Foundation's Harumph

Veni, ego legere, et ingemuerunt.

I wanted to re-read Isaac Asimov's Foundation Trilogy before I died. But it had grown a bit since I'd first read it as a teenager. There were sequels and prequels by Asimov...and there was another trilogy by men whose last names started with the letter B. And it was even more tangled than that, as now all of the Robot stories and all of the Galactic Empire stories were supposed to be part of the mesh. 

Well...I didn't know if I had enough time for all of that. I mean, I am getting old. And I have a lot of other stuff to read, too. So I decided to draw the line around the Foundation Books Proper--the seven by Asimov and the new trilogy...which I don't like referring to as the second Foundation trilogy for obvious reasons. So ten books. A heaping helping, but do-able in a relatively short amount of time, I thought.

I got going with a bang, really enjoying Asimov's Prelude to Foundation. And my momentum didn't slacken a bit as I began Forward the Foundation. But then I was told to stop after section I and read the first book of the new trilogy. And I really struggled with that one--Gregory Benford's Foundation's Fear. Benford's writing was not my cup of tea, and the story just seemed to churn in place. It was sheer will power which allowed me to finish this book. Well, will power and my decision to make F'sF my bathroom book, so that I was only reading a few pages per day. And when I finished it, I breathed a sigh of relief and went back to FtF. Unfortunately the dislocation caused by Benford's writing made it difficult for me to reconnect with the Asimov book, but after a bit it kicked in and I was out of the bathroom with it. Then it was time for book two of the new trilogy, Greg Bear's Foundation and Chaos. I was dubious, but I thought it was slightly better than F'sF.... But not better enough to move out of the bathroom. But I managed to finish it, and then I heaved a sigh of relief, as my reading order directions told me that I could go back to FtF. And I really enjoyed it. And then...the main course. It was time to begin Foundation. I have to admit that I didn't sink into it right away, but I think a lot of that was the dislocation of going from Asimov to Benford to Asimov to Bear to Asimov...and with the knowledge that I would be heading for Brin in the near near. And then I started getting into Foundation. Finished Part I and...shit. It was time for the third (and thank you, Lord, the final) book of the new trilogy. Foundation's Triumph. To be honest, I wasn't expecting to feel triumphant. But I had read David Brin before...Existence...which wasn't my favorite read, but it did have some cool concepts. Not the least of which was utilizing autistic people as experts. And? Well, it was a long slog, but it was the least painful of the three new Foundation books, so at least there was that.

I finished F'sT this morning. In fact, when I saw how close I had gotten, I took it out of the bathroom and read it in bed from about 5:00 am on, waiting on my early morning phone call from Joe.

And now I'm ready to go back to Foundation...and henceforth it will only be Asimov's books until the end of the series. Which is quite a relief for me.

As for this so-called second Foundation trilogy...I have to say that it would be better not to have read it, actually. None of these three writers is in Asimov's league as a storyteller...or at least not when they're playing with the Good Doctor's toys...and while the books do add to the storyline, (1) none of the additions are necessary and (2) many of the additions seriously violate some of the things that Asimov set up. In fact, I don't think a "How dare you?" was ever far from the lips of my mind (and knocking hard on the doors of my face). So I would have to say Don't Bother. If you're as OCD as I am and feel that you HAVE to do it anyway, then at least find them in the bargain bin (as I did) so you only have to pay a few bucks for the privilege of hearing me say, "I told you so." I'd be glad to give you my copies...it's useless to take them to Half-Price, since I know they won't give me any money for them...but if I don't hear from you in a little while, I'm going to take them down to The Little Library on Shelbyville Road (you know, the one that's close to the U of L Shelby Campus? Yeah, right in front of that house, that's the one) and drop them off there. See how long it takes for somebody to pick them up. If ever. (That copy of Heinlein's I Will Fear No Evil has been in there for fuckin' ever!) 

Also...I just have to say a word about the brazen husyness of this series...or at least of the editors at HarperCollins who approved the back cover copy for Foundation's Triumph. Check this out:

"Now...three of today's most acclaimed authors have completed the epic The Grand Master left unfinished."

Okay. First off, The Grand Master didn't leave the series unfinished. Asimov's seven books = The Whole Shebang. Maybe he would have written more Foundation books if he'd lived longer...who knows. But the story is complete as is.

Second off, Benford, Bear, and Brin haven't completed anything here. They've interpolated. And they've ignored story elements in order to create their own version of a part of the Foundation story. Which is pretty obvious just by the fact that the trilogy is structured the way it is...jumping in and out of Asimov books instead of coming before or after what Asimov had written. Which is no way to write a series, for fuck's sake. I can only hope that these books sold so poorly that the publisher won't be tempted to try again. Enough is enough.

Now I've got to get back to Foundation. I think I'm just going to start over so as to wipe the taste of those other three books out of my mouth.

ADDENDUM: Well, it's been four days...and four days under Social Distancing / Self-Quarantine is equal to about a month...and I haven't heard from any of you...so ahmo walk these books down to The Little Library.

And how do you like your Foundation-Eyed Roomate, Mr. Heinlein?

UPDATE: The Next Day

Heinlein seems to be dancing a bit, but no takers for the Foundation Trilogy The Second yet. Maybe mañana. 

UPDATE: Mañana

Was it one of you? If so, then thanks...it made me happy to see that the second Foundation Trilogy had found a new home. Poor Heinlein, though...seriously, that book has been sitting there for at least six months, and maybe twice that. But unless I hear from you on this topic, that's the end of the road for this one. 

Nos vemos más tarde, bebé.