Binding: Mass-market paperback
Publisher: Del Rey Books
Date Published: 1986
ISBN-13:9780345336286ISBN:0345336283
Description: Good. No dust jacket as issued. J-Clean and tight; spine slightly canted with creases; mild edge rubbing-great reader's copy. Mass market (rack) paperback. Glued binding. Foundation Novels (Paperback). Audience: General/trade. read more
Binding: Mass-market paperback
Publisher: Avon
Date Published: 1983
ISBN-13:9780345309006ISBN:0345309006
Description: Very good. No dust jacket as issued. Mass market (rack) paperback. Glued binding. Foundation Novels (Paperback). Audience: General/trade. read more
Description: Good. Spine is smooth. Covers show some wear at the edges and corners. Good reading copy. Binding is Mass Market Paperback. Pages tanning. Used books may have price stickers. Most orders ship on the next business day. read more
Description: Good. Spine has some creases. Covers show wear at the edges and corners. Good Grade B reading copy. Binding is Mass Market Paperback. Pages tanning. Used books may have price stickers. Most orders ship on the next business day. read more
Description: Good. Spine is well creased. Covers show wear at the edges and corners. Good Grade C average reading copy. Binding is Mass Market Paperback. Pages tanning. Used books may have price stickers. Most orders ship on the next business day. read more
Description: Good. Spine is well creased. Covers show wear at the edges and corners. Good average reading copy. Binding is Mass Market Paperback. Pages tanning. Used books may have price stickers. Most orders ship on the next business day. read more
Description: Good. Spine is well creased. Covers show wear at the edges and corners. Good Grade C average reading copy. Binding is Mass Market Paperback. Pages tanning. Used books may have price stickers. Most orders ship on the next business day. read more
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: Spectra
Date Published: 1991-11-01
ISBN-13:9780553293371ISBN:0553293370
Description: Good. Cover has light edge wear at base of front side, spine has a couple of crease lines, and about two dozen pages in middle of block have some crinkling at the open edge. No other faults to book. read more
Description: Very Good. 0345336283 This mass market paperback book is in REAL GOOD SHAPE! ! There is minimal creasing of the spine and minor signs of wear from reading--nothing major! SMOKE FREE HOME! Do not settle for worn, torn, throwaways. Pay a few pennies more for a book that looks GREAT--considering that its an older title! read more
Binding: Trade paperback
Publisher: Avon Books, New York
Date Published: 1966
Description: Good. No dust jacket as issued. Cover has darkened with age and handling, minor wear; pages appear to be unmarked with tanning throughout. 224p. read more
Description: Very Good. 0586013555 Mass Market Paperback, Condition: Very Good; this book is in very good condition with light curve to the spine / light reading creases to the covers. read more
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: Del Rey, New York
Date Published: 1989
ISBN-13:9780345336286ISBN:0345336283
Description: Good. 0345336283 some edge wear, spine creasing; Led by its founding father, the great psychohistorian Hari Seldon, and taking advantage of its superior science and technology, the Foundation has survived the greed and barbarism of its neighboring warrior-planets. Yet now it must face the Empire--still the mightiest force in the Galaxy even in its death throes. When an ambitious general determined to restore the Empireís glory turns the vast Imperial fleet toward the Foundation, the only hope ... read more
Edition: 13th Printing
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: Ballantine Books, New York
Date Published: 1987
ISBN-13:9780345336286ISBN:0345336283
Description: Good. No Jacket. 12mo-over 6¾"-7¾" tall. Shelf and edge wear to wraps, including creasing, chips, and small tears. Solid reading copy with clean pages. read more
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: Del Rey, Westminster, Maryland, U.S.A.
Date Published: 1989
ISBN-13:9780345336286ISBN:0345336283
Description: Good. 0345336283 Mass market paperback, previously read used book in good condition, varying degrees of shelf wear, some spine creases, m..._ read more
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: Del Rey, Westminster, Maryland, U.S.A.
Date Published: 1989
ISBN-13:9780345336286ISBN:0345336283
Description: Very Good. 0345336283 Mass market paperback, previously read used book in very good condition, may have slight worn corners and varying degre... read more
"Chronologically, this is the third in the series, and so far it dragged the most for me (at least the first 3/4 of the book). Part was because it was two parts, the first where a young, agressive general gets a chance to make his mark by attacking the Foundation at the periphery of the Galaxy (not more than legend to many of those in the Empire).
The Foundation survives and looks for the next Seldon crisis in the second part, confident that everything will work out since they have already passed four Seldon crises. Things go awry in the Seldon plan...Seldon appears and talks about the current crisis, but it does not consider a mutant called the MULE! Destruction of the Foundation seems imminent, as Elbis Mils (the smartest psychologist in the Foundation) flees from the Mule to search for the location of the Second Foundation, always mentioned and know, but only as legend. Mils attempts to retrace the steps of Hari Seldon before the Mule gets him and his friends Toran, his pretty wife, and the Mule's runaway jester, Magnifico.
As I said, this ended pretty well, so I will be continuing the series..."
"Asimov continues with his narration of the history of the interregnum between empires in pretty much the same anthology format used in Foundation. Actually, upon further thinking, there's probably no way really to tell the story of a 1,000 year journey on the part of humanity without doing it in snippets. More and more the series begins to read more like a history book with some dramatic events being highlighted for their importance as turning points. These turning points are called Seldon Crises, foreseen events by Hari Seldon, Psychohistorian, which impel the people of the Foundation forward to galactic dominance. Throughout the first book and a half, Asimov establishes a bit of fatalism - nothing can stop the foundation by historical imperative, and for that reason the people of the Foundation, especially it's leadership, become apathetic.
Asimov throws a wrench into the status quo with the rise of a mutant, a statistical improbability and anomaly that could not possibly be accounted for in the creation of the Seldon Plan and therefore the first truly unknown quantity with the ability to destroy the Foundation. This mutant, called the Mule, has psychic ability and the great revival of technology in the Foundation is powerless to stop him from manipulating people and working his way to dominance. The Mule consolidates his power, takes over the Foundation and destroys the remnants of the former galactic empire and it looks like Seldon's prophecies could be wrong. That a single individual upset the 1,000 year plan to turn the Foundation into the Second Empire, in only 5 years.
Asimov again explores the themes of individuality, stagnation, complacency and religion. Choice and free will are major foci for the novel. If the Seldon Plan is mathematically and psychologically accurate like a prophecy, if certain things are meant to happen, just because human beings will predictably react in the same ways in given situations, do we really have free will? What is the role of the individual in society in in the historical process? Asimov treats history like a Marxist, influenced by Hegelian dialectics. Conflicts and crises between opposing forces give birth to a third new status quo until it comes into conflict with an opposing force. These moments of intersection are the Crises predicted by Seldon and the focus of Asimov's 1,000 year narrative. But the Mule changes that. He challenges the notion of inevitability and proves the fallibility of Seldon's prophecies. But by doing so he introduces another free will paradox. The Mule has the ability to modify emotions and create complete loyalty in people. He wins victories by converting the opposing sides' generals and leaders into giving up and then serving him, destroying free will again by creating it out of the tight confines of the Seldon Plan. It's truly and interesting concept. How will the Mule be stopped? Enter: the Second Foundation. Established on the other side of the galaxy as a failsafe in case of the failure of the Foundation. But no record exists of where that foundation is or what type of society it will become. Will the Mule find it and destroy it? Does it exist after 300 years?
My major problem throughout the narration is that it is assumed that the Seldon Plan represents the ideal in some way. Seldon was a human being, capable of manipulating and creating situations a millennia in advance and manipulating the fate of quadrillions of human beings. Who says his plan needs to be fulfilled? What if people don't want Seldon's future? What if they don't want to live in an all-encompassing empire? I would maybe believe Asimov wants you to question that, but he gives himself away in little asides in the narration, inserting emotional declamations against the upset of the Plan."
"There are countless reviews to the Foundation series. Most of them written by well read and well informed reviewers. Therefore I will not attempt a 'proper' review.
I personally find (nearly) all the Foundation books to be wonderful. This second in the series is (in my humble opinion) better than the first. Foundation sets up the scene; whereas Foundation and Empire really dives head long into Asimov's world. The characters are all amazing and easily imaginable. Follow the saga throught the next generations of war and invention!
"After documenting the inevitable showdown between the Foundation and the Galactic Empire (short and perhaps not as interesting as it could have been), Asimov introduces the best character in the Foundation series: the Mule. The Mule is an enigmatic conqueror bent on subjugating the entire galaxy, and his mutant mental abilities render him capable of singlehandedly disrupting the Seldon Plan. Foundation and Empire follows Toran, an independent trader, and his wife, Bayta, as they seek first the aid of the elusive Mule, and then a means to stop him before it's too late. The plot is ingenious, and the writing masterful. This is a worthy sequel to Foundation, and in many ways even better."
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