To read Isaac Asimov

[Agrajag]

Well, this is the Sword and Laser book for September:

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29...

It's the first book in the Foundation series. There are prequels but they were published after the rest of the series.

[Mark]

Also he has some stand alones which are really good, like Nemesis and The Gods Themselves

[Jon]

Why not start with Prelude instead of Foundation?
I know he wrote it after, but it still comes first chronologically. And it's good. And Asimov is Seldon.

[Igor]

I would go with Foundation first, the first book.

[Sean]

Jon wrote: "Why not start with Prelude instead of Foundation?
I know he wrote it after, but it still comes first chronologically. And it's good. And Asimov is Seldon."

You are very much in the minority in enjoying Prelude. Most people consider it (and all the other Foundation novels written after Edge) an abomination that clumsily welds two unrelated and incompatible series together in a way that doesn't make sense either in terms of plot-logic nor the themes of both series, and which should've been vetoed by an editor but for the fact that Asimov was at a point in his career where no editor could say "no" to him.

Also, see this thread on the value of reading in publication order.

[Tamahome]

Editing doesn't exist anymore. Books are controlled by marketing. See Terry Brooks's interview on the Geek's Guide podcast talking about the days of Lester Del Rey.

http://www.wired.com/underwire/2012/0...

[Louie]

The Foundation trilogy is a must. The follow ups are up to you if you are so inclined. But you should also check out the Galactic Empire trilogy (The Stars, Like Dust, The Currents of Space, Pebble in the Sky) and the Robot novels (The Caves of Steel, The Naked Sun, The Robots of Dawn) as well as the short story collection, I, Robot.
There is no true beginning to the Asimov Universe, but since they all intertwine in the end, you should really read them all. Starting with I, Robot then the Robot novels, then the Galactic Universe novels, then the Foundation cycle.

[Lonnie]

Anaclara,
I would agree with all of these suggestions and also ad The End of Eternity to the list. It was also quite good. I really haven't read anything by him that I didn't like.

[Kamil]

I would start whith the shortstory "the sentinel" it's about the war resulting from the first contact whith an alien race but....

[Skip]

I would start with I, Robot. Short stories are great for getting the feel of an author. If they don't interest you in a short story they are unlikely to in a longer format. Especially for golden era Science Fiction, the authors tended to be fairly direct as books were generally shorter and many of them grew out of short stories that were published in the magazines. The Caves of Steel is under 300 pages in paperback and is fairly long for the time.

[Alterjess]

Nine Tomorrows is a fantastic short story collection to begin with. ("The Last Question" is a must for Douglas Adams fans.)

[Tyler]

You have to read The Last Question and The End of Eternity.

[Corbitt]

I have gotten an early jump on Foundation and find it a good starting point for me. This is my first book by Asimov and half way through I am enjoying it. I think joining in with the book club for September will give you a fine intro.

[Sayrah]

If you start with the robot series first, you will understand the Foundation series more :)

[Louie]

Kamil wrote: "I would start with the shortstory 'the sentinel'"

"The Sentinel" was written by Arthur C. Clarke. And was the basis for what became 2001: A Space Odyssey.

[Kamil]

Louie wrote: "Kamil wrote: "I would start with the shortstory 'the sentinel'"

"The Sentinel" was written by Arthur C. Clarke. And was the basis for what became 2001: A Space Odyssey."

Are you sure?

[Ralffie]

Yeah. "The Sentinel" is Clarke. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sent...

[Sayrah]

The sentinel was definitely written by Arthur C Clark :)

[Kamil]

Ralffie wrote: "Yeah. "The Sentinel" is Clarke. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sent..."

it's not that story

[Sayrah]

What story is it? Honestly, I've never heard of a story by Asimov called the sentinel. If it's out there I want to read it :) is it in a collection?

[Kamil]

Sarah wrote: "What story is it? Honestly, I've never heard of a story by Asimov called the sentinel. If it's out there I want to read it :) is it in a collection?"

i've read it in elementary school so I might be totally wrong

[Louie]

Kamil wrote: "i've read it in elementary school so I might be totally wrong "

remember any more details about its plot?

[Ryn]

I agree with Louie and Skip, start with I, Robot. It lays out the basic rules (aka the three Laws of Robotics) and the implications of not following them which Asimov returns in the Caves of Steel series. (on a personal note, it stars Susan Calvin -- my hero growing up.)

I also recommend, at some point, reading Pebble in the Sky which was his first novel. Moving on to his non-sci-fi genre books, Isaac wrote a murder mystery and I believe there's a book or books rather of just limericks. He was dirty boy. :)

If you feel competitive Dad, I'm betting there's at least one book by Asimov he didn't read: Understanding Physics published in a three book omnibus. It's not as awful as it sounds. In fact, not only is it an easy ready considering the subject, it helped me embarrass a physic teacher who totally had it coming.