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A review by vcriveros
Prelude to Foundation by Isaac Asimov
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I grew up loving science fiction but I never clicked with Asimov's works. A friend recommended me this book and so I decided to give it a try, and holy shit, I loved it. Granted, the writing is not stylistically the best, but on the bright side, it's straight forward enough that for someone as me, for whom English is not their first language, it was easy enough to follow, working in my favour to help me focus on the plot.
I found Hari Seldon unlikable at first, to the point I had a couple of false starts before managing to get past the first fifty pages. Seldon is not only a bit naive but also plain and stubborn, with too much of a hero's complex that's frankly hilarious at times. This plainness ends up working well in the book, allowing more space for the plot and the intricacies of Trantor's politics, instead of focusing too much in the character development. You end up begrudgingly follow Sheldon's journey, and slowly growing fond of him. I loved the other characters, but they are all a bit unidimensional, which makes sense in the book and Asimov's style.
Halfway through the book I found myself really enjoying it, but it was the ending what stole my heart and makes me give it five stars. I haven't read the foundation main series to know all the implications of the ending, but within the book, it works really well. The plot twists are well forshadowed, so you can put some of the pieces together, but the whole picture still surprised me.
The book holds well enough to the passage of time, with some female characters that play important roles, and some reflections about sexism and the patriarchy, and classism and exclusion that are nuanced enough.
All in all, a fun read, with enough depth to pack some punch when it comes to the questions about humanity, development and power, and characters that work well enough in the context of the book.
I found Hari Seldon unlikable at first, to the point I had a couple of false starts before managing to get past the first fifty pages. Seldon is not only a bit naive but also plain and stubborn, with too much of a hero's complex that's frankly hilarious at times. This plainness ends up working well in the book, allowing more space for the plot and the intricacies of Trantor's politics, instead of focusing too much in the character development. You end up begrudgingly follow Sheldon's journey, and slowly growing fond of him. I loved the other characters, but they are all a bit unidimensional, which makes sense in the book and Asimov's style.
Halfway through the book I found myself really enjoying it, but it was the ending what stole my heart and makes me give it five stars. I haven't read the foundation main series to know all the implications of the ending, but within the book, it works really well. The plot twists are well forshadowed, so you can put some of the pieces together, but the whole picture still surprised me.
The book holds well enough to the passage of time, with some female characters that play important roles, and some reflections about sexism and the patriarchy, and classism and exclusion that are nuanced enough.
All in all, a fun read, with enough depth to pack some punch when it comes to the questions about humanity, development and power, and characters that work well enough in the context of the book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny and Sexism
Minor: Violence