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20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A book for fans of Foundation and future histories, June 9, 2002
If you were a fan of Isaac Asimov's original Foundation trilogy but were bitterly disappointed (as I was) with his 1980s extension of the series, then Donald Kingsbury's Psychohistorical Crisis may be for you! Fans of complex future histories such as that of H. Beam Piper may also want to slug their way through the book, but be warned: Although rewarding in many ways, the book is quite dense and does take some effort to get through. Kingsbury works from the original Foundation Trilogy, veiling the scenario somewhat (Trantor becomes Splendid Wisdom; the Mule becomes Cloun-the-Stubborn), and updates the technology to that which modern readers can appreciate (Cloun used mind control tech to upset the Foundation plan, and the Second Foundation - here called the Pscholars - improved on it to counter him, resulting in supercomputers implanted in peoples' heads, called 'fams'). He then figures that the Foundation plan was carried through to the founding of a Second Empire, and 1600 years later this Empire is under control of the Pscholars. The hook into the story is that Pscholar Eron Osa has committed a crime so horrible that his fam is destroyed - not good, considering that most of his memories and skills were on the fan. Kingsbury then shows us how Osa got to this point, how he was unwittingly used by the Oversee, a group trying to rebel against the Pscholars, and how he was mentores by Hahukum Konn, a brilliant but eccentric Pscholar. And we eventually learn what's really going on, and what's really threatening the stability of the Empire. Kingsbury goes all out to paint the history of his galaxy, and to a great extent the novel is an exploration of history and our perceptions of it. This element is wildly successful, although not perhaps for everyone. Also successful is his exploration of how one might organize a rebellion against overlords who can predict the future (or, at least, the future of large numbers of people), and some of the details of how Psychohistory might world, and its limitations. The book does ultimately have the disappointment that it ends rather abruptly, bringing some closure to Eron Osa's story, but leaving open the question of how the crisis of the book's title will resolve itself. The book is also not very character-heavy (and is strangely almost devoid of strong female characters, for reasons hard to fathom). Still, this is a delightful book for fans of futuristing world- (or galaxy-) building, and it's hard to fault it for being tremendously ambitious, even if it doesn't fully achieve its ambitions. And, best of all, it leaves Asimov's later novels in its dust.
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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Required Reading for Science Fiction Lovers, December 26, 2003
Hi,
I have often browsed book reviews online but have never written one. Until now.
Psychohistorical Crisis is a work of surpassing brilliance but it is not for everyone.
If you're looking for a quick read, look elsewhere: Donald Kingsbury has decided to immerse you in Isaac Asimov's "Foundation" universe and show you what a galaxy with 100,000 years of history might be like. Any science fiction writer can waves his hands and say "thousands of years," but Kingsbury can make you feel those years.
If you're looking for epic space battles, look elsewhere: A character in Asimov's original Foundation trilogy says that violence is the last refuge of the incompetent. This is a galaxy ruled by mathematicians.
If you're looking for extensive character development, look elsewhere: To write this novel, Kingsbury did not merely imitate Asimov's style but absorbed it, warts and all. This homage to the Foundation universe is more true to the original than the prequels authorized by the Asimov estate or even the Asimov's own sequels.
If you didn't like the Foundation trilogy, look elsewhere: This book is the true inheritor of the Foundation trilogy, though the serial numbers have been filed off. If you haven't read the Foundation trilogy, that's the place to start. Then read Pebble in the Sky.
If you have read a Kingsbury book before and didn't like it, look elsewhere: Somehow, Kingsbury has written a book that is true to his own style and themes while being true to those of the original Foundation.
Psychohistorical Crisis is a novel of ideas in the tradition of classic science fiction, but is itself an extremely modern book that takes an unflinching and sometimes unflattering look at the ideas implicit in the original Foundation. Each work is very much of its time.
I'd love to talk about the themes of Psychohistorical Crisis, but wouldn't it be better for you to read the book for yourself?
Psychohistorical Crisis is the true Second Foundation.
Anyway,
KenK
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Clever reimagination of Asimov's Foundation universe, February 26, 2002
Donald Kinsgsbury has hugely expanded his 1995 novella "Historical Crisis" into a long novel. I quite enjoyed "Historical Crisis", though I found it a bit melodramatic, and a bit too rapid. The novel is still a bit melodramatic (in an enjoyable fashion) and also much slower than "Historical Crisis", perhaps at times a bit too slow. The book is set from 14790 GE to 14810 GE. This is about 2700 years after the death of the "Founder" and the near simultaneous establishment of the equivalent of the "First Foundation" on a planet called Faraway. It's about 1600 years after the formal establishment of the Pax Pscholaris, the "Second Empire" under the rule of the Pscychohistorians called Pscholars. As may be clear, Kingsbury's universe is an update and rethinking of Isaac Asimov's Foundation Universe, with psi powers replaced by high tech, and with a slightly more sophisticated look at the background math. (Kingsbury, to be sure, is a pr Indeed, he is very interested in treating Psychohistory with some seriousness, and in asking how well the secret society of Pscholars can really keep psychohistory secret, and how ultimately stable their rule will be. The key extra tech is something called the "familiar", or "fam" -- sort of a PDA with extra memory and processing which links directly to the brain. You adjust to it from the age of 3, and your personal adjustment theoretically makes it impossible for anyone else to exercise control over you through it. Pretty much everybody in rich societies has one, and indeed it is all but impossible to get around Splendid Wisdom (Kingsbury's version of Asimov's Trantor) without it. The story begins with the trial of a young psychohistorian named Eron Osa. He is condemned to death, and summarily executed -- by having his fam destroyed. His body, with its near useless "wet" brain, is allowed to live. He cannot even understand his crime -- all the data about it was in his fam. Soon he is desperately trying to relearn normal living skills, as he also begins to receive strange messages. The story soon is following four points of view, 20 years in the past. We follow Eron Osa as a 12 year old boy on the planet Agander, as he yearns to become a psychohistorian. We follow Eron's tutor, Murek Kapor, who is in secret Hiranimus Scogil, the member of a secret group trying to develop psychohistory independently and to counteract the Pscholars' efforts. We follow Admiral Hahukum Konn, the second most powerful Pscholar, and an enthusiast for ancient weapons systems, as he searches for a worthy student to learn his eccentric interpretation of Psychohistory. And we follow the elderly Hyperlord Kikaju Jama, an antiques dealer who is interested in upsetting the static social order, especially after he discovers a strange device that shows the stars of the Galaxy, and that hints at a secret planet hidden by the Pscholars. We also follow a fifth thread, as events in the "present" lead toward a climax. The four threads converge after years for the action of the climax, which is exciting, even though full of math, and which reveals Kingsbury doing some interesting thinking about stability versus vigor in a society. It's really quite fun, and the world Kingsbury creates is fascinating. I quite liked Kingsbury's names: the Frightfulperson Otaria of the Calmer Sea being a particular example. The actual given names, such as Eron Osa, are nods to Asimov's rather unharmonious naming habits. The book is long, and sometimes rather slow, but on the whole it is a good read. It is considerably more interesting than the new books in the actual Foundation universe which were authorized after Asimov's death.
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