sites that currently archive lists of his known books and short stories. These are Lightside, Inc. and the anonymous ftp site, vaxa.crc.mssm.edu. Thanks to Fred Condo (fred@lightside.com) and Alex Pechtchanski (pechtcha@vaxa.crc.mssm.edu) for providing the respective sites. Any omissions or errors in the lists should be reported to Edward Seiler (seiler@nibbles.gsfc.nasa.gov) or John H. Jenkins (John_Jenkins@taligent.com).

Note: WWW Clients seem to have trouble accessing the ftp links to the VAX (vaxa) site. The problems encountered by each client are as follows:

Xmosaic (and Macintosh Mosaic)
Unable to connect to the site. Returns an error message stating that the requested document could not be accessed.
Lynx (in UNIX)
Can connect. But formatting of some documents is 'screwed up.'
I have not tested the links with other clients (like Cello). If you have, please e-mail me a message on your success/failure with them.

The files available at the sites are as follows:

The anonymous ftp site, gandalf.rutgers.edu, archives sf-related material and contains a general Science Fiction resource guide. A bibliography of books by Isaac Asimov and Janet Asimov can be found here, as well as those on other writers. (The list on Asimov is less comprehensive or detailed than the one compiled by Edward Seiler.)
These lists of bibliographies are copyrighted by John Wenn (jwenn@world.std.com).

Where else can I find Asimov stuff on the net?

Here is a list of Asimov related material on the net (If you have found other sites with Asimov related information, please inform Edward Seiler and me, so that we can include them in this FAQ):

Is this FAQ accessible through the World Wide Web?

Yes, you can access this FAQ via the World Wide Web.

The latest WWW edition of this FAQ can be found here at Lightside, Inc.

Many thanks to Fred Condo (fred@lightside.com) for graciously allowing this FAQ to reside there.

Biographical (non-literary)

How do you pronounce "Isaac Asimov"?

"EYE'zik AA'zi-mov". "AA'zi-mof" is also OK. The name is spelled with an "s" and not a "z" because Asimov's father didn't understand the Latin alphabet clearly when the family moved to the US in 1923. Perhaps the best way to remember this pronunciation is the pun from The Flying Sorcerers by Larry Niven and David Gerrold: "As a color, shade of purple-grey", or "As a mauve".

Is Asimov really dead? When did he die? Where is he buried?

Asimov died on April 6, 1992 of heart and kidney failure. His body was cremated and his ashes scattered.

When and where was he born?

Asimov was born (officially) January 2, 1920, in the town of Petrovichi (pronounced peh-TRUV-ih-chee), then in the Russian Soviet Federated Socialist Republic and now in Russia. It can be found at latitude 53.58 N, longitude 32.10 E, about 400 km. southwest of Moscow and some 16 km east of the border between Belarus and Russia. Born to Jews in the early days of the USSR, there are no accurate records, however, and it is possible that he may have been born as early as October 4, 1919.

Asimov's birthdate was temporarily changed by his mother to September 7, 1919 in order to get him into school a year earlier. When, several years later, he discovered this, he insisted that the official records be changed back. January 2, 1920 was the date he personally celebrated throughout his life.

His family left the Soviet Union on January 11, 1923 and arrived in New York City February 3.

Who are the other members of his family?

He was the son of Judah Asimov (1896-1969) and Anna Rachel Berman Asimov (1895-1973), who were married in 1918. Asimov was named Isaac after his mother's father, Isaac Berman. He has a sister Marcia (born Manya in 1922) and a brother Stanley (b. 1929).

His father saved the money earned from several jobs during his first three years in the U.S. and bought a candy store in Brooklyn, which his parents ran for the next forty or so years.

Marcia married Nicholas Repanes in 1955 and has two sons, Larry and Richard.

Stan became a journalist and rose to vice president in charge of editorial administration for Newsday. Stan and his wife Ruth have a son, Eric, and a daughter, Nanette, both journalists. Ruth has a son, Daniel, by a previous marriage, who was adopted by Stan, and is a mathematician. Daniel Asimov may be found on the net, but does not wish to be bothered with inquiries about Isaac, so please leave him alone.

Was he married? Did he have any children?

Asimov met Gertrude Blugerman on a blind date on Valentine's Day, 1942, and they were married five and a half months later. They had a son David (b. 1951) and a daughter Robyn Joan (b. 1955). They separated in 1970 and divorced in November 1973. He married Dr. Janet Jeppson two weeks after his divorce. Asimov had no children by his second marriage.

What are the titles of Asimov's autobiographies? Where can I get them?

In Memory Yet Green covers the period from 1920-1954. In Joy Still Felt spans the time from 1954-1978. These two volumes were published by Doubleday in 1979 and 1980, with paperback editions following a year later. They are currently out of print, and thus your best bet for finding them is to check used book stores, science fiction conventions, etc.

I. Asimov: A Memoir was published by Doubleday in March 1994, and covers his entire life, written in 166 brief chapters arranged in roughly chronological order.

In addition, the three Opus books (Opus 100, Opus 200, and Opus300), The Early Asimov, and Before the Golden Age contain substantial autobiographical material, and Asimov talks a great deal about himself and his life in many of his other books, particularly in anecdotes found in his essays in the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction and his editorials in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine.

Note: Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine has been renamed Asimov's Science Fiction.

What books and articles about Asimov have been written by others?

Books.

Seekers of Tomorrow, "Isaac Asimov"
by Sam Moskowitz, World, 1966, pp. 249-265.
The Asimov Science Fiction Bibliography
compiled by M. B. Tepper, Chinese Ducked Press, 1970.
The Universe Makers
by Donald A. Wollheim, Harper & Row, 1971.
Asimov Analyzed
by Neil Goble, Mirage, 1972.
Isaac Asimov: A Checklist of Works Published in the United States, March 1939-May 1972
by Marjorie M. Miller, Kent State University Press, 1972.
The Science Fiction of Isaac Asimov
by Joseph F. Patrouch, Jr., Doubleday, 1974.
Asimov's Foundation Trilogy and Other Works: Notes, Including Life of the Author, an Overview of Asimov's Science Fiction, Categories of Science Fiction, Analyses of the Works
by L. David Allen consulting editor, James L. Roberts, Cliffs Notes, c1977
Isaac Asimov
edited by Joseph D. Olander and Martin Harry Greenberg, Taplinger Pub. Co., 1977.
Isaac Asimov
by Jean Fiedler and Jim Mele. Ungar, c1982.
Isaac Asimov, the Foundations of Science Fiction
by James Gunn, Oxford University Press, 1982.
Isaac Asimov - Scientist and Storyteller
by Ellen Erlanger, Lerner Publications Co., c1986.
Isaac Asimov
by Donald M. Hassler, Starmont House, 1989.
Isaac Asimov
by William F. Touponce, Twayne Publishers, 1991.

Articles.

"You Can't Beat Brains"
L. Sprague De Camp, Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, XXXI (Oct. 1966), 32-35.
Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, XXXI (October 1966)
special Asimov Anniversary edition.
"Translator"
Time, XC (July 7, 1967), 55-56.
"The TV and Dr. A"
Greg Bear, Luna, No. 1 (June 1969), 5.
"Isaac Asimov, Man of 7,560,000 Words"
New York Times Book Review, Aug. 3, 1969, 8, 28.
"Asimov's Hundred"
Publishers' Weekly, CXCVI (Aug. 25, 1969), 270.
"A Thinking Woman's Philtre"
Judy-Lynn Benjamin, Luna, No. 5 (Oct. 1969), 14-17.
"Coming of the Humanoids: Android Fiction"
N. P. Huxley, Commonweal, XCI (Dec. 5, 1969), 297-300.
"Scientific Enquiry" a Boston Interview with Isaac Asimov
Boston, LXI (Dec. 1969), 51-54, 82-86, 89-90.
"ESFA Open Meeting-1970"
The WSFA Journal, No. 73 (Sept.-Nov. 1970), 11-22.
"Amazing Mr. Asimov"
P. Farrell, Writer's Digest, LIII (July 1973), 20-22.
"Keeping Posted"
Saturday Evening Post, CCXLVI (Jan. 1974), 6.
"Backward, March!"
Forbes, CXIX (Apr. 1, 1977), 74.
"Asimov, the Human Writing Machine"
J. L. Collier, Reader's Digest, CXI (Aug. 1977), 123-126.
"What Makes Isaac Write?"
Time, CXIII (Feb. 26, 1979), 79.
"Asimov at 200"
T. Lask, New York Times Book Review, Jan. 28, 1979, 43.
"Science and American Society"
F. Jerome, Current, CCXXXVII (Nov. 1981), 3-10. Also Environment, XXIII (Sept. 1981), 25-30.
"A Conversation with Isaac Asimov"
F. Kendig, Psychology Today, XVII (Jan. 1983), 42-47.
"Isaac Asimov: Modern-Day Renaissance Man"
J. Walsh, The Humanist, XLIV (July/Aug. 1984), 5.
"Asimov Is Celebrating 300th Book's Publication"
E. McDowell, The New York Times, Dec. 17, 1984, C13.
"The Protean Penman"
S. Kaufer, Time, CXXXII (Dec. 19, 1988), 80-82.
"Isaac Asimov Speaks"
The Humanist, IL (Jan./Feb. 1989), 5-13.
"Requiem: Isaac Asimov 1920-1992"
K. Ferrell, Omni, XIV (June 1992), 22.
"Giants Fall"
L. David, Ad Astra, IV (July/Aug. 1992), 11.
"Isaac Asimov"
K. Frazier, Skeptical Inquirer, XVII (Summer 1992), 351.
"Asimov's Vision"
A. Dane, Popular Mechanics, CLXIX (Aug. 1992), 96.
"Isaac Asimov"
Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, LXXXIII (Aug. 1992), 5.
"A Celebration of Isaac Asimov: a Man For the Universe"
Skeptical Inquirer, XVII (Fall 1992), 30-47.
"The Legacy of Isaac Asimov"
P. D. Hutcheon, The Humanist, LIII (Mar./Apr. 1993), 3-5.
"Isaac Asimov: a One-Man Renaissance"
B. Chambers, The Humanist, LIII (Mar./Apr. 1993), 6-8.
"Asimov's Laws of Robotics: Implications for Information Technology", part 1
Computer, Dec. 1993, 53-61.
"Asimov's Laws of Robotics: Implications for Information Technology", part 2
Computer, Jan. 1994, 57-65.

What religious beliefs did Asimov have?

Asimov had no religious beliefs; he never believed in either God or an afterlife. He considered himself a Humanist, one who believes that it is humans who are responsible for all of the problems of society, as well as the great achievements throughout history. The Humanists believe that neither good nor evil are produced by supernatural beings, and that the solution to the problems of humankind can be found without the intervention of such beings. Asimov was a strong proponent of scientific reasoning who adamantly opposed creationists, religious zealots, pseudoscience, and mysticism.

Asimov did not oppose genuine religious feeling in others. He did, however, have little patience for intolerance or superstition masquerading as religion.

Although he was an atheist, Asimov was proud of his Jewish heritage. His parents never made an effort to teach him religion. He did study in Hebrew school for several months while his father served as secretary for the local synagogue, where he learned some Hebrew and how to read Yiddish.

Asimov did have a great interest in the Bible, and wrote several books about it, notably the two volume Asimov's Guide to the Bible and The Story of Ruth.

Did Asimov do anything other than write all day and all night?

Although famous for writing over eight hours a day, seven days a week, Asimov found time to do a few other things beside writing.

He was a member of the Dutch Treat Club, a group that met for lunch every Tuesday at the Regency Hotel in New York. He joined the club in 1971 and was made president in 1985.

He joined the Baker Street Irregulars in 1973, a group of avid Sherlock Holmes fans that held an annual banquet to celebrate Holmes' birthday. Asimov admitted that he was not a true Holmes enthusiast, but enjoyed delivering banquet toasts, speeches, and singing sentimental songs.

Asimov was a Gilbert & Sullivan enthusiast since his youth, when he listened to the plays on the radio. In 1970 he joined the Gilbert and Sullivan Society, and attended almost all of their meetings. He regularly attended G & S productions in Manhattan, and occasionally served as toastmaster at benefit shows. He loved to sing songs from the shows, and was quite proud of his singing voice (among other things).

He belonged to an all-male club called the Trap Door Spiders, which met for dinner one Friday night every month, treating a guest invited by the host to dinner in return for the privilege of grilling him about his life and work. The club formed the basis for the Black Widower mystery short stories. The characters were loosely modelled on actual club members as follows: 

Black Widower      Trap Door Spider
=============      ================
Geoffrey Avalon    L. Sprague de Camp
Emmanuel Rubin     Lester del Rey
James Drake        Doc Clark
Thomas Trumball    Gilbert Cant
Mario Gonzalo      Lin Carter
Roger Halsted      Don Bensen
Henry              fictional
Asimov joined Mensa, the high-IQ society, in the early 1960s, but found that many of the members were arrogant about their supposed intelligence, so he let his membership lapse. However when he moved back to New York, he became an active member once again, and gave speeches to groups of Mensans on a number of occasions. Yet once again membership became a burden for him, so he resigned from the group.

Asimov was a member of the Explorers Club, and served as master of ceremonies for two years at their annual banquet.

Is it true that Asimov had a fear of flying?

Yes, the same author who described spaceflights to other worlds and who argued valiantly for the cause of rationality suffered from an irrational fear of heights and flying. This had the consequence of limiting the range over which he travelled throughout much of his life.

Asimov discovered that he was acrophobic at the New York World's Fair in 1940, when he took his date and first love Irene on a roller coaster, expecting that it would cause her to cling to him in fear and give him a chance to kiss her. Instead it was he who was terrified while his date remained perfectly calm. Two years later, his wife-to-be Gertrude convinced him to ride on a roller coaster at Coney Island, and he was once again terrified.

Asimov did in fact fly on an airplane twice in his life. The first time he did so while working at the Naval Air Experimental Station in Philadelphia during World War II. While working on dye markers that made ditched pilots more visible to rescue searchers, he developed a test to compare dye visibility that did not require a plane flight, but in order to validate his test he volunteered to fly in a small plane to observe the markers. He was so absorbed in his observations that he didn't suffer from any undue fear. His second plane flight took place on his return from his army station in Hawaii, in which he flew aboard a DC-3 to San Francisco.

After his military service in Hawaii in 1946, Asimov never ventured so far from home, and did not often travel great distances. When he did need to travel significant distances, he usually took a train, or rode in someone else's car, until he learned to drive in 1950. Oddly enough, he found that he felt quite comfortable behind the wheel of an automobile. In the 1970s he and Janet travelled by train to Florida and California, and they took several several sea cruises to such places as the Caribbean, West Africa, England, and France.

What other notable quirks, fears, and pet peeves did Asimov have?

Asimov was a teetotaler in later life, mainly because in all of his experiences with drinking alcoholic beverages, just one or two drinks were sufficient to get him drunk. On the day he passed the oral examination for his Ph.D., he drank five Manhattans in celebration, and his friends had to carry him back to school and try to sober him up. His wife told him that he spent that entire night in bed giggling every once in a while and saying "Doctor Asimov".

He was completely inept at any athletic activity that required any coordination; he never learned how to swim or ride a bicycle. Spending even ten minutes in the summer sun turned his skin a bright red. In the army he had the worst score in his company on the physical-conditioning test (though he had the highest score on the intelligence test). He was afraid of needles and the sight of blood.

Asimov discovered that he was claustrophiliac, meaning that he was fond of enclosed places. He was quite comfortable in small rooms with no windows, and always insisted on using artificial lighting when he worked. He considered the underground cities on Earth in The Caves of Steel as the ultimate windowless enclosures.

Asimov hated it when his name was mispelled in print or mispronounced by others. He did not allow anyone to call him by any nicknames, except for a few old friends who had been calling him Ike for years. When in 1939 he wrote a letter to Planet Stories, which printed it and spelled his name "Isaac Asenion", he quickly fired off an angry letter to them. (His friend Lester Del Rey took great delight in referring to him as "Asenion" for many years afterward). Asimov was quite perturbed when Johnny Carson, host of the Tonight Show, pronounced his first name as I-ZAK, with equal emphasis on both syllables, during an appearance on the television show in New York in 1968.

Biographical (literary)

When did he start writing?

When he was eleven years old he began writing The Greenville Chums at College, which he planned to be the first book in a series. After writing only eight chapters about the adventures of boys living in a small town, he gave up after recognizing the fact that he didn't know what he was talking about. However he made a very important discovery in the process. After he wrote the first two chapters, he told the story he had written so far to a friend at school during lunchtime. When he stopped, his friend demanded that he continue. When Asimov explained that he had told him all that he had so far, the friend asked to borrow the book when he was finished reading it. Asimov was astonished to discover that his friend thought that he was retelling a story that he read. The implied compliment impressed him so much that, from that day on, Asimov took himself seriously as a writer.

Asimov's first published writing was a column he did for his high school newspaper. His first accepted piece was a humorous essay entitled "Little Brothers," which appeared in The Boys High Recorder, his high school's semi-annual literary publication, in 1934, and is reprinted in Before the Golden Age. He wrote it in a creative writing class he took that year; a class which almost convinced him to give up writing.

What was his first published story?

After John Campbell, editor of Astounding Science Fiction, rejected his short stories "Cosmic Corkscrew," "Stowaway" and "This Irrational Planet" in June, July, and September of 1938, "Marooned Off Vesta" was accepted for publication by Amazing Stories in October and was published January 10, 1939.

What awards did he win for his writing?

The Foundation/Robot Series

What is this Forward the Foundation I keep hearing about?

Forward the Foundation is the last-written of the Foundation books. It was near completion at the time of Asimov's death and published a year later. It is currently available in both hardback and paperback.

Did Asimov really write Forward the Foundation? Didn't he die before it was done, so somebody else really wrote it up from notes?

Yes, Asimov really wrote all of Forward the Foundation.

Forward the Foundation was originally planned to be a series of five novellas, bridging the chronological gap between Prelude to Foundation and Foundation.

The first three were completed long before Asimov died and published in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine.

A first draft of the fourth was completed before Asimov's death; since Asimov's typical writing methodology was to write a first draft, polish it slightly and use the polished version as the final draft, we can feel fairly confident that the fourth novella is reasonably close to what Asimov intended.

The fifth novella didn't make it beyond the rough outline stage. This is why the final book consists of four novellas and an epilog.

What about the contradictions between Forward the Foundation and other Foundation books?

The whole Foundation series is rife with contradictions. There are two main reasons for this.

First of all, Asimov simply didn't enjoy sweating over details in his fiction. There are a number of things Asimov enjoyed about writing -- that's why he wrote so much -- but purging his fiction of contradictions was not one of them. As early as 1945, he was finding it more effort than it was worth to keep up consistency in the Foundation stories and tried (three times) to end the series so that he wouldn't have to deal with it.

Secondly, Asimov's overall plan for the series changed. For example, the Robot stories and Foundation stories were originally conceived as existing in separate fictional universes. It wasn't until the 1980's that he started to tie them together explicitly. Other examples would involve major spoilers for some of the later books.

(Also, the stories were written over the course of fifty years, starting from a time when Asimov was at the unspectacular beginning of his career and the Golden Age was a year old, to a time when Asimov was one of science fiction's Big Three and John Campbell, for whom the earliest stories were written, dead for twenty years. It should not be surprising that the seventy-year-old Grand Master should find some of the ideas of the twenty-year-old apprentice not quite up to snuff and not worth preserving.)

What is the chronological order of the Foundation books?

In the Author's Note at the beginning of Prelude to Foundation, Asimov says:
"In any case, the situation has become sufficiently complicated for me to feel that the readers might welcome a kind of guide to the series, since they were not written in the order in which (perhaps) they should be read.

"The fourteen books, all published by Doubleday, offer a kind of history of the future, which is, perhaps, not completely consistent, since I did not plan consistency to begin with. The chronological order of the books, in terms of future history (and not of publication date), is as follows:

"1. The Complete Robot (1982). This is a collection of thirty-one robot short stories published between 1940 and 1976 and includes every story in my earlier collection, I, Robot (1950). Only one robot short story has been written since that collection appeared. That is Robot Dreams, which has not yet appeared in any Doubleday collection. [Robot Dreams (1986) does contain it; see also Robot Visions (1990)]

"2. The Caves of Steel (1954). This is the first of my robot novels.

"3. The Naked Sun (1957). The second robot novel.

"4. The Robots of Dawn (1983). The third robot novel.

"5. Robots and Empire (1985). The fourth robot novel.

"6. The Currents of Space (1952). This is the first of my Empire novels.

"7. The Stars, Like Dust-- (1951). The second Empire novel.

"8. Pebble in the Sky (1950). The third Empire novel.

"9. Prelude to Foundation (1988). This is the first Foundation novel (although it is the latest written, so far).

[9a. Forward the Foundation (1993).]

"10. Foundation (1951). The second Foundation novel. Actually, it is a collection of four stories, originally published between 1942 and 1944, plus an introductory section written for the book in 1949.

"11. Foundation and Empire (1952). The third Foundation novel, made up of two stories, originally published in 1945.

"12. Second Foundation (1953). The fourth Foundation novel, made up of two stories, originally published in 1948 and 1949.

"13. Foundation's Edge (1982). The fifth Foundation novel.

"14. Foundation and Earth (1983). The sixth Foundation novel."

Note that this order is slightly wrong, in that Currents of Space actually takes place after The Stars, Like Dust. Also Foundation and Earth was published in 1986, not 1983.

What is the order in which the Foundation books should be read?

There are actually three answers to this question.

A) Read them in the order of action, as listed by Asimov.

B) Read them in the order of publication.

There is no real reason why (A) or (B) is the better order. If you're more interested in seeing the development of Asimov's universe, writing, and ideas, you may prefer (B). If you are more interested in the course of events in Asimov's universe, you may prefer (A). Note, also, that some of the more recent books contain spoilers for some of the earlier ones, so the impact of some stories may be lessened if you choose (A).

Note that Asimov in the Author's Note quoted does not actually suggest one order over the other, but does suggest chronological order as a possibility.

C) Just read the ones published in the 1950's (plus The Complete Robot) because the later ones all suck.

No true Asimov fan, of course, would agree that any of the Good Doctor's books "suck," but there is pretty broad feeling that the later books are not as good as the earlier ones. (There is also pretty broad disagreement with this assessment.) In particular, Foundation and Earth is considered one of the weaker books in the series. Of course, your mileage will vary, and you may be one of those who prefers the later books over the earlier ones.

Other writings

What is the relationship between the movie Fantastic Voyage and Asimov's novel?

Asimov wrote the novel from the screenplay. He made a certain number of changes which he felt were necessary to minimize the scientific implausibility of the story. Because, as he put it, he wrote quickly and Hollywood works slowly, the novel came out some six months before the film was released, giving rise to the idea that the movie was made from the novel.

Later, there was an opportunity to make a second film using the title and concept of the original but none of the characters or specific situations. Asimov was asked to write a novel that might be used for the basis of this second film. The result was Fantastic Voyage II, which is not a sequel by any means to the original.

What did Asimov write besides the Foundation and Robot books?

Lots. Asimov published nearly 500 books by the time of his death. Many of these, of course, are anthologies of work by other people, and a large number are juvenile science books, but there are a lot of books left.

Following is a list of some of Asimov's better-known or more influential works. The list is purely subjective, based on the personal preference of the FAQ-keepers. There is much which is worthwhile but not listed. See the full lists of Asimov's works for more information.

  1. Other science fiction novels
    1. The Lucky Starr books
    2. Fantastic Voyage, and Fantastic Voyage II
    3. Nemesis
    4. The Gods Themselves
    5. The End of Eternity
  2. Science fiction short story collections
    1. Nine Tomorrows
    2. Earth is Room Enough
    3. The Martian Way and Other Stories
    4. Nightfall and Other Stories
    5. The Bicentennial Man and Other Stories
    6. The Best Science Fiction of Isaac Asimov
  3. Anthologies
    1. The Hugo Winners/New Hugo Winners (7 volumes)
    2. Isaac Asimov presents the great sf stories (25 volumes for 1939 through 1963)
  4. Mysteries
    1. Black Widower stories (several collections)
    2. A Whiff of Death
    3. Murder at the ABA
  5. "Guides"
    1. Asimov's Guide to the Bible
    2. Asimov's Guide to Shakespeare
    3. Asimov's New Guide to Science
  6. Essay collections
    1. F&SF Essay collections (Asimov had a monthly science column from the early 1950's through 1991)
    2. Asimov on Science Fiction
    3. Asimov's Galaxy
  7. Histories
    1. The Greeks
    2. The Roman Republic
    3. The Roman Empire
  8. Other non-fiction
    1. Understanding Physics (aka The History of Physics)
    2. The Universe
    3. Asimov's Biographical Encyclopedia of Science and Technology
  9. Humor
    1. Isaac Asimov's Treasury of Humor
    2. The Sensuous Dirty Old Man
    3. Isaac Asimov Laughs Again

What is the source of the title of the novel The Gods Themselves?

The title is obtained from the quote "Against stupidity, the gods themselves contend in vain", which originally appeared in German in Friedrich von Schiller's play Jungfrau von Orleans (The Maid of Orleans, or Joan of Arc), Act III, Scene 6. Bartlett's Familiar Quotations translates the quote as "Against stupidity the very gods themselves contend in vain." The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations gives the translation "With stupidity the gods themselves struggle in vain."

Is there an index of his science articles for the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (F&SF)? Of his editorials in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine (IASFM)?

Asimov compiled a list of his F&SF essays on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of his first essay, in the November 1978 issue of F&SF, and reprinted (slightly updated) in the collection The Road to Infinity. That list is ordered alphabetically according to the title of the essay, and includes a designation of the collection in which each essay appears as well as a very brief subject description for each essay. However Asimov went on to write a total of 399 essays, the last of which appeared in February 1992.

Of the 174 editorials published in IASFM, dealing mainly with Asimov's thoughts on Science Fiction, 22 were included in Asimov on Science Fiction and another 66 in Asimov's Galaxy, but he did not compile an index to these.

Asimov also wrote numerous other essays that were published in other magazines, many of which have appeared in other essay collections.

Certainly an index to Asimov's essays would be welcomed by avid readers of his nonfiction, to that end Rich Hatcher (hatcher@asd470.dseg.ti.com) has ambitiously agreed to compile one.

What is the Asimov-Clarke treaty?

The Asimov-Clarke Treaty of Park Avenue, put together as Asimov and Clarke were travelling down Park Avenue in New York while sharing a cab ride, stated that Asimov was required to insist that Arthur C. Clarke was the best science fiction writer in the world (reserving second best for himself), while Clarke was required to insist that Isaac Asimov was the best science writer in the world (reserving second best for himself). Thus the dedication in Clarke's book Report on Planet Three reads:
"In accordance with the terms of the Clarke-Asimov treaty, the second-best science writer dedicates this book to the second-best science-fiction writer."

More than books...

What records, audio tapes, videotapes, and software are available?

Records and audio tapes.

Issac [sic] Asimov
Minnesota Public Radio, St. Paul, Mn., 1972, 2 cassettes (120 mins.).
Recorded Oct. 15, 1972, at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. Asimov talks about his belief that the goals of the women's movement will be achieved not through persistent attacks on discrimination, but by social necessity demanding the rationing of motherhood in the face of massive overpopulation.
Isaac Asimov talks: an interview
Writer's Voice, Cincinnati, 1974, 1 cassette.
Asimov discusses writing and his career as an author with Lois Rosenthal.
Isaac Asimov Himself
read by Isaac Asimov, Audio Partners Publishing, Auburn Ca., 1975, 2 cassettes (180 mins.).
Unabridged readings of "The Immortal Bard", "The Last Question", "Someday", "The Jokester", and "The Ugly Little Boy", plus anecdotes and comments.
Foundation: the psychohistorians
read by William Shatner, Caedmon, New York, 1976, 33 1/3 rpm., stereo, 12 in., 1 disc, 59 mins.
Foundation: the psychohistorians
read by William Shatner, HarperAudio, 1 cassette.
Nightfall
read by various performers, Conde Nast, 1976, 33 1/3 rpm., 12 in., 1 disc.
Inside Star Trek
Columbia, New York, 1976, 33 1/3 rpm, stereo, 12 in., 1 disc.
Includes the track "Asimov's world of science fiction".
The Mayors
read by Isaac Asimov, Caedmon, New York, 1977, 33 1/3 rpm., stereo, 12 in., 1 disc, 71 mins.
The Mayors
read by Isaac Asimov, HarperAudio, 1 cassette.
The Mule
read by Isaac Asimov, Caedmon, New York, 1981, 33 1/3 rpm., stereo, 12 in., 1 disc, 59 mins.
Foundation and Empire: Mule
read by Isaac Asimov, HarperAudio, 1 cassette.
Foundation's Edge
read by Isaac Asimov, Caedmon, New York, 1982, 33 1/3 rpm., stereo, 12 in., 1 disc, 62 mins.
Foundation's Edge
read by Isaac Asimov, HarperAudio, 1 cassette.
Asimov - Science Fiction
read by Isaac Asimov, Caedmon, New York, 1983, 33 1/3 rpm., stereo, 12 in., 1 disc, 51 mins.
Asimov - Science Fiction
read by Isaac Asimov, Listening Library, 1985, 2 cassettes (117 mins.)
Unabridged readings of "I Just Make Them Up, See?", "Someday", "The Feeling of Power", "Satisfaction Guaranteed", and "Living Space".
Stories from The Complete Robot
read by Lloyd Battista with an introduction by Asimov, Warner Audio Pub., New York, 1985, 2 cassettes (120 mins.), Dolby processed.
Unabridged readings of "Mirror image", "Segregationist", and "Evidence".
Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine
read by Peter Marinker and Ed Bishop, Listen For Pleasure, Ontario Canada, 1986, 2 cassettes (120 mins.), Dolby processed.
Unabridged readings of "Strikebreaker" and "It's Such a Beautiful Day", plus Frederik Pohl's "Soaking Up the Rays".
Foundation
read by Isaac Asimov, Bantam Audio, New York, 1988, 2 cassettes (180 mins.), Dolby processed.
Abridged reading of Foundation.
Best of Science Fiction and Fantasy
Dove Audio, 1991, 4 cassettes (360 mins.).
Unabridged reading of "Someday" plus 10 short stories by other authors.
Asimov's Mysteries
read by Dan Lazar, Books on Tape, 8 cassettes (480 mins.).
Unabridged reading.
The Best of Isaac Asimov
read by Dan Lazar, Books on Tape, 8 cassettes (720 mins.).
Unabridged reading.
In Memory Yet Green
read by Dan Lazar, Books on Tape, 20 cassettes (1800 mins.).
Unabridged reading.
The Complete Robot
read by Larry McKeever, Books on Tape, 17 cassettes (1530 mins.).
Unabridged reading.
Foundation
read by Larry McKeever, Books on Tape, 6 cassettes (360 mins.).
Unabridged reading.
Foundation and Empire
read by Dan Lazar, Books on Tape, 8 cassettes (480 mins.).
Unabridged reading.
Second Foundation
read by Dan Lazar, Books on Tape, 8 cassettes (480 mins.).
Unabridged reading.
Foundation's Edge
read by Larry McKeever, Books on Tape, 9 cassettes (810 mins.).
Unabridged reading.
The Complete Robot
Random Audiobooks, 2 cassettes, 1988.
The Isaac Asimov Cassette Library
Random Audiobooks, 6 cassettes.
Science Fiction Favorites of Isaac Asimov
read by Isaac Asimov, Listening Library, 1975, 6 cassettes (288 mins.).
Unabridged reading of more than 10 stories.
Murder at the ABA
read by Daniel Grace, Books on Tape, 8 cassettes (480 mins.).
Unabridged reading.
Prelude to Foundation
read by David Dukes, Bantam Audio Publishing, 1989, 2 cassettes (180 mins.).
The Robots of Dawn
read by Isaac Asimov, HarperAudio, 1 cassette.
Abridged reading.
Norby the Mixed-Up Robot
read by Mark Hamill, HarperAudio, 1 cassette (45 mins).

Videotapes.

Analog Presents: Isaac Asimov Visions of the Future
Quality Video, Minneapolis, Minn., 1992, 45 mins.
Asimov's last major interview, in which he talks about robots and robotics, genetic engineering, nanotechnology, deep space travel, terraforming planets, artificial intelligence, and the origins of the universe.
Voyage to the Outer Planets and Beyond
Today Home Entertainment, 1987, 54 mins.
A simulated video voyage through the Solar System, combining NASA and JPL images from the Voyager space probe with a digitized recording of Holst's "The Planets", with Isaac Asimov as host and narrator. Includes a full color NASA brochure about the planets, and a space almanac listing solar and lunar eclipses, occultations, and periodic comets.
Isaac Asimov's Robots VCR Mystery Game
Eastman Kodak Company, 1988, 40 mins.
A game based on the worlds of The Caves of Steel and The Naked Sun, the players watch the tape and uncover each of the six photo clue cards at selected points in the story. At the end of the tape, each player makes an accusation based on the clues provided. Each clue card has two sides with different clues on each side, providing 32 possible outcomes to the game. Clue cards are provided for four levels of difficulty; suggested for 1 to 12 players, ages 10 and up.

Computer Software.

The Complete Stories Volume 1
A Voyager Expanded Book, The Voyager Company, Santa Monica, Ca., 1992, one 1.4 MB high density floppy. Available for Macintosh, requires at least system 6.0.7 and hard drive with 2.2 MB available.
The entire text of the book, including features allowing the reader to search for every occurrence of any word, add margin comments and end notes, highlight text, mark pages and leave bookmarks.
Isaac Asimov's The Ultimate Robot
Byron Preiss Multimedia, Microsoft Home, CD-ROM. Available for Macintosh, requires Mac II or better, 13 in. color monitor, System 7.0 or later, 5 MB memory, CD-ROM drive.
Contains the text of all of Asimov's major stories and essays about robots; illustrations of Asimov's robots by Ralph McQuarrie (production designer of Star Wars); an interactive robot toolkit for building animated robots; photos of many Asimov book covers; a collection of photos of Asimov in various settings; Quicktime movies of Asimov interviews and some of his television appearances, Quicktime clips from several motion pictures featuring robots, including Star Wars, 2001: A Space Odyssey and Forbidden Planet; videos of real robots used in space, undersea, offices, and labs; an animated handbook on robot movement; and a timeline of robotic history.
Isaac Asimov Science Adventure II
Knowledge Adventure. Available for DOS computers.
A virtual science museum with over 150 rooms, with over 1000 illustrated, interactive, and interlinked articles by Isaac Asimov, adapted from Isaac Asimov's Chronology of Science and Discovery.

Coming attractions...

Here are just some of the questions planned to be answered in a future version of the FAQ:
  1. Of Asimov's own books, which was his favorite? Which short story? Least favorite?
  2. Can the three laws work in "the real world"?
  3. Have any of Asimov's books or stories been made into a movie or television series?
(HTML Version) FAQ on Isaac Asimov / Soh Kam Yung / sauron@ee.nus.sg