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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Early Asimov Still Beats Par,
By If you want to read them in order read The Stars Like Dust First, which takes place before the birth of the Foundation referenced Empire. Then read The Currents of Space which takes place during the infancy of the Foundation referenced Empire. Lastly read Pebble in the Sky which takes place during the peak of the Foundation referenced Empire.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Tales of a Ruined Earth,
By
This review is from: Triangle: The Currents of Space, Pebble in the Sky, The Stars Like Dust (Hardcover)
I always thought that _Triangle_ (1961) was a terrible name for an omnibus of science fiction stories. A.E. van Vogt had one called _Triad_ (1951), a title with much more pizazz. Larry Niven had _Three Books of Known Space_ (1996), which was okay. Robert A. Heinlein had _Three by Heinlein_ (1965), which was at least descriptive. But _Triangle_? Couldn't the editors at Doubleday have come up with something better? _Three Novels of a Radioactive Earth_ would have been at least a small improvement.But there is little to complain about in terms of the contents. They are Isaac Asimov's first three novels: _Pebble in the Sky_ (1950), _The Stars, Like Dust_ (as _Tyrann_, _Galaxy_, 1951; 1951), and _The Currents of Space_ (_Astounding_, 1952; 1952). If they are not Asimov at his very best, they are still very good. I have read each novel at least half a dozen times over the years, and they still hold up well. Why do these novels remain so readable? First, they are tightly plotted, with a multitude of twists and turns. Second, they are told in a sharp, clear style with no words wasted. Algis Budrys once reported that as an editor he once had the unenviable job of trying to abridge _Pebble in the Sky_. He found that except for a few words here or there, there was nothing that could be cut. Asimov's sense of dialogue is good as well. Of course, there are a few epithets ("By space!") that seem a bit juvenile today. But the lines are generally effectively dramatic, revealing character traits and advancing the plot. With Asimov, story twists often come from what a character _says_ rather than from pure action (though the action is also there, to be sure). But perhaps a more fundamental strength of these novels is their sense of humanity. Asimov picks sympathetic central characters who (you might think) are unlikely candidates for survival against the Bastards in life. In the first novel, it is a gentle, elderly man from the twentieth century who is catapulted into a hostile future. In the second novel, it is a somewhat naive college student who is the intended catspaw of various spies, politicians, and military leaders. In the third, it is a childlike peasant on a distant planet who has lost his memory. Yet, through pluck and luck, all three characters prevail. They represent Asimov's faith in the ability of common people-- with all their faults and limitations-- to succeed. We root for them as well. The action for these novels occurs some time before the action in the Foundation novels. They are set at a time when Terra is still aglow from a past nuclear holocaust. I believe that the internal chronology of the novels is: _The Stars, Like Dust_, _The Currents of Space_, and _Pebble in the Sky_. But some sharp-eyed reader may come along who will suggest a different sequence.
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