“I cannot say what I feel in any human sense, Partner Elijah. I can say, however, that the sight of you seems to make my thoughts flow more easily, and the gravitational pull on my body seems to assault my senses with lesser insistence."Ahh.. good old R. Daneel Olivaw, how I have missed you.It has been decades since I read anything by Isaac Asimov. When I started reading sci-fi in my teens Asimov was the go-to author for new readers. I was not quite ready for Heinlein or Clarke but Asimov’s The Foundation Trilogy and his robot stories and novels were just the thing to start a life long devotion to the genre. Of course I went on to read many other sf authors and for some reason I completely missed Asimov’s later works from 1980 onward. So I have no idea how his return to the Foundation universe went, and of course I have not read The Robots of Dawn.This later robot novel from 1984 is a belated sequel to The Caves of Steel and The Naked Sun, two beloved whodunit robot novels from the 50s. So once again ace detective Elijah Baley of that dreadful plebeian planet called Earth is called upon solve a seemingly impossible murder on another planet (human occupied). The difference is this time it is a “roboticide” where a “humaniform” robot is murdered rendered permanently inoperative (I love Asimov’s neologism, nothing to figure out). Also back is the excellent R. Daneel Olivaw, the first humaniform and really almost human robot, and introducing Giskard, another friendly and loyal robot who unlike Daneel is “robot in form” with glowing eyes.As with the aforementioned Elijah Baley books the good doctor used a crime fiction template for this novel. I think the style here is more reminiscent of P.D. James than Agatha Christie, with slower pace and a lot of dialogue. The science fiction aspect of it is not neglected however, Asimov’s world building and attention to details is legendary. He did not disappoint here with his depiction of a future human colony planet. Even the toilets are interesting, I can just imagine some very relaxing time there. As a slothful potato couch I would love to live in Aurora where tons of robots are at the beg and call of everybody.While Asimov’s straightforward, smooth and friendly prose style brings back memories of my early days as a sci-fi reader, the differences are quite startling. For a start this book is very dialogue heavy. There are pages and pages of just two characters discussing robotics, politics and whatnot from all possible angles. It does drag the book’s momentum and at times and I found it to be occasionally tiring to read, not tiresome but tiring. Baley just grinds and grinds away at the suspects hoping they will let slip something that will incriminate them like some kind of futuristic Columbo. These grilling sessions are not actually awful, they are quite well written but they do seem to be interminable after a while. I am surprised the suspects do not simply confess to everything just to shut him up.Another thing that surprised me is the discussion of sex and even the inclusion of a mildly erotic scene. This is not a complaint however, it is just very different from the Asimov of my teen years. This is a much more adult book than Asimov's Golden Age classics. There are even some philosophical passages like "Are there Laws of Humanics as there are Laws of Robotics? How many Laws of Humanics might there be and how can they be expressed mathematically?"Interestingly some of the technology seems a little dated in these days of wireless internet. The robots actually speak to each other verbally rather than communicating via wi-fi or something similar. Navigation is also done by preloaded maps rather than some kind of GPS. The robots even drive vehicles rather than having AI built into them for completely hand-free driving. This is not a criticism of Asimov however, he was a scientist, not a fortune teller. I just find it interesting how the future is turning out in actuality in comparison to Asimov’s speculation.One thing I particularly like about Asimov’s robots above other authors’ depiction of AI characters is the robotness of them. Their “somewhat stilted way with the language” as Asimov described, and their adherence to and interpretations of The Three Laws of Robotics . Nowadays sci-fi authors tend to portray robots (or AI) as speaking exactly like people normally do. Yes, I can imagine this being the case with very advanced AI, but Asimov’s robots have the sense of otherness that makes them somehow more believable. Fans of Asimov’s robot books will be delighted by the references to Susan Calvin and one of the most memorable stories from I, Robot, and the reference to The Bicentennial Man. A tenuous link to the Foundation series is also introduced through the initial development of psychohistory. If you ever wondered why there are no robots in The Foundation Trilogy the answer is given here. In spite of my quibbles with some of the pacing I really enjoyed this book, and coming back to Asimov after all these years. Now I feel an urge to reread the original Foundation Trilogy plus the subsequent Foundation volumes from the 80s. Also a reread of the old Elijah Baley novels and robot short stories. With all that in my TBR I’d be lucky to squeeze in books by anybody else.
I think that I would have really liked to know Isaac Asimov. I am usually too lazy to add photos into my reviews (Applause for all you creative types out there!) but I had to share this photo from the jacket of my book: I mean, Jehoshaphat! Have mutton chops, nerd glasses, and a bolo tie ever been so adorable? I know I don’t think so. He was, by all accounts, an incredibly brainy person (He was the vice-president of Mensa!), but, to me, his humble, plain-speaking nature really comes across in his novels. His stories are unadorned and simply told, but I always have fun with the logical gymnastics that his characters run through. These mysteries aren’t exactly dramatic or emotional. He even manages to have a whole plot line involving a robot – human marriage and one woman’s sexual awakening and make it seem tasteful and innocent (and just a bit dry). But, I always enjoy going along with unassuming (like a fox) plainclothesman Elijah Baley and humaniform robot Daneel Olivaw as they solve mysteries using basic logic. This particular mystery once again involves those pesky three laws of robotics, which seemed like such a great idea at the time, but have turned out to have a few annoying loopholes and caveats. Baley is called to the first settled planet, Aurora, to help solve the “roboticide” of the only other existing humaniform robot (besides Daneel), Jander Panell. No one seems to care about Jander’s demise, but Earth’s entire future may be resting on Baley’s success or failure to solve this mystery. Baley, a lifetime Earthman and inhabitant of Earth’s now crowded underground cities, has deeply rooted fears of the outside. But he knows that the only chance that Earth’s people have to survive is to leave and colonize other planets. The spacer world leaders have other plans, however: intense prejudice against Earth’s people has led to strict limitation of Earth’s expansion.Has anyone else ever played that game called “Mind Trap?”* The game is very basic and consists of these little cards with riddles and puzzles on them for the players to solve. I only mention it because the reason that I love that game is precisely the reason that I love these books. I like pitting myself against the mysteries set up by Asimov to see if I can solve them before the main character does. For the record, the score stands at Catie: 1, Elijah Baley: 2. I figured out the endgame of The Naked Sun before good ol’ Lije, but the other two were a surprise (although I did have the “murderer” pegged almost immediately in this one, without knowing why or how). I think that anyone that reads this type of book knows that it’s much more satisfying to be beaten soundly. I guess that’s not the only reason that I love these books. Asimov always provides some very interesting food for thought. Like, when exactly does a humaniform robot become human enough to actually be human? And, are there some aspects of human nature that are so ingrained and universal that no amount of isolated evolution can eliminate them?Perfect Musical PairingJohann Sebastian Bach - Brandenburg Concerto 3 I generally like the romantics much more than the composers from the baroque period (not a big fan of organ or harpsichord), but this piece is nimble and energetic. It may not have the sweeping emotional impact on me that some of the romantic composers do, but I remember that it’s a whole lot of fun to play (even though my playing days are long over).*Bonus MindTrap Riddles (for all you nerds out there)!Captain Frank and Professor Quantum played chess. They played seven games, each won the same number of games, and there weren’t any draws or stalemates. How could this have happened?(view spoiler)[They weren’t playing each other! (hide spoiler)]
What do You think about The Robots Of Dawn (1994)?
I'm a fan of Isaac Asimov: for that reason, I do NOT recommend this book. I do like the basic story, when you can find it.This is the third in a series of SF/whodunit/Robot books. It started with Caves of Steel and The Naked Sun, written in the ‘50s. This one was written 30 years later. We have the detective back, and a reuse of a couple characters previously encountered.He references a couple of his short stories/novellas as ancient folklore, which is entertaining for the fan.--He references “Liar” (compilation “I, Robot”), which is a fun story.--He indirectly references The Bicentennial Man (compilation “The Bicentennial Man and Other Stories,” expanded to the novel “The Positronic Man”): one person is called “Little Miss” and the statement “a robot that was supposed to have undergone ‘gradual humanization’." A more thought provoking story, if you allow it to be.--I think I’ve forgotten another that I noticed, but c’est la vie.He also references forward to the Foundation series. He speaks of human expansion to a galactic empire (currently Earth plus 50 planets inhabited) and references psychohistory. I particularly dislike the introduction of even the word “psychohistory” here, as I think it dilutes its use if one goes on to read the foundation series.Late in life he attempted to tie all his novels together into one continuous timeline, and it appears he had that in mind when he wrote this. To be blunt, I thought that was stupid, but that’s not why I disliked this novel.Long clinical type discussion of the sexual mores of the three planets involved. If you missed it the first time, or second time, or third time, don’t worry, he assumes you’re as slow as his detective seems to be on understanding these concepts. But don’t worry, he does throw in a real encounter, abstract enough to not be too ‘offensive’ and in such a way as to almost not be adultery, but at least he thinks of his wife momentarily (that is, he’s ill and isn’t quite sure it is real).The dichotomy of brilliance and ignorance of the detective bothered me. Too many tangential conversations annoyed me, as he did not have much time and wanted to keep his interviews focused.I don’t know how much of Asimov I’m going to re-read (I’ve read all of his SF and several of his mysteries), but it’s been a long time since I’ve read them, and I’m (for the most part) enjoying it. I believe you could probably skip this book and between the first two and the next/last of the Robot SF/Mystery series (Robots and Empire) you could fill in all the blanks.What is sort of enjoyable is these are also, sometimes, referred to as the Lije Baley novels (or Elijah Baley novels) even though the last only has his influence and not his character, since he dies prior to the timeline of the last book.
—Jim
SO UR WIT UR GURL AND U SAY HEY ASSMOD IS AMAING CUZ IN 50 51 AN 52 HE CRET GALAZY SAGA SCAPE OR CURRENTS AND PUBBLE! AND SHE SEI YEAH! BUT THEN YOU SAY ASSMOD ALSO DID ROBOT SERISE ABOT I BOT, IN 50 STEEL CAVVS AND NADIK SUNN IN 51 AND 52! AND HOW IT POST WW2 GENUIS SPAC EXPORITTING, AND UR GURL IS ALL ON TOP OF U LEIK YEAAH ASSMOD IS DA BEST!!! BUT DEEEEEEEEEEEN U TELL HER FONTAINSHION WUD LIKE 1950 4 1 1951 4 2 AND 1953 4 3!! HOW ASSMOD DO THAT?!?!? HE GENII SHE SAY AS SHE KISS U!!! U THROW IN THE END OF TURNINGTY IN THE 1950Z AND ASSMOD LEIK GOD-LEVEL NINJA JEWISH PEN SWORD VOO-DOO BULLSHIT WIZARD. NNUMBER 1!!!! BUT DEN ASSMOV CALL U ON THE FONE AND UR GURL STOP KISSI U AND SHE SAY...WAIT...WHY ASSMOD CALLIN U?!?!!? YOU PICK UP TH GFONE KINDA MAD AND ASSMOD SEY HEY IT 1981 AND I NED $$ SO NEW ROBOT SEQUAL 2 NEKKID SUN ABOUT GURL WHO TOUCHED CHEECK BY BOOK 1952 NOW 30 YEARS LATER HAD ORGANISM AN& MARY THE ROBOT CUZ SHE PUT ON ROBO-DICK AND SEXED THE ROBOT ALSO WITH GUYS HAVE SEX WIT GUY ROBOT WII ROBO-DICK AND INSECT IS OK WITH DAUGHTERS FROM YUNG AGE AN NO1 KARE AND THE MAIN CHARACTER ELIJAH CHEAT OF WIEF EVE WHEN SON SEY NO DAD DO NO CHEET ON MOM IN CHATTERP ONE OF THE BOOK, BUT ELIJAH CHEATS AND SAY JEHOSHAT LIKE 100 TIMES................AND YOU LIEK 'ASSMOD WHAT DA FUCK U DOINE?!;' BUT IT 2 LAET UR GURL LEAVE U SAY THAT ASSMOD IS CREEP AND SHE DOEN TIKE U LIEKK THA NO MOORE!?! ASSMOD HAD A G000B TIHNG BUT HE FUCK EEEYTING UP IN 1981.
—Austin Wright
An excellent extension of the Lije Bailey stories, easily the most enjoyable of the three (so far?) but for the added chapter almost clumsily tieing the series in to the Foundation/Empire timeline.The beauty of these novels is the multiple layers at which you can view them. At it's simplest form of detective fiction it is a wonderful read but as you layer on the philosphy and cultural studies aspects it grows it to much more.As I finish each Asimov work I am incredibly sad, it seems like there was never anybody who could write this genre as well as he did and quite possibly nobody who ever will. I shall just have to cherish the comparitively few novels (to the rest of published fiction) he did write.
—Tfitoby
