I rather liked this book, which I read as a translation into Spanish. It's an interesting idea and offers many possibilities for the author. I would certainly like to buy more titles in this series, although I find that they are out of print in English.

My one complaint about the book is its rather slow pace. There is not a great deal of what you can call action. Transport to China, find Marco Polo, get access to the court, find robot, beat the bad guy to the punch... not a lot for so many pages.

I did wonder about how a group of travellers from our future could find it so easy to transport to China, integrate themselves into society, pass for Chinese (or races known to the Chinese) and get along with so little difficulty. Perhaps it would have given more scope to the author if he had made life a bit more tricky for his characters. Barring a rather easily foiled kidnap attempt, things seem just too easy for our superhuman heros.

Anyhow, the book is a good read (although associating it with Isaac Asimov's name certainly influenced me into buying it, it's relation to Asimov is tenuous apart from using his laws of robotics) and I felt that it was money quite well spent.

This is not the best of the Robots in Time series, but certainly a recommended reading. The Time Travel Team from Mojave Center goes back to 13th century China to recover the 5th component of MC governor. Along the way they come in contact with Marco Polo and Kublai Khan. A good book for anyone who enjoys good Science Fiction.

Do you hate the world? Do you see the glass as 1/10 empty? Do you want to commit suicide? If the answer to any of these questions is yes, then read this book. It is dark, depressing, utterly awful. I have never heard so much whining in a single book in my entire life. I give it 2 thumbs down.

An highly autobiografical book by Isaac B. Singer, it covers his way from the Stedl in Poland to the Steets of New York. This is not only a geographical journey, it is also a journey in time, from the dark ages to the 2oth century. Overall it is the story of the man who makes this tour de force. The world he sees is crumbling, the century old rules do not apply any more, nor do they offer protection. He becomes the traveller between the worlds, not at home any more in the tradition, not arrived yet in the new world. Never have I seen the ultimate fear of the intellectual expressed more clearly. The security of faith that once was available for oneself, and is still available for others, is out of reach. The thinking, and thus uprooted individual fears, and it is in expressing these fears, clearly and without hesitation, that the great achievement of this book lie within.
This is not a pleasant book, it is at times disturbing and depressive. But it is a true book, true to the doubts and despair of the searching soul. It offers the reader no easy way out. However, in our time of " happyness culture " where everybody is expected to " have fun " every day, or at least to pretend, there should be more books like this. A most valuable read.

The narration of a crime/mystery scenario was not among Asimov's strongest virtues. I haven't come across another Asimov novel with the same theme, so I'm certain that Asimov realized his limitations in this particular field.

Asimov was such a prolific and varied writer that it's not difficult for committed readers to treat him almost as a personal friend. As well as literally hundreds of science fiction novels and stories, he wrote articles and books on almost every subject from physics and evolution to biblical commentaries, and occasionally, just occasionally, would insert himself into the thick of things. Which means that there are two types of reader who will approach Murder at the ABA in two entirely different ways. Those who have not reached that oneness with Asimov will probably read it, and reach the end in bewilderment. At least, that's what one has to assume from the generally negative reaction ABA received.

But those of us who worship at the Cult of Asimov will treat it differently. For this is a tremendously odd, readable, and funny work, and while the in-jokes may be lost on Asimov novices (they were on me), the book's other strands of humour, from the depiction of the victim (right down to the sexual fetishes) to the author himself, make this a hilarious and enjoyable read.

Murder at the ABA concerns an entirely fictional (honest) author, Darius Just, who attends a convention of the American Booksellers Association, only to find a colleague dead in his hotel room. Police and the hotel believe the death was accidental, but Just suspects otherwise, investigating the events that lead up to the death and finally catching the culprit.

Whether this is a book for the devoted detective novel reader is open to question, and it may be Asimov but is certainly isn't science fiction. It is, however fun, light, satire and damned readable with it.

Having done a Ph.D. in optics, I have read quite some books on optics and out of curiocity I bought this book, but I am not very pleased with it. First, it is difficult to read because of the old English language and structure. For native English speakers this carries perhaps not so much weight, but for me it did. Second, because it is a collection of Newton's works, it contains of course also many not-so-interesting discussions which you have to 'consume' before realising it was not so interesting.

What is nice though, is that the book contains many so-called queries, which are possible explanations of various optical phenomena, explanations/assumptions Newton could not prove/disprove at the time. This is fascinating reading, because many of these turned out to be true (or false, but even then: still interesting to know what he thought).

Overall impression: if you are interested in the history of optics/Newton then it is a nice book. But just for browsing in the evening: no.

"Though Mr. Newton is no physicist, his book is very interesting." -- Father Nicolas Malebranche (1707)

I picked this book up because it was (co)authored by Isaac Asimov. But even though it is published under the names of Asimov and Pohl, the book definitely does NOT read in the style of Asimov. It is a disappointment for those looking for the usual 'wit and charm' of the old Doctor. 'Our Angry Earth' lacks emotion as the author(s) dryly present point after point on the diverse ways in which we are abusing our planet (i.e., toxic emissions, acid rain, deforestation, global warming, etc.). Hence, the title. Though much of the content may be (and probably is) accurate from a scientific perspective, the authors present it in such a way that you can't help but feel you're listening to a street-corner doomsday prophet. Very unconvincing. Finally, in the early sections of the book, we are lead to believe the authors will propose 'workable' solutions to our environmental ills. Yet, by the end of the book, we are presented with solutions that are nothing new and questionably workable (writing letters, forming environmental clubs, getting involved in politics). Are we polluting our planet? Unquestionably, yes. Have the authors galvanized us to action? Unfortunately, no

Every once in a while you hear something about the environment, namely the ways in which we're destroying our world - global warming, ozone depletion, toxic waste, etc. Then you nod and say: "Oh yes, it's very important, something has to be done", but you just go on with your life doing absolutely nothing. This book is out to change that. It will give you a new way of looking at the world - and you won't like what you see. This book isn't just excellent - it's a "must". Through flowing style and easily understood points, the two grand masters of science fiction give us their most important work ever - and this book is all REAL. Written a year before Asimov's death, it's not only an account of the "maladies and cures", but also a loud wake-up call for every one of us to get up and ACT. Even if the political- and activist-oriented sections are somewhat schematic, the book's importance is in it's true power to influence people. I know that at least for me, "Our Angry Earth" was the beginning of a new stage of life. Asimov and Pohl, who wrote about a great future for humanity, are asking us not let our race finish itself off just when we were getting started. We just can't go down like that. It's time for YOU to read this book and look out your window. Can you smell the smog? It's going to kill your children if you don't do something about it.

So, it may not be the best story ever written, but it does carry on the Asimov Robots storyline. If you can quote the three laws of robotics, you gotta read this whole series. It will not knock your socks off or anything, but you will enjoy it.

I though this book was interesting because of a robot that can manipulate its body and obeys the three laws of robotics very loosly. Also I love any book that deals with Isaac Asimov's ideas. I suggest if you like this book you should read also I, Robot a collection of short stories dealling with robots and the three laws of robotics.

In this volume of essays on the history and future of science, Asimov manages to convey simply and lucidly that which all my years of teachers in high school had only made difficult and remote. Handing a classroom full of kids his essay on elements, for example, would be a great way to make clear what isotopes actually are and how it all fits into the future.

All the same, I was expecting a little less teaching and a little more Asimov. While it's all interesting, it was in places unfortunately rather dry. Particularly if you're used to other Asimov essays, you really have to switch your expectation gears pretty abruptly. The first half of the book (as per the title) focuses around great moments in science past. The second half is more about where science is going.

I think that the second half, had I read it when the book was written, would have carried a lot more charm. The problem was that the time frame for many of his predictions have come and gone and very little of it is relevant. The little that is, however, is rather astonishing. His warnings on population and resource depletion ring truer than ever today.

All in all, a mixed reading experience, but I certainly am not sorry that I read it.

This is one of Asimov's longer non-fiction works, tackling such subjects as the transistor, transportation, the environment, overpopulation and sex in space.

The first of the three sections is a group of essays about the history of science, Science Past. A main theme in many of them is the change in technology over the 20th century, in subjects like transportation, communication, etc...

The second section is ",", as Asimov explains. It consists of two essays about himself, one of which was reprinted in Magic: The Final Fantasy Collection (along with several other essays from this collection and others).

The third section is Science Future, where Dr. Asimov discusses the future of mankind. You'll learn about amusement parks of the future and other changes in sociology and technology.

While Asimov's essays about the environment and overpopulation were revolutionary at the time, most people are aware that the world is grossly overpopulated and that humans are having a negative effect on the environment. Back in the 1970s, when this book was written, that wasn't so. Also, if you've read other non-fiction books by Dr. Asimov (or, say read a newspaper in the past 20 years), you've heard most of his arguments against population growth.

Other essays in this section, including Sex in Space, are very derivative of a book he wrote around the same time (or rather, vice versa), The Gods Themselves, and perhaps reading the book itself would be a better way to learn these concepts.

Why did I give it four stars, then? I've rated many of Asimov's books on Amazon, rating them from two to five stars. This book is actually pretty good. You get a real feel for Asimov the man in this book, much more than you do in his non-fiction books of the 60s. His agoraphobia, first seen in The Caves of Steel, once again emerges in The Amusement Park of the Future. It's a fun book, and if you like Dr. Asimov's non-fiction, read it.

This book, like most of the other non-fiction books Asimov has written, is a bit dry. It covers all the relevant information you need to know about the universe (in 1966)

For anyone at all interested in astronomy, this book is a must-read. Asimov outlines the process by which man built up his astronomy starting in ancient times and moving right up through the present (when this book was published - the late 60s, I believe). It describes all the observations and measurments make to figure out everything from the size of the earth to the size of the galaxy, to the number of stars in the galaxy, to the distance of far-away galaxies. He writes it in such a way that anyone, regardless of your level of math, could say, "Wow! If I only had the data, I could figure that out!" Unfortunately, this book stops in the 60s, so, towards the end, I knew more about some things than he did. However, up until then, this is truly a fascinating read.

This book starts out with a great premise. Finding millions of dollars in an abandoned cellar, what would you do with it? That becomes Ben Lindberg's problem in the beginning of Windfall. And it's an interesting problem. The bad guys are looking for their money, he can really use, but how can he spend it without getting caught. The first half of this book is great, really enjoyed it. From then on, it deteriorates into basically a car chase, fight with the bad guys and not the happiest of endings. Could have been much better (see A Simple Plan), but not the worst book I've read either.

I picked this book up after hearing it reviewed on NPR and I enjoyed it very much, although I don't think it would reveal anything new on re-reading - hence four stars. I was particularly impressed by the way the author reveals the corrosive effects of keeping secrets - a theme that reminded me of The Secret History by Donna Tartt. (I have not read or seen the more obvious comparison - A Simple Plan). The story moves quickly, and the characters are both believable and sympathetic. A great book to bring to the beach. Recommended, especially to American Lit professors repaying large student loans!

I know very little about the history of morality tales (Aesop's fables, Sophocles' plays, William Bennett's Book of Virtues, etc) but Windfall definately has a "lesson", and I would be very interested in hearing someone talk about this book in that context.

Ben should have told his wife, Katy, up front. Two minds are better than one and she might not have been so wobbly, stronger backbone. A good read as the reader goes along trying to figure out how to have done it differently. Some may think the latter half of the story follows standard thriller lines. See also "The Moneybag" for legal aspects of a similar situation.

I really had to force myself to finish this book. I am a big fan of Susan Isaacs, and have read every one of her books, but this one left me cold. When I had only 50 pages left, I still almost put it down. I understand the reasoning behind the two parts of the book, but if what Ms. Isaacs was trying to do was help us understand the main characters, Charlie and Lauren, then how come I did not feel that I really knew Lauren at all? She was not a well-drawn character - the way that her mother, grandmother, etc. were portrayed. I also was pretty surprised that they hopped into bed so quickly - that was really a letdown - without any real tension buildup. I don't really think that the two parts of the book flowed well together. why spend so much time with the prior characterizations, when the main characters are total unknowns? This didn't make any sense to me. Well, keep trying, Susan.

Charlie Blair is a very bored FBI agent who is separated from his wife and is contemplating leaving the Service until he is assigned the job of infiltrating a paramilitary group in his old home town. Lauren Miller is a bright young reporter from a Jewish newspaper in New York, who is determined to make her mark by scooping a really big story.The two meet while Charlie is undercover, posing as a mechanic and a new recruit to the "Free America Cadre", a group which fire bombed a video store owned by a Jew and also a house,owned by movie director with a Jewish sounding name. The first section of the story delves into the backgrounds of Charlie and Lauren who are both descendants of Jewish immigrants and who are, unknowingly,distant cousins.Lauren is strangely drawn to this supposed racist, terrorist mechanic while loathing his connection to the group and an interesting story begins to form while they both, in their own ways, try to uncover the criminal activities within the group, to destroy it.

Susan Isaacs explores what it means to be American in her cross-genre novel, Red, White and Blue. Part thriller, part history, and part romance, Red, White and Blue is the story of two people investigating an anti-semitic terrorist group in Wyoming. Charlie Blair, a Special Agent for the FBI, is described as the product of what would happen if the Statue of Liberty and Uncle Sam had a one-night stand. He personifies the American West: he is independent, has strong character and integrity, and one could see him facing down a gunslinger in a dusty street of an old western town. Lauren Miller, however, personifies the East. She is a tough journalist for the Jewish News in New York, and the bombing of a video store in the Midwest could be her big story.

How Lauren and Charlie come together to break a group of white supremicists comprises most of the plot. Interestingly enough, however, they share a great-great-grandmother in common. Susan Isaacs spends a great deal of time showing how they became American by tracing the story of the generations between Dora Schottland, a 15 year old orphan from Budapest, and Charlie and Lauren.

Though there would seem to be a schism between the historical section and the mystery/romance, Susan Isaacs smooths over the transitions with a narrative voice strong in irony and humor. Her use of detail to quickly paint the portraits of people in the past is masterful. While not destined to be a classic, Red White and Blue could still be said to be a great American novel. Definitely worth the read.