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Nightfall [Mass Market Paperback]

Isaac Asimov , Robert Silverberg
3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (103 customer reviews)

List Price: $7.99
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Book Description

August 1, 1991
These two renowned writers have invented a world not unlike our own--a world on the edge of chaos, torn between the madness of religious fanaticism and the stubborn denial of scientists. Only a handful of people on the planet Lagash are prepared to face the truth--that their six suns are setting all at once for the first time in 2,000 years, signaling the end of civilization!

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This collaboration by two masters of the genre expands on Asimov's classic short story first published in 1941. Kalgash is a planet with six suns, a world where darkness is unnatural. Scientists realize that an eclipse--an event that occurs only every 2049 years--is imminent, and that a society completely unfamiliar with darkness will be plunged into madness and chaos. The novel traces events leading to this discovery, and the fates of the main characters immediately following the apocalypse. While the premise is convincing in the context of a short story, this longer version brings up too many unresolved questions. The original tale was tightly written, succinct and stunning, but the novelization seems flabby and drawn-out--the reader recognizes the significance and consequences of the impending events long before the characters do. An abrupt and simplistic ending further mars a hallowed SF tale. 100,000 first printing.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From School Library Journal

YA-- Because of its six suns, the planet Kalgash is bathed in perpetual sunlight. However, once every 2,049 years all six suns are eclipsed, plunging the planet into total darkness and causing widespread madness that results in the civilization's complete destruction, thus allowing the cycle to begin again. Night fall , expanded from Asimov's 1941 award-winning short story, lets readers experience the cataclysmic event through the eyes and biases of a newspaperman, an astronomer, an archaeologist, a psychologist, and a religious fanatic. This novel improves upon the original through the use of better developed characters and an expanded, more textured story that results in an absorbing, richer tale.
- John Lawson, Fairfax County Public Library, Fairfax,
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

  • Mass Market Paperback: 339 pages
  • Publisher: Spectra (August 1, 1991)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0553290991
  • ISBN-13: 978-0553290998
  • Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 1.1 x 6.9 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (103 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #80,786 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

A must read for any science fiction fan- Asimov doesn't disappoint! Chris Cardinal  |  15 reviewers made a similar statement
Interesting weekend read. Vinay Doma  |  10 reviewers made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
23 of 23 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
This book expands the original short story "Nightfall" written by Asimov many years ago. Just about every science fiction aficionado agrees that the original story, based on an Emerson quotation, is one of the classics of the genre. The basic premise is a superb leap of the imagination. Picture a planet which is part of a six-sun system. The respective orbits of the planet and the six suns are so defined, that one or more of the suns is always in the sky over any part of the planet. As a result, the people of the planet have only the faintest conception of what the absence of light i.e. darkness can be. With no dark night sky, they have no idea of other stars in the universe (forget radio astronomy as an inconvenient abstraction!). As far as they know, they are the masters of the universe. Now picture an unexpected total eclipse, at a time when only one sun is in the sky: a strange and frightening darkness covers the land, and the night sky now reveals millions of stars looking down on the stunned populace. How does a society deal with so drastic a blow to its fundamental picture of itself? In sheer imagination, in boldness, in vision, this story has few equals. The skillful blending of a religious doomsday cult and its interweave with a psychologist and baffled yet striving physical scientists brings out the roles of superstition and rationalism in society. I still remember the awe that gripped me when I first read this story more than a decade ago. This collaborative book builds upon the story and introduces some interesting ideas. The use of archaeology to derive the cyclical history of the plant is both imaginative and educative. The longer book format also allows the author to develop the characters more fully than in the short story. The weakness of the book however is the ending; to be fair, the cataclysmic end portrayed in the short story cannot possibly be improved upon. All the book does is stretch out the period of rebirth, adding interesting human vignettes along the way. I withhold one star for this reason. Do not miss this book, but do try to read the short story of the same name that started it all.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Another incredible piece by Asimov... November 27, 2002
Format:Hardcover
What an incredible book. Filled to the brim with terrific short stories, Asimov completely engrosses you in the lives and situations of the characters in these stories in only 30 pages. Some have twist endings that truly surprise and thrill. Others are good looks at technology and the like in a nutshell, developed too far.
I would absolutely recommend Nightfall & Other stories- Nightfall is the classic about a world who never sees darkness- surrounded by numerous suns, and how it affects its inhabitants. A must read for any science fiction fan- Asimov doesn't disappoint!
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
On a distant planet, a world illuminated by multiple suns basks peacefully in continuous, nurturing light. The society is human, and the technology is similar to our own circa. 1950. When the novel begins, a new funhouse ride opens that promises a trip through a straight, level tunnel in complete darkness. Elsewhere, an archeologist makes a disturbing discovery, and a physicist runs some calculations he knows to be right, but should not be. Although the setting is alien, the characters of this world are human and their many trials and tribulations purposely mirror our own. For all its fantastic elements and unique storyline, "Nightfall" is a study of the modern human condition, with insights very much meant for the Earthborn reader.

At one point, a psychologist asks a colleague if he sleeps with a "godlight" (their equivilent of a mere night light) in the bedroom. The colleague replies "of course", and when the psychologist asks him to turn it off or remove the "godlight", it is an alien and unfathomable idea. "Nightfall" is about the fragility of the human mind, its stubborness toward accepting change, and its inability to overcome monumental change in the face of a sudden epoch thrust upon mankind's collective psyche. The novel touches upon many aspects of this, with moments of scientic and religious backlash reminiscent of Galileo, and deeper delvings into the human mind and how, even in an enlightened age, the most primitive instincts can compel the strongest actions and reactions.

Although the third act of the novel is not as tightly written, "Nightfall" remains an engrossing work of science fiction by one of the great masters of the genre, Isaac Asimov, in turn ably assisted by notable contemporary Robert Silverberg. Recommended for all science fiction fans and for any curious readers with a background/interest in psychology or sociology.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars Our future Days
In the end, he who has the guns and bullets, survives, maybe. And, you better have some comrades who you can trust!
Published 8 days ago by sigma 7
5.0 out of 5 stars Another great Asimov novel
Thoroughly enjoyed his book, but maybe I'm biased, I enjoy them all. Time to start reading them all again I think
Published 8 days ago by MATTHEW MINSON
5.0 out of 5 stars A great read
The story is both plausible and exceedingly well written with solid science and strong personalities. It's a superb SF novel.
Published 1 month ago by Peter D. Springberg
4.0 out of 5 stars A Very exciting book.
Liked it a lot. It was a great read. The writers perspective was very interesting. There could have been more to the story, but other than that it was great!!
Published 1 month ago by Samuel Merz
3.0 out of 5 stars Okay book
Daughter needed book for school, It was a okay read. Good price. It was worth what was paid since it was just for school.
Published 2 months ago by Jenine Gonzalez
5.0 out of 5 stars Second time
Read the short story years ago and was fascinated. Asimov was and still is the master of scifi even so many years after his death. This is the second time I read Nightfall. Read more
Published 2 months ago by ROA
5.0 out of 5 stars Isaac Asimov's earliest short stories.
I first read these stories while riding to and from work on the Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad in the early 1950's. I have been an Isaac Asimov fan ever since. Read more
Published 3 months ago by C. Gaylord
3.0 out of 5 stars Fun to read
Diferent from other science fiction that I have read before but nice how it can feel so alien and so human at the same time
Published 3 months ago by Nelson Amaya
5.0 out of 5 stars "Se as estrelas aparecessem somente uma noite a cada mil anos, como...
Coletânea de contos fantásticos, e díspares, ainda năo publicados em coletâneas anteriores, e prefaciados pelo próprio Isaac Asimov, explicando aspectos das... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Lili Machado
4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting story
This book was recommended to me by someone at my work. He is big into sci-fi books but I had not read anything sci-fi previously. Read more
Published 5 months ago by April
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