Forward the Foundation

Price: $0.99
(as of Jan 05, 2025 08:13:08 UTC – Details)

Here, from a grand master of science fiction, is the long-awaited final novel of the greatest science-fiction series ever told. Completed just before his death, Forward the Foundation is the crowning achievement of a great writer’s life, a stirring testament to the creative genius of Isaac Asimov.

As Hari Seldon struggles to perfect his revolutionary theory of psychohistory and ensure a place for humanity among the stars, the great Galactic Empire totters on the brink of apocalyptic collapse. Caught in the maelstrom are Seldon and all he holds dear, pawns in the struggle for dominance. Whoever can control Seldon will control psychohistory – and with it the future of the galaxy.

Among those seeking to turn psychohistory into the greatest weapon known to man are a populist political demagogue, the weak-willed Emperor Cleon I, and a ruthless militaristic general. In his last act of service to humankind, Hari Seldon must somehow save his life’s work from their grasp as he searches for its true heirs – a search that begins with his own granddaughter and the dream of a new Foundation.

Reviewer: James L. Adams
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Amazing series.
Review: This is the last book in the seven book series of the foundation. In some ways I wish I had read it in chronological order instead of published order but that did not diminish my enjoyment of all seven books. If you have not read science fiction and have an interest I highly recommend this series. If you are a science fiction Aficionado you may have already done so but it is such a worthwhile read I cannot say enough about it.

Reviewer: Sayel Cortes
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Skillfully recounting the life of Hari Seldon
Review: Following the life of Hari Seldon, the fall of the empire and the beginning of the foundation develops. A story that takes place in one planet but defines the future of the empire crosses through decades of political challenges. Asimov skillfully takes us through all this being careful not to overwelm us in details, but carefully describing the line that guides the story

Reviewer: mhnstr
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title: OK book, but still a must read for fans of the series
Review: Forward the Foundation is the second book in the Foundation series, but the last book to be written by Asimov. The setting for Forward the Foundation predates that of Foundation as Asimov reveals more about the life of Hari Seldon, his family and those who help him with his psychohistory work.I first became acquainted with the Foundation series when I read Foundation. Since that time, I have hungrily read the other books of the series with Forward the Foundation being the last of the books to be read. I like the Foundation series due to the problems that the characters face and the clever and seemingly easy ways in which the Foundation avoids destruction. However, I feel that Forward the Foundation just is not up to par with the other Foundation books. The writing is disjointed almost as if Asimov would pick up the manuscript after being absent from it for a while and start to write again. He starts chapters by introducing information that the reader already knows from other chapters as if it is new. Furthermore, some of what is written seems to contradict things that happen in some of the other books. The contradictions are small, but noticeable.In all, I think that Forward the Foundation is a descent book which helps to fill in the time period before the Foundation was established. I would not say that I have found it an essential read to enjoy the Foundation series. However, as a fan of the Foundation, I would have read it nonetheless. Just be prepared for a book which is not as good as the other books in the series.

Reviewer: William Mead
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Superb prequel to the original Foundation Trilogy
Review: Forward the Foundation is set during Hari Seldon’s life, during the time that Psychohistory is being developed and the Foundations are being initiated. I consider Asimov’s last novel to be a stellar (!) introduction to the trilogy. The author expertly injects some of the scientific concepts developed since the original Foundation trilogy while staying within the spirit of the grand universe he devised long before writing “Forward”. This book offers an outstanding glimpse of how precarious it would be to start a universe-shaking science/technology in a decaying society, as well as an endearing personal portrait of the great Hari Seldon, including his “family” and close colleagues.If you want the whole Asimov “universe” in story-time sequence, you might want to read the Robot series, the Empire series, and “Prelude to Foundation” before reading this book. Some of those books are of equal stature to “Forward”. I consider “Prelude”, the immediate predecessor of “Forward”, to be of slightly less merit (four and a half stars), though it is well worth reading. I think one could also start the series with “Forward” without being bewildered by the omission of earlier books in the grand series.Of course, if you want the digest version of the series, the original Foundation trilogy is an amazing work in itself. The trilogy predates word processing and the demand for “tomes”, so it is quite concise, and the trilogy is eminently suitable for young readers or for those who want to test the waters before diving in.If you’re a SciFi skeptic, “Forward the Foundation” or the original Foundation trilogy would be great introductions to the field. If you’re already a SciFi fan, these are seminal works: entertaining and well worth your time. Enjoy!The Kindle version of “Forward” is excellent, and reasonably priced, as well.

Reviewer: Kindle Customer Guzzialfa
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Asimov: The most prolific author of all time & the Foundation Series is probably his best work!
Review: This is titled Forward the Foundation. A prelude to the Foundation series and written after the five books of the Series. It was billed as Forward the Foundation II so I bought this Kindle edition wondering how I could have missed one. Now I think it may just be the Kindle version of the original, which of course it is not. Prelude to Foundation precedes this indeed. This is Forward the Foundation and follows Prelude in time but at the end in books written. That said, I may need to address the Prime Radiant to determine how this is. Doesn’t matter. It’s time to read the series all over again. Read themN in order written or in time line order. Its great either way. Wait, could it be? Am I having a Hari Seldon moment?The man did coin the term Robotics after all.

Reviewer: Shean Stacey
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: it is great to read to read chronologically all the books!
Review: The Robot series, then the empire books and finally this the foundation series. Put in order one can only feel awe at the vision and arch created by Asimov . There is no equal, but many who borrow from the master. This is a great second in the foundattion series

Reviewer: Pablo Cafiso
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Typical Asimov work: absolutely amazing. Like all classical books, the language quality is excellent. A great way of cultivating the mind while enjoying a good read.

Reviewer: Cumple con lo que promete. Buen producto
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Libro en buen estado y muy entretenido

Reviewer: Big Boy
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: A great part of a great series

Reviewer: MidoriSumiRoma
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: I puristi sostengono che il ciclo della Fondazione corrisponda alla trilogia iniziale e che i 4 libri aggiunti siano meno importanti. In generale le aggiunte ad un successo sono quasi sempre operazioni commerciali, ma in questo caso il Maestro Asimov è riuscito ad integrare la parte che a tutti i fan della Trilogia della Fondazione mancava, ovvero lo sviluppo della psicostoriografia e del personaggio di Hari Seldon. Imperdibile.

Reviewer: jawaligt
Rating: 2.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: This book is honestly.. pretty bad compared to the rest of the series and especially it’s predecessor Prelude to Foundation. It has 4 parts which are really all over the place. Some parts are overly long, where Asimov creates a lot of narrative tension but it’s never really resolved. Other parts are very short and you can’t help wondering what he is trying to achieve. There’s a lack of flow. Persons are often introduced almost willy nilly, like a deus ex machine just popping up to provide the main character with some new problem to solve. The later parts especially are very sad and depressive, with Seldon withering away physically and mentally in a way that’s honestly hard to take serious. The writing is unfortunately downright sloppy sometimes, with two huge continuity errors popping up later in the book. Of course we know that Asimov was not doing well when he wrote this and it was published posthumously. In all fairness, I think it would have been better to leave things at the Prelude and not wedge another novel in between.

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