I, Robot / Isaac Asimov - 4****

[Book Concierge]

I, Robot – Isaac Asimov
Digital audio narrated by Scott Brick
4****

I’ve never been a great fan of science fiction but this book has been on my tbr for ages. The thread that weaves the chapters together is Susan Calvin, PhD – a specialist in “Robopsychology.” At the age of 75, she is retiring from U.S. Robots and being interviewed by a journalist about her life-long work. She tells the stories of the advance (and decline?) of robotics.

What fascinates me about this is that it was written in 1948 and is STILL set in the future. Although Asimov’s imagination outpaced the reality of robotics as we know it today, he grappled with many of the same issues we have faced and are still facing. In Asimov’s world the scientists who first developed these tools to help humanity could not help but “improve” them beyond being mere worker-machines. And hence the Three Rules: 1) A robot must not harm a human being; 2) A robot must obey human orders; and 3) A robot must protect its own existence … but only if doing so does not violate rules 1 and 2.

As the narrator relates Dr Calvin’s fifty years of experiences in the field, the reader gets a sense of the slippery slope humanity has embarked on by relying more and more on these highly intelligent machines. It’s fascinating, frightening, thrilling and thought-provoking.

Scott Brick does a fine job narrating the audiobook. He set a good pace and was chillingly non-emotional when voicing the intelligent robots (especially the politician).


LINK to my review

[AsimovsZeroth]

I'm so glad you enjoyed it! I'm a huge sci-fi fan myself, but I prefer sci-fi that is a bit more serious than the space operas and straight up adventures that many people associate with the genre. Don't get me wrong, I can enjoy those too, but I prefer something closer to Asimov's or Heinlein's novels. Something that not only predicts the future of technology, but also the future social problems we'll have to explore. If you liked Asimov, I highly recommend trying Heinlein. The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress and Stranger in a Strange Land are two of my favorites and a fantastic place to start.