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2061: Odyssey Three
(Space Odyssey #3)
by
Only rarely does a novelist weave a tapestry so compelling that it captures the imagination of the entire world. But that is precisely what Arthur C. Clarke accomplished with 2001: a space odyssey.
It is even more unusual that an author is able to complement so well-received an invention with an equally successful sequel. But Arthur C. Clarke`s 2010: odyssey two enthralled ...more
It is even more unusual that an author is able to complement so well-received an invention with an equally successful sequel. But Arthur C. Clarke`s 2010: odyssey two enthralled ...more
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Mass Market Paperback, 271 pages
Published
May 1989
by Del Rey Books / Ballantine Books
(first published November 12th 1987)
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2061: Odyssey Three (Space Odyssey #3), Arthur C. Clarke
2061: Odyssey Three is a science fiction novel by British writer Arthur C. Clarke, published in 1987.
It is the third book in Clarke's Space Odyssey series. It returns to one of the lead characters of the previous novels, Heywood Floyd, and their adventures from the 2061 return of Halley's Comet to Jupiter's moon Europa.
2061 is set 51 years after the events of 2010: Odyssey Two and 60 years after those of 2001: A Space Odyssey. At the end ...more
2061: Odyssey Three is a science fiction novel by British writer Arthur C. Clarke, published in 1987.
It is the third book in Clarke's Space Odyssey series. It returns to one of the lead characters of the previous novels, Heywood Floyd, and their adventures from the 2061 return of Halley's Comet to Jupiter's moon Europa.
2061 is set 51 years after the events of 2010: Odyssey Two and 60 years after those of 2001: A Space Odyssey. At the end ...more

Dr.Heywood Floyd, is back for the third installment of the 2001 Odyssey series still vigorous at the ripe old age of 103. So apparently the good Dr. requires excitement to live his next mission is to land on Halley's Comet, in the year 2061. When the most famous comet there is comes back past the orbit of Earth, which it has done for an incredible 20,000 years. AS A CELEBRITY HE GETS A FREE RIDE ON THE Spaceship Universe, a luxury liner, Heywood has been in a lot worse crafts in his trips around
...more

4.5 Stars. Loved it !! :D
Just like its preceding book 2010: Odyssey Two, this is a book full of wonder, awesomeness, vivid imagery and adventure.
Preferring to rate books independently, I really liked this one. The landings on Halley's Comet, and Europa, along with their vivid descriptions of the landscape and life-forms make it an engaging read filled with wonder! Based on certain facts and conjectures, Clarke has written some good stuff using his wide imagination. Celestial mechanics seem to be ...more
Just like its preceding book 2010: Odyssey Two, this is a book full of wonder, awesomeness, vivid imagery and adventure.
Preferring to rate books independently, I really liked this one. The landings on Halley's Comet, and Europa, along with their vivid descriptions of the landscape and life-forms make it an engaging read filled with wonder! Based on certain facts and conjectures, Clarke has written some good stuff using his wide imagination. Celestial mechanics seem to be ...more

2061 may seem like a random date in which to continue the Space Odyssey story into a third book, but there is a very good reason for it - the return of Halley's Comet.
Amazingly Dr Heywood Floyd, middle-aged in the first two books, is still going strong aged one hundred and three, thanks to half a lifetime spent in low gravity, orbiting Earth in a space hospital after a bad fall.
His grandson is also an astronaut and they are about to meet up after a space-jacking in the Jovian system. All eyes a ...more
Amazingly Dr Heywood Floyd, middle-aged in the first two books, is still going strong aged one hundred and three, thanks to half a lifetime spent in low gravity, orbiting Earth in a space hospital after a bad fall.
His grandson is also an astronaut and they are about to meet up after a space-jacking in the Jovian system. All eyes a ...more

This was incredibly slow moving. It also felt confusing, and the characters don't come alive very well. Clarke has two plots going at the same time and there isn't much of a plot as it is and nothing of very much interest happens. (Even the hi-jacking feels cheesy.)
Having said that, Clarke is more of a scientist than a writer and what captivates me is the astronomy, the science, the feeling of space travel and descriptions of outer space as well as future technology some of which has come to pa ...more
Having said that, Clarke is more of a scientist than a writer and what captivates me is the astronomy, the science, the feeling of space travel and descriptions of outer space as well as future technology some of which has come to pa ...more

Sep 25, 2008
holy_fire
rated it
liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
anyone who likes SciFi with a big emphasis on the Sci-part
third book in Clarke's Odyssey-Saga...
short plot description: set (obviously) 51 years after the events in "2010: Odyssey Two" we meet again Dr. Heywood Floyd, now 103 years old. Mankind has build bases on the moon and Ganymede (where a scientist makes an astonishing discovery about Europa) and advances in science have made interplanetary space travel economical feasible, which paved the way for private enterprises. One of them is Tsung Spacelines where Chris Floyd, grandson of Heywood Floyd, wo ...more
short plot description: set (obviously) 51 years after the events in "2010: Odyssey Two" we meet again Dr. Heywood Floyd, now 103 years old. Mankind has build bases on the moon and Ganymede (where a scientist makes an astonishing discovery about Europa) and advances in science have made interplanetary space travel economical feasible, which paved the way for private enterprises. One of them is Tsung Spacelines where Chris Floyd, grandson of Heywood Floyd, wo ...more

There really wasn't any reason to write this book besides cashing in on its very well know predecessors 2001 and 2010, both of which are supported by two very different but decent movie adaptations.
I dont' remember a single event from the book, but just remember getting it for Christmas and being excited by the cool cover. Fairly disappointing, really. ...more
I dont' remember a single event from the book, but just remember getting it for Christmas and being excited by the cool cover. Fairly disappointing, really. ...more

This is my first fiction book I've read in English. I've read the first two volumes in Turkish when I asked the bookseller bout this one, he said it would be translated in a few months. As an impatient reader, I bought the original. I have read lots of articles about politics, law and economics but not literature or science-fiction. It was a good journey for me. I realized that my comprehending of English was better than I thought. After these series, I ordered lots of book from Amazon. :)
...more

Not as wonderful and gripping as 2001, but still better than the 2010. Not a very long and complex adventure, but great world-building and it's reasonable shortness makes sure you don't get bored by the lack of action.
...more

Have not read all of the books in this series, but of course this one is in the shadow of the original. 2001 was such a realistic yet profound SF book. So can the following sequels still feel fresh and surprise? After the second book, which I did not feel gripped me as much (the film either), this next one again is similar. The writing style of Clarke is always a good crafted standard, but is dating now. There is mystery in this next book, though it does move along a little slowly until becoming
...more

Jul 03, 2020
Kyle
rated it
it was ok
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
science-fiction,
2020-reads
The copy I own is a hardcover first edition, and it's the most poorly-edited professionally published book I've ever read. Numerous spelling and grammar mistakes litter the text, but the worst offender is a minor villain's surname that switches back and forth throughout her part of the story for no apparent reason. Also: the main character and his grandson both have the same surname and are, at times, referred to only by that last name, Floyd, making it difficult to understand which exactly is b
...more

Jan 04, 2019
Erica Clou
rated it
it was ok
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
book-club-dad,
1980s,
scifi,
0-konmaried,
workplace-setting,
fiction,
space,
read-male,
dad-fiction
I was so bored. I considered quitting or crying. Nothing ever made me care about any of the characters. It was grueling.

Even as part of a series that I've found mediocre at best, 2061 was a disappointing, awful book. Clarke demonstrates again how clumsy he is at creating and developing characters. The plot is unnecessary, and nothing of particular importance happens until the very end (which is also when Dave and Hal make their sole brief appearance). We're treated to the usual chauvinistic, awkward writing, this time with occasional random chapters about a gay couple on a space hospital (??).
It's interesting to
...more
Storyline: 2/5
Characters: 2/5
Writing Style: 3/5
World: 2/5
If asked to choose my favorite first two books of any science fiction series, I probably would choose 2001: A Space Odyssey and its second, 2010: Odyssey Two. I am disgruntled then to find 2061: Odyssey Three to be of such inferior quality.
Clarke took this a different direction, and I now have doubts as to who was responsible for the meandering Rama sequels. I've hitherto blamed Gentry Lee for redirecting that series, but a lot of the sam ...more
Characters: 2/5
Writing Style: 3/5
World: 2/5
If asked to choose my favorite first two books of any science fiction series, I probably would choose 2001: A Space Odyssey and its second, 2010: Odyssey Two. I am disgruntled then to find 2061: Odyssey Three to be of such inferior quality.
Clarke took this a different direction, and I now have doubts as to who was responsible for the meandering Rama sequels. I've hitherto blamed Gentry Lee for redirecting that series, but a lot of the sam ...more

third read - 29 September 2010 - This is a choppy story set on two different spaceships in the Space Odyssey universe. It came out about the time of the return of Halley's comet in 1986, and is set at the time of the comet's next expected visit to the inner solar system in 2061. One spaceship brings a very elderly Heywood Floyd along on a visit to the comet itself, and Clarke's descriptions are, as usual, quite vivid. Then the other spaceship is hijacked and crashes onto Europa, giving some memb
...more

This series started as a one-off book released in conjunction with the Stanley Kubrick movie of the same name. The series consists of:
* 2001: A Space Odyssey
* 2010: Odyssey Two. (Also made into a film)
* 2061 Odyssey Three
* 3001: The Final Odyssey
The first and second books are enthralling. 2061 is more of the same, and thus decent but somewhat pointless as part of the arc. 3001 is an attempt at closing up all the loose threads, and does so in a satisfying way.
For a long time, these books frus ...more
* 2001: A Space Odyssey
* 2010: Odyssey Two. (Also made into a film)
* 2061 Odyssey Three
* 3001: The Final Odyssey
The first and second books are enthralling. 2061 is more of the same, and thus decent but somewhat pointless as part of the arc. 3001 is an attempt at closing up all the loose threads, and does so in a satisfying way.
For a long time, these books frus ...more

Well, I was having second thoughts about continuing A.C.Clarke's third novel in the classic 2001 series of science fiction books. I mean, if it was not his collaboration with Stanly Kubrick with one of the most iconic films ever made (I mean, no dialogue in that movie for at least thirty minutes) during the 1960s, then on a literal platform, most of us would never have heard of it. It ain't Asimov sci-fi for sure, but I read it (review on here) and I thought - ok -interesting but essentially fou
...more

Dec 15, 2020
Chris Greensmith
rated it
it was ok
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
arthur-c-clarke
"It is a good principle in science not to believe any 'fact'---however well attested---until it fits into some accepted frame of reference. Occasionally, of course, an observation can shatter the frame and force the construction of a new one, but that is extremely rare. Galileos and Einsteins seldom appear more than once per century, which is just as well for the equanimity of mankind."
...more

It took me a while to finish this one. That’s mostly due to the fact that I usually switch between books at a certain number of chapters, and the chapters in this are very short. The year was chosen as that is when Halley’s Comet will again be visible from Earth, and part of the story is concerned with a crew landing on the comet itself. As the book was written before the fall of apartheid, Clarke predicts a revolution in South Africa that results in much of the white population leaving the coun
...more

Maybe even 3,5.
I found it to be a bit of a step down from the first two books. It's good, but not as good. ...more
I found it to be a bit of a step down from the first two books. It's good, but not as good. ...more

3,5 stars (Goodreads really need a half star rating).
It was an enjoyable ride, and compared to the previous book, a walk in the park. Sir Arthur C Clarke's writing had been as captivating as when I first read A Space Odyssey, but I guess this book suffers from a rather severe case of technological advancement: since it's the future, and now everything is easier, some of the thrills (well, almost all of them) that made me love the previous novel so much (I think this series peaked at Odyssey Two) ...more
It was an enjoyable ride, and compared to the previous book, a walk in the park. Sir Arthur C Clarke's writing had been as captivating as when I first read A Space Odyssey, but I guess this book suffers from a rather severe case of technological advancement: since it's the future, and now everything is easier, some of the thrills (well, almost all of them) that made me love the previous novel so much (I think this series peaked at Odyssey Two) ...more

More Odyssey and at first glance set in a completely random year! However, when you know that 2061 is the year that Halley's Comet is next due to pass Earth it begins to make sense. Heywood Floyd is now a centurion but thanks to huge lengths of time in space has the body of a sixty year old. In 2061 he is invited on a trip aboard the Universe, a space tourism trip that will land on Halley's comet. Meanwhile his grandson Chris is aboard sister ship Galaxy and is headed for a fly-by of the not to
...more

The book is good when read as the third installment to the space odyssey series. The plot is intriguing; the hard science-fiction part dealing with descriptions of the celestial bodies and the fictionalised imagination of the Jovian satellites with the new sun is very impressive. But on its own, the book is not that interesting. As is usual for Clarke, there is hardly any character development. Many threads get entangled in what seems to be a forcefully delivered sequel. It doesn't seem that Cla
...more

2061: Odyssey Three continues the story of Heywood Floyd, a chirpy 103 year old. I was seriously not expecting him to even be alive at this point since he was already old in the last book. Now it's just crazy. If dr Floyd makes it to 3001: the Final Odyssey I'm seriously gonna lose my shit.
The main problem with this book was it's first half. I could have done with less space admiration and the whole Halley comet case was uttelry pointless, other than to set up the journey to the second half of ...more
The main problem with this book was it's first half. I could have done with less space admiration and the whole Halley comet case was uttelry pointless, other than to set up the journey to the second half of ...more

Didn't knock me off like 2001. That was a classic without a question. Not saying 2061 is bad but it could be better.
Poor Heywood, at the retiring age he's dragged to a space mission. He's not complaining cos he's the ultimate space geek. However, the plot takes a turn from the main mission to Europa. And yeah Heywood has a grandson, like grandpa he's a space geek too. It's pretty cool how space pirates hijacks a spaceship and lands on Europa, the forbidden planet.
Love Mr. Clarke's writing. His ...more
Poor Heywood, at the retiring age he's dragged to a space mission. He's not complaining cos he's the ultimate space geek. However, the plot takes a turn from the main mission to Europa. And yeah Heywood has a grandson, like grandpa he's a space geek too. It's pretty cool how space pirates hijacks a spaceship and lands on Europa, the forbidden planet.
Love Mr. Clarke's writing. His ...more

I adore Arthur C. Clarke but he is incredibly hit and miss. 2001 and 2010, Rendezvous with Rama, Fountains of Paradise... Brilliant. Imperial Earth, Songs of Distant Earth, Deep Range... Boring. This one is somewhere in the middle. Okay, that's a bit unfair. It's somewhere north of average.
Arthur C. Clarke's strength is in his concepts. The worldbuilding in this is incredibly strong - I love the first chapters and their visions of mid 21st century earth - the exploration of Ganymede and Mars an ...more
Arthur C. Clarke's strength is in his concepts. The worldbuilding in this is incredibly strong - I love the first chapters and their visions of mid 21st century earth - the exploration of Ganymede and Mars an ...more

3 stars, Metaphorosis Reviews
Summary:
Humans force a landing on Europa, the only body in the solar system expressly forbidden to them.
Review:
2061 is okay. It’s well written and it’s (mildly) interesting. There’s also no reason it should have been written. It doesn’t contribute anything vital to the 2001 universe, to the characters, to any ongoing mysteries, etc. I’m a fan of Clarke’s work, but I’m moderately mystified as to why this book exists, apart from a desire on Clarke’s part to cash in on ...more
Summary:
Humans force a landing on Europa, the only body in the solar system expressly forbidden to them.
Review:
2061 is okay. It’s well written and it’s (mildly) interesting. There’s also no reason it should have been written. It doesn’t contribute anything vital to the 2001 universe, to the characters, to any ongoing mysteries, etc. I’m a fan of Clarke’s work, but I’m moderately mystified as to why this book exists, apart from a desire on Clarke’s part to cash in on ...more
topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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Goodreads Librari...: correct page count ISBN 9780345358790 | 1 | 13 | Jan 30, 2018 12:08PM | |
Why the gay characters? | 25 | 232 | Nov 23, 2016 12:05AM |
Arthur Charles Clarke was one of the most important and influential figures in 20th century science fiction. He spent the first half of his life in England, where he served in World War Two as a radar operator, before emigrating to Ceylon in 1956. He is best known for the novel and movie 2001: A Space Odyssey, which he co-created with the assistance of Stanley Kubrick.
Clarke was a graduate of King ...more
Clarke was a graduate of King ...more
Other books in the series
Space Odyssey
(4 books)
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