Isaac Asimov: The Foundations of Science Fiction (Revised Edition)
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Authors: James Gunn
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Isaac Asimov:
The Foundations of Science Fiction
The Foundations of Science Fiction
Revised Edition
by
James Gunn
SCARECROW PRESS, INC.
Published in the United States of America
by Scarecrow Press, Inc.
4720 Boston Way
Lanham, Maryland 20706
by Scarecrow Press, Inc.
4720 Boston Way
Lanham, Maryland 20706
4 Pleydell Gardens, Folkestone
Kent CT20 2DN, England
Kent CT20 2DN, England
Copyright © 1996 by James Gunn
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.
First edition published in 1982 by Oxford University Press
British Cataloguing-in-Publication Information Available
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Gunn, James E., 1923-
Isaac Asimov, the foundations of science fiction / by James Gunn.
Rev. ed.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-8108-3129-5 (alk. paper)
1. Asimov, Isaac, 1920- . 2. Authors, American 20th century
Biography. 3. Science fiction, American History and criticism.
I. Title. II. Title: Isaac Asimov
PS3551.S5Z62 1996
813'.54 dc20
[B]
96-21068
CIP
Isaac Asimov, the foundations of science fiction / by James Gunn.
Rev. ed.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-8108-3129-5 (alk. paper)
1. Asimov, Isaac, 1920- . 2. Authors, American 20th century
Biography. 3. Science fiction, American History and criticism.
I. Title. II. Title: Isaac Asimov
PS3551.S5Z62 1996
813'.54 dc20
[B]
96-21068CIPISBN 0-8108-3129-5 (cloth : alk. paper)
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z39.48-1984. Manufactured in the United States of America.When I finished
Isaac Asimov: The Foundations of Science Fiction
in 1981, Isaac had not written a science fiction novel for ten years, and that novel,
The Gods Themselves,
was his first adult science fiction novel in fifteen years. But the year my study was published, Isaac published the first of his science fiction best-sellers,
Foundation's Edge.
It won a Hugo Award and so did my book. After that, Isaac wrote half a dozen major novels, almost all of them best-sellers, and he added another two hundred books to his list. Authors have it within their power to undermine every effort to evaluate their work.
Isaac Asimov: The Foundations of Science Fiction
in 1981, Isaac had not written a science fiction novel for ten years, and that novel,
The Gods Themselves,
was his first adult science fiction novel in fifteen years. But the year my study was published, Isaac published the first of his science fiction best-sellers,
Foundation's Edge.
It won a Hugo Award and so did my book. After that, Isaac wrote half a dozen major novels, almost all of them best-sellers, and he added another two hundred books to his list. Authors have it within their power to undermine every effort to evaluate their work.
Sadly, Isaac died, too young, in 1992. Although his work continues to be reprinted, and will be for many years to come, it is time to take another look at the unique career that was synonymous with modern science fiction itself. This new edition of
Isaac Asimov: The Foundations of Science Fiction
has been revised, updated, and expanded to account for his prolific final decade. It is a third longer, including an additional 20,000 words about his best-selling novels of the 1980s plus a complete transcript of my 1979 interview with him and a final list of his science fiction publications.
Isaac Asimov: The Foundations of Science Fiction
has been revised, updated, and expanded to account for his prolific final decade. It is a third longer, including an additional 20,000 words about his best-selling novels of the 1980s plus a complete transcript of my 1979 interview with him and a final list of his science fiction publications.
I realize that no single volume can do justice to the phenomenon and the person that was Isaac Asimov. My hope is that it can give those who did not have a chance to know him, or to experience his fiction as it was published, a better understanding of what his science fiction was like and the conditions under which he created it, and, most of all, return them to the stories and novels themselves.
JAMES GUNN
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