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Type of bind: Mass Market Paperback
EAN num: 9780553293371
ISBN number: 0553293370
Label: Spectra
Manufacturer: Spectra
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 320
Printing Date: November 01, 1991
Publishing house: Spectra
Release Date: October 01, 1991
Sale Popularity Level: 10727
Studio: Spectra
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Product Description:
The Foundation novels of Isaac Asimov are one of the great masterworks of science fiction. Unsurpassed for their unique blend of nonstop action, daring ideas, and extensive world-building, they chronicle the struggle of a courageous group of men and women to preserve humanity’s light against an inexorable tide of darkness and violence.
Led by its founding father, the great psychohistorian Hari Seldon, and taking advantage of its superior science and technology, the Foundation has survived the greed and barbarism of its neighboring warrior-planets. Yet now it must face the Empire—still the mightiest force in the Galaxy even in its death throes. When an ambitious general determined to restore the Empire’s glory turns the vast Imperial fleet toward the Foundation, the only hope for the small planet of scholars and scientists lies in the prophecies of Hari Seldon.
But not even Hari Seldon could have predicted the birth of the extraordinary creature called The Mule—a mutant intelligence with a power greater than a dozen battle fleets…a power that can turn the strongest-willed human into an obedient slave.
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Rated by buyers 
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The second book in the original trilogy, and the fourth book overall, Foundation and Empire is the great sequel to Foundation. It's really two different stories set many years apart.
The very first story covers the empires endeavor to conquer the First Foundation led by its last great general. The second covers the mutant known as the Mule and his endeavor to conquer the entire galaxy. The mysterious Second Foundation comes into play for the very first time at the end of this book.
Like its predecessor, at only 320 pages it makes a quick and interesting read. As one of the few sequels I've ever read which isn't a let down from the book it follows, I highly recommend it as well as the rest of the series.
Rated by buyers -
Asimov has crafted a sci-fi masterpiece in this novel. It is this novel that takes the Foundation series to a new level of brilliance. While the original novel is strong, this book is stronger. One advanatage of this book over its predecessor is that it is a single story as opposed to a series of novellas. This yields greater investment in the characters as they develop throughout the book. Asimov displays here all the attributes that have earned him monolithic status among sci-fi writers--unforgettable characters, ahead-of-his-time technology, and an entrancing plot with endless twists and turns. Essential reading for sci-fi fans.
Rated by buyers -
Foundation And Empire, by Isaac Asimov is the second book in the original Foundation trilogy, which won a Hugo Award in 1965 for Best All-Time Series. It follows much the same narrative structure as the very first book, Foundation, save that the book has only two `books', to the original's five, which allows for less epic scene setting, and much more character development. And don't let some of the books' critics fool you. The characterizations in these books are wonderful, deep, and complex. They simply are not done in the usual ways. They use a characterization style I term `silhouetting', wherein characters are portrayed not so much by what they do as the important things they do not do, or that which is not described in `on stage' actions. This book, though, is not merely a continuation of the very first book, but an expansion of its themes, which includes some more detailed characterization.
The very first book set up the history of a senescent galactic Empire on the verge of tottering into oblivion and thirty thousand years of barbarism. A scientist named Hari Seldon attempts to shorten that Imperial interregnum by establishing two Foundations on either end of the galaxy, ostensibly to compile an Encyclopedia Galactica. In reality these two Foundations will be the cornerstones of the Second Empire, which Seldon's Psychohistory- a deterministic pseudoscience, predicts will cut the interregnum down to s ingle millennium. By the very first book's end the very first Foundation, on the planet Terminus, has survived several `Seldon Crises' via his holographic intervention, which helps the Foundation outwit its enemies, and the work of legendary leaders- Salvor Hardin and Hober Mallow, and a few centuries in to its existence seems poised to actually take on and destroy the ruined Empire.
This is where Foundation And Empire starts....the book is relatively easy to get into- even if you've not read the very first book. That's because Asimov's style of the pseudo historical work allows for quick recaps (in the old movie serial vein), and the fact that each chapter within each book has new characters and situations means that they can stand alone, even as they add to the overall tapestry. Asimov also makes a wise dramatic choice in The Mule section. By spending a book and a half showing Psychohistory's upside, and proving its internal `validity', the second half of Foundation And Empire shows the downside of lulling oneself into a false sense of security, as well the consequences that coyuld await the Foundation if it falls the same way the Empire did. The funereal descriptions of Trantor contrast vividly with the awesome complexity that opens the very first book of the trilogy. Then, the Empire seemed impervious. Yet, Asimov is so good a writer that he rarely lapses into caricature. Even The Mule is sympathetic, when we understand his drive to prove himself. Even more interesting is that he seems no worse than the old Emperors, nor even the dynastic heirs of the current Foundation. With his powers his Second Empire might even be better than the Seldonian one. Yet, lacking an heir- due to his sterility. and his own powers, it would seem likely that even greater chaos would befall the galaxy upon his death.
This begs the question that seems to be central to the trilogy: `What place does the individual have in the overall scheme of things?', or, more succinctly, `Does an individual matter?' The Mule seems to be a resounding answer of YES! He also seemingly cuts to the dubious heart of Psychohistory, which is based upon the well known Fallacy Of Uninterrupted Trends. Because of these philosophical depths, wonderfully concise and spare writing which does not bore one silly with extraneous detail, but a lean, clean narrative line, excellent characterizations, and an ability to deliver a twist ending many mystery writers would envy, Foundation And Empire ranks as a truly great novel, even outside its genre. Only readers addicted to the modern need to reveal why everything is, in excruciating detail, and to have mere action, action, action on every page, will not recognize this as not only great sci fi, but great literature. Asimov, too, deserves the label as a great writer. As The Mule might say: On to Second Foundation!
Rated by buyers -
Great book! Second in the series of three novels, all three are worth the read. I read all three in about two and half weeks. It might be interesting to read them in conjunction with Kuhn's Structures of Scientific Revolutions. Every "Seldon Crisis" brings about a "new world". Really fun stuff. Don't miss out!
Rated by buyers 
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Rescued from two-star "waste of time" by a surprise twist close to the end. Episodic plot, weak character development, stilted dialogue, meek action and little humour or passion; frankly this series is just not that well written. I'd expected more from such a big-name writer. I'll finish it out to see how the twist plays out, but don't expect much.
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