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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Simple stories a tad too dated,
By M-I-K-E 2theD "2theD" (The Big Mango, Thailand) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Nightfall and Other Stories (Mass Market Paperback)
I read Fantastic Voyage in the late 90s when I was a teenager for a high school book report. While I enjoyed the novel at that time, I look back on the experience as a simple joy for s straight forward plot with a simple, yet original idea. Likewise, these short stories provide the same simple pleasure- short and simple. While I do love short story collection in general, the collection in Nightfall feelS oh so dated (originally published 1941-1967).
The story length is terribly different from the 1941-1951 (average of 30 pages each) to 1952-1967 (average of 10 pages each). I'm leaning towards the idea that he sold his name in his later stores as more and more publications wanted to cash-in on his fame as opposed to his previous stories when he was writing for pleasure and for the advancement of the science fiction genre. Nightfall - 3/5 - Six sun sunset approaches; cultish fever abounds. 33 pages Green Patches - 4/5 - Benevolent parasitic alien hitchhikes earthbound. 15 pages Hostess - 4/5 - Alien logic meets police logic; all fails. 38 pages Breeds There a Man? - 5/5 - Genius avoids ingenuity and pushes the barrier. 35 pages C-Chute - 3/5 - Imprisoned humans attempt overpowering alien captors. 35 pages In a Good Cause - 4/5 - Revolutionary pushes change, seeks alien truth. 24 pages What If - 2/5 - Asimov's only and last romance story. 13 pages Sally - 4/5 - Intelligent car farm up rises against aggressive buyout. 18 pages Flies - 2/5 - Flies plague one man because of odor or curse? 7 pages Nobody Here But - 4/5 - Self awaked computer fools makers. 11 pages It's Such a Beautiful Day - 3/5 - Boy loves nature; mom freaks. 22 pages Strikebreaker - 3/5 - Social untouchable strikes; breaker steps in. 13 pages Insert Knob A in Hole B - 3/5 - A solution with the same problem. 2 pages The Up-to-Date Sorcerer - 2/5 - Love potion forces awkward love. 14 pages Unto the Fourth Generation - 2/5 - Lefkowitz isn't such a common name. 8 pages What is This Thing Called Love? - 4/5 - Darned unpredictable humans! 13 pages The Machine That Won the War - 4/5 - So much for technology! 6 pages My Son, the Physicist - 2/5 - Converse with Pluto, duh! 4 pages Eyes Do More Than See - 4/5 - Energy beings intuit former material selves. 4 pages Segregationist - 3/5 - Will that be plastic or metal today, sir? 6 pages
4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Title story, excellent; the rest, a mixed bag,
By
This review is from: Nightfall and Other Stories (Mass Market Paperback)
The classic title story of this collection of short fiction, Nightfall, was voted the best science fiction short story of all-time. It is a classic of the field, and a masterpiece of atmosphere. Anyone who calls theirself a science fiction fan and has not read it is merely posing. This book, for most readers, then, is worth picking up for that story alone. That said, despite its classic status, the rest of this collection, though it does have its moments, does not reach the high standards set by the title story. Other winners include the classic and oft-anthologized It's Such A Beautiful Day and the rendering and chilling "Breeds There A Man...?" There are other stories of quality in this book, but, unfortunately, they are not among Asimov's best. Like his contemporary Grand Master, Arthur C. Clarke, as Asimov got further and further into his writing career, though his novels remained excellent, his short stories began to falter: many of them seem infected with an over-eager attempt at cleverness. While this often makes for some amusing stories (Strikebreaker, What If..., What Is This Thing Called Love?), it does not often make for classics. Thus, while this collection is certainly good - and the title story is an absolute must-read - it is not Asimov's best short story collection (try Nine Tomorrows or one of the Robot anthologies for that.) If you are a die-hard Asimov fan, I recommend picking this up; however, if you are a casual reader, or new to the good Doctor, or perhaps just want to read Nightfall, then I suggest you pick up a more wide-ranging collection such as The Complete Stories.
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good Asimov stories,
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Nightfall and Other Stories (Mass Market Paperback)
The book arrived very fast, but it was in poor though readable condition, though for the price was certainly worth it.
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